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Other Literary Forms (Literary Essentials: Short Fiction Masterpieces)

JamesJoycesnameissynonymouswithtwentiethcenturyfiction,toarevolutioninwhichhedevoted
himselfwithremarkablesinglemindedness.Theresultsaretobefoundinthreeextremelyinfluentialworks
offictionAPortraitoftheArtistasaYoungMan(19141915,serial1916,book),Ulysses(1922),and
FinnegansWake(1939).Thoughhisworkinothergenresisofmuchlesssignificance,Joycealsowrotetwo
booksofpoetry,aswellasoneplay.Hisyouthfulcriticalessays,crucialtoanunderstandingofhisartistic
origins,werecollectedposthumouslyandeditedbyRichardEllmannandEllsworthMasonasTheCritical
WritingsofJamesJoyce(1959).TherawmaterialforAPortraitoftheArtistasaYoungMan,editedby
TheodoreSpencer,wasalsopublishedposthumouslyasStephenHero(1944).
James Joyce Achievements (Literary Essentials: Short Fiction Masterpieces)
JamesJoyceisacknowledgedbymanyasthetwentiethcenturysgreatestproseartistandisalso,arguably,
thatcenturysmostfamousauthor.Despitehissmalloutputandtheincreasingdifficultyofhisworks,Joyces
namestandsasamonumenttocommitmentandartisticintegrity.SincetheendofWorldWarII,therehas
hardlybeenanovelistintheWestwhohasnotfeltJoycesinfluence.Continuinginterestinhiscomplexmind
andworkissustainedbyavastarrayofacademiccommentators.
ThereasonsforJoyceseminencearenothardtofind.Eachofhisworks,beginningwiththeshortstoriesof
Dubliners,isnotableforitsstartlingoriginalityoflanguageandconception.Hisfiction,moreover,placedhis
nativecity,Dublin,indeliblyonthemapoftheworldsculture.Hislife,acontinualstruggleagainstillhealth,
exile,andthealmosttotalneglectofpublishers,hascometobeperceivedasaneloquentexpressionofself
determinationinanageoftotalitarianconformity.
James Joyce Other literary forms (Survey of Novels and Novellas)
JamesJoycecommencedhisliterarycareerasapoet,essayist,anddramatist,undertheinfluencesofWilliam
ButlerYeatsandHenrikIbsen,respectively.HisCollectedPoems(1936)containsChamberMusic(1907),
thirtysixlyricswrittenbefore1904,andPomesPenyeach(1927),elevenpoemswrittenafterhehadmadehis
commitmenttoprosefiction.Hisfirstpublishedessay,IbsensNewDrama(1900),announcedhis
admirationfortheNorwegiandramatistthesameattitudeisimpliedinhisonlyoriginalsurvivingplay,Exiles
(pb.1918).
Miscellaneousliteraryessays,programandlecturenotes,reviews,journalism,andtwobroadsidesare
collectedinTheCriticalWritingsofJamesJoyce(1959).JoycescorrespondenceiscontainedinLettersof
JamesJoyce(19571966),withsomeadditionsinSelectedLettersofJamesJoyce(1975).
ThroughthecompilationoffifteenshortstoriesinDubliners(1914),writtenbetween1904and1907,Joyce
discernedhismtier.Thisapparentlyrandom,realisticserieswasthefirstannouncementofitsauthors
singulargenius.Whilethevolumeretainsascrupulouslymeanaccuracyinregardtonaturalisticdetail,it
alsoincorporatesamultiplicityofcomplexsymbolicpatterns.Anephemeralstory,GiacomoJoyce(1918),
waswrittenashecompletedAPortraitoftheArtistasaYoungManandbeganUlyssesin1914.The
collaborationofseveraleditorshasproducedinfacsimilealmosttheentireJoyceworkshopnotes,drafts,
manuscripts,typescripts,andproofsinsixtyfourvolumes(TheJamesJoyceArchives,19771979),a
projectofunprecedentedmagnitudeforanytwentiethcenturyauthor.
James Joyce Achievements (Survey of Novels and Novellas)

Fromthebeginningofhisliterarycareer,JamesJoycewasthemostdistinctivefigureintherenaissancethat
occurredinIrishculturallifeafterthedeathofCharlesStewartParnell.DespitehisearlyquarrelswithYeats,
JohnMillingtonSynge,andotherleadersoftheIrishLiteraryRevival,andhissubsequentpermanentexile,he
isclearly,withYeats,itspresidinggenius.Fromthefirst,hesethimselftoliberateIreland,notbyreturningto
CelticmythsortheGaeliclanguageandfolklore,butbyEuropeanizingitsculturalinstitutions.Hisearly
storiesareanexorcismofthespiritofparalysishefeltabouthimselfintheDublinofhisyouth.Ashegained
detachmentfromtheseobstaclesandknowledgeofhisowncapacitiesasawriterofprosefiction,he
producedtwooftheundisputedmasterworksofmodernliterature,APortraitoftheArtistasaYoungMan
andUlysses,aswellasafinalworkthatisperhapsbeyondcriticism,FinnegansWake.
Throughoutthisdevelopment,Joycesthemesandsubjectsremainthesame,yethismeansbecomemore
overtlycomplex:thefabulouscomedy,themultivalentlanguage,andthevastdesignofUlyssesand
FinnegansWakearestrandsinthereversesideofthesedulouslyrestrainedtapestryofDublinersandA
PortraitoftheArtistasaYoungMan.
Joycescastofcharactersissmall,hisDublinsettingsbarelychangefromworktowork,heobserves
repeatedlycertainarchetypalconflictsbeneaththeappearancesofdailylife,andhisfictionismarkedby
certainobsessionsofhisclass,religion,andnationality.Yethissinglemindedness,hiswidelearningin
Europeanliterature,hiscomprehensivegraspoftheintellectualcurrentsoftheage,hisbroadcomicvision,
hisvasttechnicalskills,andaboveall,hisunequaledmasteryoflanguage,makehimatonceaEuropeanizer
ofIrishliterature,aHibernicizerofEuropeanliterature,andamodernizerofworldliterature.
James Joyce Other literary forms (British and Irish Poetry, Revised Edition)
AlthoughJamesJoycepublishedpoetrythroughouthiscareer(ChamberMusic,agroupofthirtysixrelated
poems,wasinfacthisfirstpublishedbook),itisforhisnovelsandshortstoriesthatheisprimarilyknown.
TheseworksincludeDubliners(1914),avolumeofshortstoriesdescribingwhatJoycesawasthemoral
paralysisofhiscountrymenAPortraitoftheArtistasaYoungMan(1916),aheavilyautobiographical
accountofthegrowingupofawriterinIrelandattheendofthenineteenthcenturyandthebeginningofthe
twentiethUlysses(1922),anovelsetinDublinin1904,recountingthedaylongadventuresofLeopold
Bloom,amoderndayOdysseuswhoisbothadvertisingmanandcuckold,StephenDedalus,theyoungartist
ofAPortraitoftheArtistasaYoungMannowgrownsomewhatolder,andMollyBloom,Leopoldsearthy
wifeandFinnegansWake(1939),Joyceslastpublishedwork,notanovelatallintheconventionalsense,
butaworldinitself,builtofmanylanguagesandinhabitedbytheparadigmaticEarwickerfamily.
James Joyce Achievements (British and Irish Poetry, Revised Edition)
JamesJoycesproseworksestablishedhisreputationasthemostinfluentialwriteroffictionofhisgeneration
andledEnglishprosefictionfromVictorianismintomodernismandbeyond.Tothisbodyofwork,Joyces
poetryisanaddendumoflessinterestinitselfthanitisinrelationshiptotheother,moreimportant,work.At
thesametime,intheanalysisofJoycesachievement,itisimpossibletoignoreanythingthathewrote,and
thepoetry,forwhichJoycereservedsomeofhismostpersonalutterances,hasitsplacealongwiththeplay
Exiles(pb.1918)nowseenasmoreimportantthanitoncewasandtheessays,letters,andnotebooks.
James Joyce Discussion Topics (Masterpieces of World Literature, Critical
Edition)

WhyisitunwisetomakegeneralizationsaboutJamesJoycesstyle?
EpiphanyisoneofanumberofreligioustermsthatJoyceappropriated.Discusshowheadaptedittohis
literaryneeds.
WhichofJoycesideasanddepictionsofDublinwouldyouexpecttheIrishtofavorandwhichtoresist?

WhatisyourinterpretationofStephensintentiontoforgeinthesmithyofmysoultheuncreatedconscience
ofmyrace?
WhatdoesUlyssesgainbybeingbasedonHomersOdyssey?
DothedifficultiesofFinnegansWakemakeitinaccessibletoanyonewhoisnotaliteraryscholar?
James Joyce Bibliography (Critical Guide to Censorship and Literature)
Alter,Robert.CanonandCreativity:ModernWritingandtheAuthorityofScripture.NewHaven,Conn.:Yale
UniversityPress,2000.AlucidargumentforthecomplexinfluencethattheBiblehasexertedonthree
importantanddiverseauthors:FranzKafka,HayyimHahmanBialik,andJamesJoyce.Forareviewofthis
workseeMagillsLiteraryAnnualreview.
Attridge,Derek,ed.TheCambridgeCompaniontoJamesJoyce.Cambridge,England:CambridgeUniversity
Press,1990.AcollectionofelevenessaysbyeminentcontemporaryJoycescholars.SurveystheJoyce
phenomenonfromcultural,textual,andcriticalstandpoints,withUlyssesandFinnegansWakeeachgivena
separateessay.Avaluableaidandstimulus,containingachronologyofJoyceslifeandannotated
bibliography.
Beck,Warren.JoycesDubliners:Substance,Vision,Art.Durham,N.C.:DukeUniversityPress,1969.An
extremelycomprehensivestudyofDubliners.Afteralengthyintroduction,eachofJoycesstoriesis
examinedinturn.TheauthorsapproachisessentiallythatoftheNewCritics.Thetextsarecombed
thoroughlyfortheirverbalpossibilities,resultinginbothexhaustiveanddutifulreadings.
Benstock,Bernard.NarrativeCon/TextsinDubliners.Urbana:UniversityofIllinoisPress,1994.Includes
analysesofnarrativeprinciples,symbolicsystems,theologicalcontexts,andavarietyofthemesand
techniquesinDubliners.
Blades,John.HowtoStudyJamesJoyce.Houndmills,England:Macmillan,1996.Anexcellentstudyguide
forstudentsofJoyce.Includesbibliographicalreference,outlines,andsyllabi.
Bosinelli,RosaM.Bollettieri,andHaroldF.Mosher,Jr.,eds.ReJoycing:NewReadingsofDubliners.
Lexington:TheUniversityPressofKentucky,1998.FourteennewessaysonDublinersthatargueJoyce
questionedliterary,cultural,andpoliticaldevelopmentsofhistime.Theessaysexaminethemes,style,
intertexuality,politics,linguistics,andgenderconflictsinJoycesstories.
Brunsdale,MitziM.JamesJoyce:AStudyoftheShortFiction.NewYork:Twayne,1993.Ageneral
introductiontoJoycesstories,focusingonthefivemostfamiliarstoriesfromDubliners.Alsoincludes
excerptsfromJoycesownnonfictioncriticismandfromothercritics.
Cheng,VincentJ.Joyce,Race,andEmpire.Cambridge,England:CambridgeUniversityPress,1995.Astudy
ofraceandimperialism,ethnicityandpoliticalpower,inJoycesworks.Arguesthatthereligious,patriarchal,
andracistmetaphorsinDublinersrepresentIrelandscolonialrelationshipwithEngland.Discussesstoriesas
dramatizationsofhowthecolonizedyearntoreplicatethecolonizersscoldsGabrielinTheDeadforhis
patriarchalalliancewiththeBritish.
Costello,Peter.JamesJoyce:TheYearsofGrowth,18821915.NewYork:PantheonBooks,1993.Fora
reviewofthisworkseeMagillsLiteraryAnnualreview.
Ellmann,Richard.JamesJoyce.1959.2ded.NewYork:OxfordUniversityPress,1984.Thedefinitive
biography,generallyregardedasthelastwordonitssubjectslifeandwidelyconsideredasthegreatest
literarybiographyofthetwentiethcentury.Copiouslyannotatedandwellillustrated,particularlyinthe1984
edition.ContainsaconsiderableamountofinformativebackgroundonthecharactersofDublinersandtheir
contexts.OfparticularinterestisthechapterentitledTheBackgroundsofTheDead.

Fargnoli,Nicholas,andMichaelP.Gillespie.JamesJoyceAtoZ:TheEssentialReferencetotheLifeand
Work.NewYork:OxfordUniversityPress,1995.Adictionarytypereferencebookwithapproximatelyeight
hundredentriesoncharacters,concepts,locales,terminology,andcriticsofJoyce.
Gillespie,MichaelPatrick,andPaulaF.Gillespie.RecentCriticismofJamesJoycesUlysses:An
AnalyticalReview.Rochester,N.Y.:CamdenHouse,2000.Asurveyof,withcommentaryon,Ulysses
scholarship,especiallysince1970.
Hart,Clive,ed.JamesJoycesDubliners:CriticalEssays.NewYork:Viking,1969.Arguablythesingle
mosthelpfulfulllengthworkonDubliners.Itconsistsofessaysoneachofthestories,eachbyadifferent
author.TheauthorsarefrequentlywellknownJoycescholars,suchasA.WaltonLitzandtheeditor.
Inevitably,themannerofcriticalapproachinthecaseofanumberoftheessaysissomewhatoutdated.
Jones,EllenCarol,andMorrisBeja,eds.TwentyfirstJoyce.Gainseville:UniversityPressofFlorida,2004.
Thisusefulreferenceworkcollects13scholarlyessayswrittenbyJoyceexperts.PartoftheFloridaJames
JoyceSeries.
Leonard,GarryM.ReadingDublinersAgain:ALacanianPerspective.Syracuse,N.Y.:Syracuse
UniversityPress,1993.UsingLacansFreudianapproachtolanguagesroleincreatingourexperienceof
reality,LeonardexaminesthestoriesinDubliners,urgingreaderstoexploretheirkinshipwiththemoral
paralysisofthecharacters.
McCourt,John.JamesJoyce:APassionateExile.NewYork:St.MartinsPress,2001.Photosandsketches
embellishthisaccountofthelife,times,relationships,andworksofJoyce.Excellentintroductorytext,
particularlyforitsillustrations.
McHugh,Roland.TheSiglaofFinnegansWake.Austin:UniversityofTexasPress,1976.Abrief
introductiontothecompositionalcharacterofFinnegansWake,withaninformal,refreshing,andvaluable
guidetoapproachingJoycesfinalwork.
Potts,Willard.JoyceandtheTwoIrelands.Austin:UniversityofTexas,2001.PottsalignsJoycewith
Catholicnativists,arguingthat,whilethenovelistrejectedCatholicism,histreatmentofindependenceand
industrializationbetrayasympathyforIrishnationalism.
Salgado,CsarAugusto.FromModernismtoNeobaroque:JoyceandLezamaLima.Lewisburg,Pa.:
BucknellUniversityPress,2001.Acomparisonofthetwowriters,chieflyforthepurposeofgivingthe
uninitiatedanopeningtothepeculiarworkofLezamaLima.SalgadoseekstointroduceLezamaLimatonew
readers,withouthishistoricalreputationasapolemicaloddityofthetropics.
Schwaber,Paul.TheCastofCharacters:AReadingofUlysses.NewHaven,Conn.:YaleUniversity,1999.A
literatureprofessorandapsychoanalyst,Schwaberusesknowledgefrombothfieldsinananalysisof
characterizationinUlysses.IlluminatesthepsychologicaldepthsofJoycescharacters.
Schwarz,DanielR.,ed.TheDeadbyJamesJoyce.NewYork:St.MartinsPress,1994.Acasebookof
essaysonTheDead,fromsuchcriticalperspectivesasreaderresponsetheory,newhistoricism,feminism,
deconstruction,andpsychoanalysis.
StudiesinShortFiction32(Summer,1995).AcollectionofsixteennewessaysonDubliners,alongwith
elevenreviewsofnewbooksonJoyce.IncludesgeneralessaysontechniquesandthemesofDublinersas
wellasanalysesofAraby,TheSisters,Grace,TheDead,anddiscussionscomparingJoycesstories
withthoseofWilliamTrevorandEdnaOBrien.
Theall,DonaldF.JamesJoycesTechnoPoetics.Toronto:UniversityofTorontoPress,1997.Representative
ofanewwingofJoycestudies,TheallsworkexaminesJoyceasaprogenitoroftodayscyberculture.
Includesbibliographyandindex.
Thornton,Weldon.VoicesandValuesinJoycesUlysses.UniversityPressofFlorida,2000.Ananti
relativisticstudyofthenovel.

Tymoczko,Maria.TheIrishUlysses.Berkeley:UniversityofCaliforniaPress,1994.Agroundbreakingwork
revealingthehithertooverlookedIrishmythologicalunderpinningofJoycesnovel.