Why should you read James Joyce's 'Ulysses'? - Sam Slote

James Joyce's “Ulysses” is widely considered to be both a literary masterpiece and one of the hardest works of literature to read. It inspires such devotion that once a year, thousands of people all over the world dress up like the characters, take to the streets, and read the book aloud. So what is it about this novel that inspires so many people? Sam Slote uncovers the allure of this epic tome.

Lesson by Sam Slote, directed by Paper Panther.

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[smaakjeks]

"If Ulysses isn't worth reading, then life isn't worth living" - Joyce
Well, we'd all like to write our own reviews.

[karmaic]

If anyone is looking to start reading "Ulysses", please read Joyce's other book "Dubliners" first. Dubliners has a few short stories which help you grasp the writing of Joyce. Then Ulysses will be (slightly) easier to read and comprehend.

[conorrooney]

I started reading Ulysses 15 years ago and am nearly one third the way through it.. I'm 40 now so I should get there before I die

[shoxruxturaev]

"If Ulysses isn't worth reading, then life isn't worth living".
Yeah i agree;
life isn't worth living.

[MNelson]

I've been reading "Ulysses" this year and I've needed a lot of help getting through it. Mostly, I've been listening to a lecture series from The Great Courses. If you look up Joyce's "Ulysses" by Professor James A.W. Heffernan, he gives a chapter by chapter analysis to help you understand what Joyce is saying. It's very helpful, and entertaining! Heffernan really knows his stuff and he's good at doing accents as they appear in the book.

Sorry for sounding like an ad, but the book is super challenging, and the lecture series made it a lot easier for me.

[chacarita]

If you want to read it, as I did, I advise you to buy one copy of Ulysess along with the books "Ulysses Annotated" by Don Gifford (which contains more than 8000 entries that explains historical and literary references within Ulysses) and "James Joyce's Ulysses: A Study" by Stuart Gilbert, which is a reading guide for the novel written by a personal friend of Joyce.

[dumpstercub]

Perfect for reading over the course of 15 years with the last page being read to the girl who told you to after trying to run away from home

[ShaudaySmith]

This made Joyce sound like a hipster laying down every cultural reference and joke he knows in a book and then got mad that no one got his reference or that his book didn't make sense. Joyce was hip before hip was hip.

[carl_hansson]

I think the best advice that I could give someone who wants to read Ulysses is:

1. Accept that you will not get everything. People have made it their entire job to study this book and try to understand it completely. You will not get everything on one pass. And that is okay, it makes it even more fun when (or maybe if...) you decide to read it again.

2. Read his earlier works: Dubliners and A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. This will get you used to his language and some themes and make it an easier start.

3. Get "Ulysses Annotated". This is like the encyclopedia of Ulysses. If you find something that you don't understand and want answered/explained then you will find it in this book.

4. If you feel like you have the energy you should read "The Odyssey" (and therefore also the prequel "The Iliad") by Homer. This may seem daunting but it is really rewarding. Just make sure to get a good and not overcomplicated translation.

With these things done and with the correct mindset of "I won't understand every detail" getting through this book, while not a breeze will be much easier.

It may seem like a lot of work (and it is) but I for one think reading ulysses for the first time is among the greatest literary experiences of my life and I hope it will be for you too.

Ps. If you get through Ulysses have a look at Finnegans Wake also by Joyce. If you think getting through Ulysses was hard try getting through the first page of that book.

[UnchainedCyclist]

A book so great, I’ve never met anyone who actually read it all the way through. And I have a degree in English literature.

[kaziislam]

They make it sound like Ulysses is the Dark Souls of books.

[britishparisian]

Can we just take a moment to appreciate the beauty, detail and elegance of the animation and music in the video. Well produced Ted-Ed ✨

[MA-zscu]

i feel so cultured by watching Ted-ed Videos

[oxytocinplz]

“My book is so detailed you could recreate a city from it!” “My book is as meaningful as life itself!” Yeah, Joyce sounds like he was a real joy to be around

[peterpuleo]

I tried to read Ulysses twice. The first time I made it to page 50, and returned it to the library. The second time I did rather better; I returned it after reading page 3.

[KevinGuyerPrime]

I've avoided the work for many decades, this video has convinced me that it is worth giving a genuine attempt. Thanks for sharing this.

[johnpotter]

I have participated in Bloomsday events over the years. The first thing that I realized is that the text is meant to be read aloud. Once I got that, I was happy to join reading groups. It is like the bit in "Educating Rita", when Rita's intellect and love of literature blooms and addresses the question of "How to Stage Ibsen's Peer Gynt"? Put it on the radio.

[PandaBeatsStudios]

I really love this “Why you should read” series, I end up reading the books in those videos. Keep it up!

[yuda]

You just convinced me to read Ulysses. It is almost unbelievable that a human wrote such a masterwork as you've described it. Thank you.

[leitecunha]

Indeed Ulysses is hard to read... but hey, imagine how hard it was for Ulysses to come back home from Troy! And that's how I read it...every chapter, an adventure, with perils and hardship. For instance, it is very hard to pass the sirens chapter... You get super distracted but the sounds, the rhymes, the alliterations...that you can't pay attention to the story. Pretty much like when Ulysses had to past through the sirens in his own journey....In a nutshell, when you overcome the whole book, it's bliss. Unforgettable. Trust me, you'll never read any other book the same way, after this journey.