15.Circe

In this episode of the Odyssey Odysseus and his men land on Circe’s island, Odysseus divides his crew into 2 groups one under his leadership, the other under Eurylochus, who tries to warn Odysseus. Hermes gives him an herb moly, to protect him against Circes magic and tells Odysseus that he must make Circe swear to release his men and to perform “no witches tricks,” lest he too be UNMANNED by her. She keeps her oath and entertains them for a year.

We find ourselves in nighttown (slang among Dublin journalists for the late shift on a newspaper- which sets the play for the literary elements). It is no coincidence that a chapter like this starts with Stephen discussing language:

STEPHEN: (Looks behind.) So that gesture, not music, not odours, would be a universal language, the gift of tongues rendering visible not the lay sense but the first entelechy, the structural rhythm.

LYNCH: Pornosophical philotheology. Metaphysics in Mecklenburg Street!

This seems to be the most prospective and foreshadowed chapter in the whole book. On the 3rd page Stephen foreshadows Bloom’s horrific ordeal, as well as the goings on of a brothel: “We have shrewridden Shakespeare and henpecked Socrates. Even the allwisest stagyrite was bitted, bridled and mounted by a light of love.” (432) There are also thematic ties and reappearances, such as the bread, that Stephen didn’t partake of, but which he mentions and Bloom carries in his pocket with the chocolate.

The time is 12 midnight and Bloom follows Stephen to the brothel, Mrs. Cohen’s establishment at 82 Tyrone Street.
The art: Magic,
Symbol: Whore,
Technique: Hallucination.

Blamires takes issue with this chapter as he did with the Oxen of the Sun chapter- “It is doubtful whether much is done in this episode, in the way of materializing imagery and concretizing mental sequences…” (159) It does seem to be an odd stretch in many different directions. First of all it is in play form. This is not incongruous in and of itself, yet it could be a book of its own, at a whopping 280 pages. It descends into fantasy and hallucination focusing on gender and the animalistic aspects of the Circe episode and the characters in this part of Ulysses. This reads less like a rehearsed play and more like a raucous rehearsal. Bloom seems to temporarily sink into delusions and then re-surface to reality. The scenes that take place in Bloom’s hallucinations are very fetishized and masochistic.
On 481 the millionaire is defined as "Richly", the noblewoman is defined as "nobly", and finally the feminist is described as "Masculinely". An odd juxtaposition.

One of the more farfetched moments in this chapter is when Bloom recalls meeting Stephen in Oxen of the Sun, at the Hospital, as “Kismet”

THEMES:

THE (PARETHETICALS):
These parenthetical serve as stage directions and let the reader into their facial expressions.

SACRAMENT (BREAD):
(433) A page full of references to bread…

TWINS/DOUBLING/DUALITY OF IDENTITY/CLOAKING:
(433)
(455) Bloom + Henry Flowers
(456) Martha + Peggy Griffin
Merging of titles: “Zoe-Fanny/ Florry-Teresa/” (509)
(488)Cloaking- clothing- uniforms-
(493) “Bisexuality abnormal.” Dr. Mulligan asserts that Bloom is not healthy
(553) “As if you didn’t get it on the double yourselves. No jerks and multiple mucosities all over you.”

THE # 3:
(435) “Third time is the charm.”
(460) 3 female accusers
3 whores
ALLURE OF WOMEN:

MATRONS:
Mrs. Breen 443 “now don’t tell a fib! I know somebody won’t like that. O just wait till I see Molly! (Slily) account for yourself this very minute or woe betide you!”
Bella

EXOTICIZING/DOMINATION OVER/OF WOMEN:
(439) “A coin gleams on her forehead. On her feet are jewelled toerings. Her ankles are linked by a slender fetterchain. Beside her a camel, hooded with a turreting turban, awaits.
(467) Mrs. Bellingham is in “Amazon costume.”

SIGHT/EYES:
563- blind man

THE COLOR BLUE – ON WOMEN:
[The Virgin Mary]
[Gerty]
[Mrs. Breen] “(In a onepiece evening frock executed in moonlight blue…” (445)
[Zoe Higgins] “Zoe Higgins, a young whore in a sapphire slip, closed with three bronze buckles, a slim black velvet fillet round her throat, nods, trips don the steps to accost them.” (475)
[The princess Selene] “in moonblue robes, a silver crescent on her head, descends from a sedan chair, borne by two giants. An outburst of cheering.” (483)

GRANDMOTHERS- FAMILIAL TIES:
Stephen’s favorite whore Georgina Johnson (559) could represent his grandmother, and Zoe () represents Bloom’s grandmother: “

MAKING THE WOMEN MASCULINE:
(481) The feminist
Bella becomes Bello

MAKING THE MEN FEMININE:
Bloom is about to have a baby “O, I so want to be a mother.” (494)

ECHOES OF MACBETH:
(508) The three weird sisters- The three whores
PERSONIFICATION:
The soap
The cap
A hollybush
A crab
The end of the world
The gramophone
The sins of the past

LAMENESS:
Florry’s foot falls asleep and she limps- echoes Gerty.

ECHOES OF THE SONGS MOLLY SINGS:
(441): “Are you sure about that Voglio? I mean the pronunciati” This echoes Molly’s song

THE BOOK FOR MOLLY- SWEETS OF SIN:

THE GOLD CUP RACE:
Bloom recalls how “Molly won seven shillings on a three year old named nevertall…” (448) All the names of the horses are very obvious- Throwaway (Bloom), Sceptre (Boylan), and nevertell (the affair)

THE DOG/GOD/THE CLERGY:

JOURNALISM/ LITERARINESS:
(458) Bloom lies about his occupation: “Well, I follow a literary occupation. Author-journalist. In fact we are bringing out a collection of prize stories of which I am an inventor, something that is an entirely new departure. I am connected with the British and Irish press. If you ring up…”
(467) Bloom is charged with writing lewd letter (a literary form) to women like Martha.

JINGLING:
Molly’s bed
Boylan’s cab
(467) The Honourable Mrs. Mervyn Talboys’s spurs

THE TIME PIECE- THE CUCKOO CLOCK:
Nausicaa chapter
(469) Timepiece

PEOPLE CUEING BLOOM TO GIVE A SPEECH:
(478) “Go on. Make a stump speech out of it.”