I am currently in the process of reading James Joyce's 'Ulysses', a dauntingly hefty piece of literature that I must admit I'm struggling through. Currently I'm only about 250 pages into it, and have enjoyed sections of it immensely but have struggled to stay with the flow of writing in other sections. I thought that having visited Dublin, I might find this more of an enjoyable read, but maybe I haven't got to the section which took place in the parts I visited yet. Who knows? What I am rapidly realising is that I am someone who enjoys reading novels for their stories, and the plot, rather than for the depth and meaning in the language. As I understand it, Ulysses is meant to be read with the understanding of the 'flow of consciousness'; dipping in and out of the narrator's thoughts, what they hear, what they say, thoughts that merge midway through a sentence, interruptions, distractions etc. And in sections of the novel, I can appreciate being 'inside someone's head' but at other times, it frustrates me as it doesn't add to the 'story'.
This is a mid-novel moan. I'm hoping that I'll get back into the swing of the writing soon and who knows, maybe I'll end up loving it. I mean, people clearly do love this book, if the droves of tourists who were on a Ulysses tour in Dublin are anything to go by!
I had to read sections of Ulysses for some classes, and I'm not sure if it was the topics of the chapters that I read that I found uncomfortable, or if it is just my general dislike of stream of consciousness. Kudos to you for reading it! Let me know if it was worth it! :-)
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