The proverbial Ulysses
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17398/2660-7301.49.307Keywords:
Characterization, Stream-of-Consciousness, Paremiology, Proverbs, UlyssesAbstract
This article examines Joyce’s integration of proverbs as a narrative and characterological tool, revealing their role in enhancing the novel’s complexity. By analyzing the frequency and context of proverbs in Ulysses—particularly within its stream-of-consciousness passages—this study highlights how Joyce employs proverbs beyond their conventional argumentative use in dialogue. The study identifies 182 proverbial references, demonstrating Joyce’s strategic placement of proverbs to provide sociocultural and psychological depth to his characters, notably L. Bloom, S. Dedalus, Molly, and Zoe. In Bloom’s case, frequent proverbial references offer insight into his worldview and personality, sometimes relying on them as justification for his actions. Conversely, Stephen’s sparse use of proverbs underscores his intellectualism and calculated detachment from folk wisdom. Moreover, there seems to be a gender bias when comparing the use of proverbs that Bloom and Dedalus make against that of Zoe and Molly, serving as an example of the suitability of proverbs as sociocultural markers in characterization. As shown in this study, Joyce’s use of proverbs in Ulysses is a deliberate literary technique that enriches character development and narrative texture, inviting readers to engage with the intricate interplay between popular wisdom and literary sophistication.
Downloads
References
BOQUERA MATARREDONA, María (1994): «La traducción al español de paremias en The Pickwick papers: Refranes y proverbios». Paremia, 3, 89-96.
BOWLING, Lawrence E. (1950): «What is the stream of consciousness technique?». PMLA, 65.4, 333-345: https://doi.org/10.2307/459641.
CARSON-WILLIAMS, Fionnuala (1992): The Poolberg book of Irish proverbs. Swords: Poolberg.
CHENEVIX TRENCH, Richard (1852): Proverbs and their lessons. London: J.W. Parker & Son (4.ª ed.).
CORPAS PASTOR, Gloria (1996): Manual de fraseología española. Madrid: Gredos.
CREASY, Matthew (2008): «“To vary the timehonoured adage:” Ulysses and the proverb». English, 57, 65-81.
DAHL, Liisa (1972): «A comment on similarities between Édouard Dujardin’s “monologue intérieur” and James Joyce’s interior monologue». Neuphilologische Mitteilungen, 73.1/3, 45-54.
DEL GRECO LOBNER, Corinna (1983): «James Joyce and the Italian language». Italica, 60.2, 140-153.
DOBROVOL’SKIJ, Dmitrij and PIIRAINEN, Elisabeth (2005): Figurative language: Cross-cultural and cross-linguistic perspectives. Berlin: Elsevier.
DOODY, Terrence (1979): «Don Quixote, Ulysses, and the idea of realism». NOVEL, 12.3: 197-214.
DOWNING, Gregory M. (1998): «Richard Chenevix Trench and Joyce’s historical study of words». Joyce Studies Annual, 9, 37-68.
DOYLE, Charles et al. (2012): The dictionary of modern proverbs. New Haven: Yale UP.
ĎURČO, Peter (2014): «Empirical research and paremiological minimum». In Hrisztova-Gotthardt and Varga (2014: 183-205).
FIEDLER, Sabine (2007): English Phraseology: A coursebook. Tübingen: Gunter Narr.
GRANBOM-HERRANEN, Liisa (2010): «How do proverbs get their meanings? The model of interpretation based on a metaphor theory». Białostockie Archiwum Językowe, 10, 47-67: https://doi.org/10.15290/baj.2010.10.03.
GRAYSON, Thomas W. (1967): «James Joyce and Stephen Dedalus: The theory of aesthetics». James Joyce quarterly, 4.4, 310-319.
HICKEY, Raymond (2024): The Oxford handbook of Irish English. Oxford: OUP.
HONECK, Richard (1997): A proverb in mind: The cognitive science of proverbial wit and wisdom. Mahwah: Lawrence Erlbaum.
HRISZTOVA-GOTTHARDT, Hrisztalina and VARGA, Melita A. (eds.) (2014): Introduction to Paremiology: A comprehensive guide to proverb studies. Warsaw: De Gruyter, https://doi.org/10.2478/9783110410167.
JESENŠEK, Vida (2014): «Pragmatic and stylistic aspects of proverbs». In Hrisztova-Gotthardt and Varga (2014: 133-161).
LEWANDOWSKA, Anna and ANTOS, Gerd (2014): «Cognitive aspects of proverbs». In Hrisztova-Gotthardt and Varga (2014: 162-182).
LITOVKINA, Anna T. (2014): «Anti-proverbs». In Hrisztova-Gotthardt and Varga (2014: 326-352).
MIEDER, Wolfgang (1993): Proverbs are never out of season: Popular wisdom in the modern age. New York: OUP.
MIEDER, Wolfgang (2000): «“A man of fashion never has recourse to proverbs:” Lord Chesterfield’s tilting at proverbial windmills». Folklore, 111.1, 23-42.
MIEDER, Wolfgang (2004): Proverbs: A handbook. Westport: Greenwood Press.
MIEDER, Wolfgang and KINGSBURY, Stewart A. (1994): A dictionary of wellerisms. Oxford: OUP.
MIEDER, Wolfgang and LITOVKINA, Anna T. (1999): Twisted wisdom: Modern anti-proverbs. Burlington: The University of Vermont.
MIEDER, Wolfgang et al. (1996): A dictionary of American proverbs. New York: OUP.
NORRICK, Neal R. (2014): «Subject area, terminology, proverb Definitions, proverb Features». In Hrisztova-Gotthardt and Varga (2014: 7-27).
SCHWABER, Paul (1983): «Molly Bloom and literary character». The Massachusetts review, 24.4, 767-789.
SPEAKE, Jennifer (2008): Oxford dictionary of proverbs. Oxford: OUP.
SPECTOR, Judith (1985): «Jame’s Joyce’s Ulysses: The complete masculine aesthetic». CLA Journal, 28.3, 299-313: https://www.jstor.org/stable/44321833.
STEINBERG, Erwin R. (1968): «Introducing the stream-of-consciousness technique in Ulysses». Style, 2.1, 49-58.
TOSINA FERNÁNDEZ, Luis J. (2023): «J. L. Barnes’s The inheritance games and the rejuvenation of proverbs». Jeunesse: Young People, Texts, Cultures, 15.1, 10-26: https://muse.jhu.edu/article/910859.
TOSINA FERNÁNDEZ, Luis J. (2024): «Quantifying paremiology in literature: The Quixotic golden ratio». Paremia, 34, 81-88.
VILLERS, Damien (2022): «What makes a good proverb? On the birth and propagation of proverbs». Lexis, 19: http://journals.openedition.org/lexis/6383.
WILSON, Frank P. (1970): Oxford dictionary of English proverbs. Oxford: OUP.
