Comments on: James Joyce

By: kiki

kiki — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 15:42:11 +0000

this is one of my favorite passages of all time. the font of this tattoo is beautiful. i’m not exactly a fan of the placement, but i still love it!

By: Brendan

Brendan — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 19:59:38 +0000

In response to “Some Honkey” who asked what the passage means, and why the syntax… it’s a mix of things. On a basic level, it’s emulating the stream of Molly Bloom’s thought. More deeply, it is predictive of hypertext, it is a new way of writing and reading/receiving words, where we see that the meaning can be shifted based upon placement of punctuation, which can change the entire sentiment and feeling. Finally, though, the final “Yes” here ends with a period, making it unquestionably definitive.

Why Yes? Because in this final chapter of the book, after men and women have been running around Dublin on June 16th, 1904 attempting to be metaphysicians who know the way behind all things and will compete in the human world to prove it, Molly puts a cap on it all by simply saying “Fuck an answer to your question ‘Why?’” The answer to Why? can only be “Yes.” The previous chapter showed her husband’s brilliant take on the universe, which brings empiricism and beauty to new lengths and heights, and so this final chapter is the only possible way it could have gone.

By: jess

jess — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 19:37:29 +0000

this. this is so, so beautiful. I’ve been wanting to read Ulysses for a long time, wow, i love this quote.

By: S-not-green

S-not-green — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 07:56:19 +0000

anonymous, I should point out that the lady in question is not engaging in sexual intercourse. She is, er, wanking. It is beautifully rendered by the greatest novelist of the 20thC. But love-making it is not, in any conventional sense, unless self-love.

By: Amy

Amy — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 17:41:45 +0000

I love this. I absolutely fucking love it. I have six tattoos but don’t have it in me to get a chest piece. But if I did … it would be just like this. And I haven’t read this, but the words are gorgeous. Breathtaking. Color me jealous.

By: anonymous

anonymous — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 00:03:24 +0000

@ some honky–

This passage is a love-making scene, Joyce wrote it with this strange syntax to capture the breathless feeling of the truly joyful sexual experience.

By: Mergatroid

Mergatroid — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 22:38:35 +0000

That will look great when you are about 70.
While we can all agree Joyce is an amazing writer, tattoos are a just SO contrived. They aren’t original or unique anymore…they really aren’t and they are mostly done by middle class white people to give them some idea of an identity or sense of importance…..Do we have to steal everything from indigenous populations of the world!? I don’t think Joyce would be impressed one bit. He would probably think just one more lemming…..

By: Some honkey

Some honkey — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 20:42:29 +0000

Sadly, poetry often escapes me. I don’t understand the deeper meaning behind this passage (probably rightly so, since I haven’t read the book). What is the purpose of the improper syntax and lack of punctuation? And why is the word “yes” sporadically strewn throughout the sentence?

By: anti-molly

anti-molly — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 16:46:56 +0000

I typed out a long derisive comment on the idiocy of Molly’s response. But I have decided not to feed the troll.

This tattoo is beautiful. Giving life to the words we love is one of the the most important acts any human can take part in.

By: r10t3r

r10t3r — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 13:32:36 +0000

Whilst prominent when taken in context, I feel that the words lose their meaning here.

To keep this short, I find that it has purpose, but the actual result is borderline tacky by way of its application.

That is a shame. And whilst I respect the intended aim, and the views of those who like it, for me it seems a little lost.

By: jennifer

jennifer — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 08:45:55 +0000

wow molly. Even I(someone who would probably never get a tattoo) can appreciate the beauty .
Maybe if you read the book you’d understand or maybe you should try getting out of your own ““small-minded sad little world” and respected people’s differences.

By: can i say something

can i say something — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 18:08:43 +0000

@molly: just because you don’t want to get a tattoo doesn’t mean that anyone who has one lives in a “small-minded sad little world”. opinion makes for a weak argument.

By: Molly

Molly — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 16:07:53 +0000

It’s sad you think you have to use a tattoo to become more interesting/beautiful. Tattoos seem like permanent scars reminding you of what you thought you wanted for a very brief period of your life…

Oh well…as long as you’re happy in your small-minded sad little world :)

By: Stumbler

Stumbler — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 09:25:55 +0000

Now I’m crying!

By: Elizabeth

Elizabeth — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 21:00:22 +0000

Fantastic choice, it looks great!

By: Angelique

Angelique — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 01:36:46 +0000

I raise my glass to this beautiful tribute. Truly beautiful, enough to take the breath away.

By: chloe

chloe — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 19:21:17 +0000

This is gorgeous. I am going to read this book now!
What an amazing thing to go out into the world bearing.

By: Zee

Zee — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 08:54:34 +0000

This is incredible, truly.
I adore your tattoo, it is timeless and beautiful.
Even to someone who has not yet read Ulysses, the words are infinitely gorgeous. Inspiring beyond belief.

By: leila

leila — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 18:47:01 +0000

That’s AMAZING. These are all amazing, but this one is AMAZING.

By: drunkkidcatholic

drunkkidcatholic — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 20:12:50 +0000

i LOVE the placement. i wish i was brave enough to get a tattoo there. ive been toying with the idea of getting “well-behaved women seldom make history” across my chest. :sigh: someday. maybe.