James Joyce – litawfruit

James Joyce, the renowned Irish novelist. He contributed to the modernist avant-garde movement and is regarded as one of the most influential and important writers of the 20th century.
Joyce was born in Dublin on February 2, 1882, into a middle-class family. Philip and Ellen McCann are his godparents. Joyce had a fear of dogs and later developed a fear of thunderstorms.
In 1888, Joyce began his education. However, he had to leave in 1891 due to his father’s financial difficulties, worsened by his drinking and financial mismanagement, as his name appeared in Stubbs’ Gazette, a list of debtors and bankrupts.
At the age of nine in 1891, Joyce wrote a poem titled “Et Tu, Healy” about the death of Charles Stewart Parnell. The poem reflected his anger at Parnell’s perceived betrayal by various parties, resulting in the failure to secure Irish Home Rule in the British Parliament.
In 1893, Jesuit priest John Conmee arranged for Joyce and his brother Stanislaus to attend Belvedere College. Joyce spent five years at Belvedere, excelling in English composition and following Jesuit educational principles of Jesuit education laid down in the Ratio Studiorum (Plan of Studies). He graduated in 1898.
In 1898, Joyce enrolled at University where he was exposed to the philosophy of Thomas Aquinas. He formed close relationships with notable Irish figures of his generation George Clancy, Tom Kettle, and Francis Sheehy-Skeffington.
His first published work was a positive review of Henrik Ibsen’s play “When We Dead Awaken” in The Fortnightly Review in 1900. Inspired by Ibsen, Joyce even wrote a play titled “A Brilliant Career,” which he later discarded.
In 1901, he befriended Oliver St. John Gogarty, who later served as the model for the character Buck Mulligan in Joyce’s famous novel “Ulysses.”
In the same year Joyce wrote an article titled “The Day of the Rabblement,” criticizing the Irish Literary Theatre for not producing the works of playwrights like Ibsen, Leo Tolstoy, and Gerhart Hauptmann. His college magazine refused to publish it, so Joyce and Francis Sheehy-Skeffington had their essays printed and distributed. Arthur Griffith, a prominent figure, protested the censorship of Joyce’s work in his newspaper, United Irishman.
Joyce graduated from the Royal University of Ireland in October 1902. He briefly considered studying medicine and attending lectures at the Catholic University Medical School in Dublin. Eventually, he went to Paris to study medicine but by the end of January 1903, he abandoned his plans to study medicine but remained in Paris, often spending late hours reading at the Bibliothèque Sainte-Geneviève.
In April 1903, Joyce learned of his mother’s illness and returned to Ireland. His mother passed away on August 13. Joyce spent much of his time socializing with Gogarty and his colleagues from medical school, while also trying to make a living by reviewing books.
James Joyce’s life took a significant turn when he met Nora Barnacle, a 20-year-old girl, on June 10, 1904. They had their first outing on June 16, 1904, where Nora masturbated him. This event was now celebrated as “Bloomsday” in honor of the character Leopold Bloom from Joyce’s novel “Ulysses.”
Shortly after their outing, Joyce had a confrontation with a young woman in St Stephen’s Green, which led to him being physically assaulted by her companion. Alfred H. Hunter, who had connections to Joyce’s father, provided assistance and took him into his home to care for his injuries. Hunter, who was rumoured to be a Jew and to have an unfaithful wife, became one of the models for Leopold Bloom, the protagonist of Ulysses.
In May 1904, Joyce participated in the Feis Ceoil, an Irish music competition, and paid the entry fee by pawning some of his books. He won third place, and the judge, Luigi Denza, spoke highly of his voice.
Throughout 1904, Joyce made efforts to establish himself as a writer. He attempted to publish a prose work on aesthetics called “A Portrait of the Artist” but was rejected. He reworked it into a novel called “Stephen Hero” but eventually abandoned it. He also wrote a satirical poem called “The Holy Office,” which mocked the Irish Literary Revival and was rejected for being “unholy.” Joyce worked on his collection of poems, “Chamber Music,” but it was also rejected.
James Joyce did manage to publish three poems, with one appearing in Dana and two in The Speaker. Additionally, George William Russell published three of Joyce’s short stories in the Irish Homestead. These stories, namely “The Sisters,” “Eveline,” and “After the Race,” marked the inception of Joyce’s renowned collection of short stories titled “Dubliners.”
In October 1904, the couple went to Zürich, where they stayed briefly before moving to Trieste and then Pola. Joyce formed a close friendship with Alessandro Francini Bruni, the director of the school at Pola, and his wife Clothilde. Both families started living together.
In 1905, Joyce finished a short story for “Dubliners” called “Clay” and continued working on his novel “Stephen Hero.” He didn’t like Pola and referred to it as a remote place. So, he eventually moved to Trieste.
After their first child, Giorgio was born in July 1905, Joyce’s brother Stanislaus joined them. In 1906, they shared an apartment with the Francini Brunis.
Joyce completed 24 chapters of “Stephen Hero” and the final story for “Dubliners.” However, he faced difficulties in getting “Dubliners” published. A London publisher initially agreed to publish it but later backed out due to concerns about the book’s content.
Trieste was Joyce’s main residence until 1920 and it became a second Dublin for him. During his time in Trieste, he accomplished significant literary work. He completed “Dubliners,” reworked “Stephen Hero” into “A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man,” and wrote his only published play, “Exiles.” It was in Trieste that he made crucial developments in the characters of Leopold and Molly Bloom, key figures in his novel “Ulysses.”
Joyce drew inspiration from the city and its people for many aspects of “Ulysses,” incorporating numerous details and stylistic innovations that appeared to be influenced by the artistic and social movement known as Futurism. Some elements of the Triestine dialect even found their way into “Finnegans Wake.”
Futurism was an artistic movement that emerged in Italy in the early 20th century, emphasizing concepts like dynamism, speed, technology, youth, and the celebration of modernity. Its goal was to break free from Italy’s historical burdens.
In late May 1906, feeling weary of Trieste and disheartened by the lack of a publisher for “Dubliners,” Joyce traveled to Rome and worked as a bank clerk. It was in Rome that the idea for “The Dead,” which would later become the final story of “Dubliners” and a part of “Ulysses,” took shape.
During his time in Rome, he delved into the works of the socialist historian Guglielmo Ferrero. Ferrero’s interpretations of history, opposition to militarism, and complex views on Jews left a mark on Joyce’s work, particularly the character of Leopold Bloom in “Ulysses.”
Upon his return to Trieste in March 1907, Joyce worked part-time as an English instructor. Among his students was the author Ettore Schmitz, known by his pen name Italo Svevo. Svevo, a Catholic of Jewish heritage, would become one of the models for the character Leopold Bloom. Joyce gained insight into Judaism through his interactions with Svevo, and their enduring friendship involved mutual critique and support. Svevo played a significant role in helping Joyce overcome writer’s block during the creation of “A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man.”
Roberto Prezioso, the editor of the Italian newspaper Piccolo della Sera, was another of Joyce’s students. He provided financial support to Joyce by commissioning him to write for the newspaper. Joyce wrote three articles aimed at the Italian irredentists in Trieste under Prezioso’s commission.
In 1908, Joyce decided to give up alcohol for a period. He translated John Millington Synge’s “Riders to the Sea” into Italian with the assistance of Nicolò Vidacovich. Furthermore, Joyce resumed singing lessons.
Joyce had been searching for an English publisher for “Dubliners” but was unsuccessful. As a result, he submitted the collection to a Dublin-based publisher, Maunsel and Company, owned by George Roberts. In 1909, Joyce launched Ireland’s first cinema, the Volta Cinematograph. His fortunes improved in 1913 when Richards agreed to publish “Dubliners,” and it was finally issued on June 15, 1914, over eight years after Joyce first submitted it.
Around the same time, Joyce found an unexpected supporter in Ezra Pound, who was residing in London. On the recommendation of W.B. Yeats, Pound wrote to Joyce, requesting permission to include a poem from “Chamber Music,” titled “I Hear an Army Charging upon the Land,” in the journal Des Imagistes. Pound became a strong advocate for Joyce’s work, assisting in getting his works published and gaining recognition.
After Pound convinced Dora Marsden to serialize “A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man” in the London literary magazine The Egoist, Joyce’s writing pace accelerated. He completed “A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man” by 1914 and resumed working on “Exiles,” finishing it in 1915. He also started a novelette called “Giacomo Joyce,” although he eventually abandoned it, and began the early drafts of “Ulysses.”
Joyce maintained his interest in music, interacting with figures like Ferruccio Busoni and delving into music theory under Philipp Jarnach. Much of what he learned about musical notation and counterpoint influenced his work, particularly the “Sirens” section of “Ulysses.”
Some parts of “The Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man” had been censored by the printers when published in The Egoist, but the complete novel was eventually published by B. W. Huebsch in 1916.
Joyce co-founded a theatrical company known as the English Players, which primarily staged works by Irish playwrights like Oscar Wilde, George Bernard Shaw, and John Millington Synge. In one of Synge’s plays, “Riders to the Sea,” Nora played a leading role, and Joyce himself sang offstage. This company operated until 1920.
Joyce’s involvement with the English Players led to a legal dispute when Henry Wilfred Carr, a wounded war veteran and British consul, accused Joyce of underpaying him for his role in a production of “The Importance of Being Earnest.”
When James Joyce and his family arrived in Paris in July 1920, they initially stayed with Ludmila Savitzky. During their time in Paris, Joyce had the opportunity to meet Sylvia Beach, the proprietor of the renowned bookshop “Shakespeare and Company”. Beach quickly became a significant figure in Joyce’s life and eventually one of his publishers.
Through Sylvia Beach and Ezra Pound, Joyce became part of the intellectual circle in Paris and integrated into the international community of modernist artists. He also crossed paths with Valery Larbaud, who played a pivotal role in promoting Joyce’s works to the French audience and overseeing the French translation of “Ulysses.”
In 1923, Joyce embarked on his next literary project, an experimental novel that would eventually become “Finnegans Wake.” This novel would require a total of sixteen years to complete. Initially, Joyce referred to it as “Work in Progress.”
In April 1924, Ford Madox Ford published an episode from the novel, titled “Mamalujo,” in his magazine, The Transatlantic Review, using the same name. Joyce publicly revealed the novel’s title as “Finnegans Wake” in 1939, the year he finished it. The novel was eventually published in London by Faber and Faber, with the assistance of T. S. Eliot.
After living together for twenty-seven years, Joyce and Nora were married in London on July 4, 1931.
After 10 years, on January 11, 1941, Joyce underwent surgery in Zürich for a perforated duodenal ulcer. He slipped into a coma and passed away shortly before his 59th birthday.
He was laid to rest in the Fluntern Cemetery in Zürich. Swiss tenor Max Meili performed “Addio terra, addio cielo” from Monteverdi’s L’Orfeo during the burial service. It’s worth noting that Joyce had been a British subject throughout his life, and as a result, only the British consul attended his funeral.
Here is a list of James Joyce’s major prose works
“Dubliners” (Short-story collection, 1914)
“A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man” (Novel, 1916)
“Ulysses” (Novel, 1922)
“Finnegans Wake” (Novel, initially published in 1939, and restored in 2012)
Here is a list of James Joyce’s poetry collections
“Chamber Music” (Poems, Elkin Mathews, 1907)
“Giacomo Joyce” (Written in 1907, published by Faber and Faber in 1968)
“Pomes Penyeach” (1927)
“Collected Poems”
Here is a list of posthumous publications and drafts by James Joyce:
“Stephen Hero” (Precursor to “A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man”; written 1904–06, published in 1944)
“Exiles” (Play, 1918)
“The Cat and the Devil” (Published by London: Faber and Faber, 1965)
“The Cats of Copenhagen” (Published by Ithys Press, 2012)
“Finn’s Hotel” (Published by Ithys Press, 2013).