We read as far as "... the winged speech of the seadivided Gael." (Penguin 421.14) (Gabler 12.1189)
The company in Barney Kieran's pub, which has been discussing about Irish sports and shoneen (British, literally 'would be gentlemen) games the like of lawn tennis and about hurley and putting the stone ... etc, moves on to a discussion about the boxing match, the Keogh-Bennett match. (According to Gifford - 10.1133-34 - the match does have some basis, since an M. K. Keogh did box one Garry in late April 1904. Percy Bennett, a member of the Zurich consular staff when Joyce lived in the city, is a grudge substitute for the more Irish Garry). During Alf Bergan's description of how Keogh boxed Bennett (made him puke what he never ate), and bringing up the name of Boylan, Bloom cuts in again about lawn tennis and the circulation of blood, a topic of least interest to the Dubliners gathered there. In fact, this boxing match is described by yet another interpolation, written as a parody of sports journalism style (It was a historic and a hefty battle..../Penguin 412.34).
If there was one name Bloom did not want to hear mentioned then, that was of Boylan. But the name is mentioned, with Alf Bergan even bringing up that he's running a concert tour now up in the north. Bloom's comments (My wife?... He's an excellent man to organize. Excellent) are met by the others with 'suspicions' regarding what really is happening.
At this stage there are two short interpolations (Penguin 414.22 & 28) about Bloom's wife, written as a parody of medieval romance, another about the entrance of Ned Lambert and J. J. O'Molloy, two characters we had met earlier. The narrator describes the situation of J. J. O'Molloy, who, though a lawyer, has come down in life. Bergan mentions again Breen and Breen's violent reaction to the postcard saying U.p:up. O'Molloy tries - using legal language - to wheeze out a confession from Bergan that he in fact wrote that infamous card. As they all finally agree to enjoy their pints in peace, they see the Breens and Kelleher passing the door. O'Molloy is asked about some legal cases, and his willing answers lead to another interpretation (And whereas on the sixteenth day of the month... / Penguin 418.18), this time in the style of the proceedings of a court case.
Citizen's next remarks about strangers coming over here to Ireland filling the country with bugs - aimed obviously at Bloom, a foreigner amidst the Dubliners - is ignored by Bloom. Instead he starts talking to Joe, asking him to put in a word to Mr. Crawford, the newspaper editor, about the Keyes advertisement that he is trying to acquire. Citizen does not, of course, stop. He says, referring to how the British got into Ireland, "The strangers,.. Our own fault. We let them come in...." Bloom does not react. He looks to be awfully interested in nothing, a spider's web in the corner,.. the citizen scowling after him, and the old dog at his feet looking up to know who to bite and when. This one sentence is very picturesque. One can almost breath the anti-semetic/anti-foreigner air in the room.
Citizen's next remark about 'dishonored wives' induces Alf Bergan to produce, gigglingly, a copy of the Police Gazette. (It was a New York weekly newspaper devoted to reports of scandals etc, a forerunner of today's tabloids.) By then, John Wyse Nolan and Lenehan enter. The topic moves on to what happened at the meeting in the city hall from which they had come. It is time for another interpolation with a reference to the most obedient city. (The motto of the city of Dublin is 'Obedientia Civium Urbis Felicitas': The obedience of citizens is the happiness of a city.)
Apropos interpolations: As I wrote in my last post, I have been a bit uncomfortable with these innumerable interpolations, not being able to really ascribe them to any person in the pub. Google led me to the link, where the article about this episode, Cyclops, helped me solve the puzzle!
The company in Barney Kieran's pub, which has been discussing about Irish sports and shoneen (British, literally 'would be gentlemen) games the like of lawn tennis and about hurley and putting the stone ... etc, moves on to a discussion about the boxing match, the Keogh-Bennett match. (According to Gifford - 10.1133-34 - the match does have some basis, since an M. K. Keogh did box one Garry in late April 1904. Percy Bennett, a member of the Zurich consular staff when Joyce lived in the city, is a grudge substitute for the more Irish Garry). During Alf Bergan's description of how Keogh boxed Bennett (made him puke what he never ate), and bringing up the name of Boylan, Bloom cuts in again about lawn tennis and the circulation of blood, a topic of least interest to the Dubliners gathered there. In fact, this boxing match is described by yet another interpolation, written as a parody of sports journalism style (It was a historic and a hefty battle..../Penguin 412.34).
If there was one name Bloom did not want to hear mentioned then, that was of Boylan. But the name is mentioned, with Alf Bergan even bringing up that he's running a concert tour now up in the north. Bloom's comments (My wife?... He's an excellent man to organize. Excellent) are met by the others with 'suspicions' regarding what really is happening.
At this stage there are two short interpolations (Penguin 414.22 & 28) about Bloom's wife, written as a parody of medieval romance, another about the entrance of Ned Lambert and J. J. O'Molloy, two characters we had met earlier. The narrator describes the situation of J. J. O'Molloy, who, though a lawyer, has come down in life. Bergan mentions again Breen and Breen's violent reaction to the postcard saying U.p:up. O'Molloy tries - using legal language - to wheeze out a confession from Bergan that he in fact wrote that infamous card. As they all finally agree to enjoy their pints in peace, they see the Breens and Kelleher passing the door. O'Molloy is asked about some legal cases, and his willing answers lead to another interpretation (And whereas on the sixteenth day of the month... / Penguin 418.18), this time in the style of the proceedings of a court case.
Citizen's next remarks about strangers coming over here to Ireland filling the country with bugs - aimed obviously at Bloom, a foreigner amidst the Dubliners - is ignored by Bloom. Instead he starts talking to Joe, asking him to put in a word to Mr. Crawford, the newspaper editor, about the Keyes advertisement that he is trying to acquire. Citizen does not, of course, stop. He says, referring to how the British got into Ireland, "The strangers,.. Our own fault. We let them come in...." Bloom does not react. He looks to be awfully interested in nothing, a spider's web in the corner,.. the citizen scowling after him, and the old dog at his feet looking up to know who to bite and when. This one sentence is very picturesque. One can almost breath the anti-semetic/anti-foreigner air in the room.
Citizen's next remark about 'dishonored wives' induces Alf Bergan to produce, gigglingly, a copy of the Police Gazette. (It was a New York weekly newspaper devoted to reports of scandals etc, a forerunner of today's tabloids.) By then, John Wyse Nolan and Lenehan enter. The topic moves on to what happened at the meeting in the city hall from which they had come. It is time for another interpolation with a reference to the most obedient city. (The motto of the city of Dublin is 'Obedientia Civium Urbis Felicitas': The obedience of citizens is the happiness of a city.)
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| (Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dublin#/media/File:Coat-of-arms-of-Dublin.svg) |
Apropos interpolations: As I wrote in my last post, I have been a bit uncomfortable with these innumerable interpolations, not being able to really ascribe them to any person in the pub. Google led me to the link, where the article about this episode, Cyclops, helped me solve the puzzle!
