Joe Reads(?)

BUCK MULLIGAN To whomever may read this, my name is Malachi "Buck" Mulligan. I have spent most of my education earning a degree in the medicines despite my negative perception of the human condition. I have been described as cynical by some, stately by others, and a bastard by one. Despite all this, some of my past actions have been deemed as heroic. I have saved a number of people from drowning, which adds to how quite a few people tolerate my personality. I am what is called an avid classicist, as I believe that Ireland should be Hellenized, partly due to my idolization of Nietzsche, which, I believe, would make me a hyperborean by now. I, additionally, do not believe in the ridiculousness of the Celtic Revival, despite my involvement in Dublin's literary systems. I am particularly chummy with a man named Stephen "Kinch" Deadalus, with whom I share residence with in the Sandycove Martello Tower. For a while now, we have learned to share possessions and ...

Throughout my life, I've started some rather strange reading habits. In elementary school, my friends would call me the book hopper. I was given this title because, when we were supposed to read fiction books, I would switch to another book if I didn't like the first few pages. Evidently, this has stuck with me, as I have switched my book choice multiple times prior to starting this blog. Additionally, when reading, I would sometimes stare at a page or read a paragraph, and gather absolutely nothing. This wasn't because I necessarily didn't understand the material, but it was rather because my mind would go on autopilot, and drift off. This tendency, in particular, I've been trying to fight due to how much trouble it causes me when working on timed assignments in class. During this project, I developed newer habits that assisted me in reading through book as challenging as Ulysses. I had to do a lot of outside research to understand some of the Greek phrases Jame...

After doing a little bit of research, I found James Joyce to be one of the most interesting and clever authors that I've read up on. Born February 2nd, 1882, James Augustine Aloysius Joyce grew up in Dublin Ireland with his nine younger brothers (who I will not name for the sake of time), his father, John Stanislaus Joyce, and his mother, Marry Murray Joyce. Evidently, through his writing, James Joyce demonstrated many intellectual qualities, which he kept from birth. He taught himself Norwegian so that he could read Henrik Ibsen's plays in their native tongue, and delved into the writing of Dante, Aristotle, and Thomas Aquinas. His education was largely led by Jesuits, as he went to Clongowes Wood College and Belvedere college prior to landing at University College Dublin (where he earned his BA for "modern languages"). Despite his degree, Joyce attempted at a new life in Paris to study medicine. However, he returned to Ireland upon hearing that his mother fell i...