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Happy St. Patrick’s Day!
I am niether Irish nor wearing green at present–however, I found it very fitting that I am writing (or at least, attempting to write) a 6 page paper on perhaps one of the greatest blessings to hail from the Emerald Isle: James Joyce.
Ulysses, Joyce’s magnum opus, is considered one of the greatest novels of all time. I have surmized that it must be because it takes an eternity to read.
Either that or men have simply rationalized that since so many parts of it are incomprehensible it must be profound.
For my 20th Century British Literature class (more accurately, my 20th century British Empire literature class) we have a paper due on Joyce’s 600+ page novel.
My thesis is centered around the modern era, and a shift from the ideals (or “moral absolutes,” if you will) of the church, to a more relative aestheticism that was ushered in with the 20th century.
I’m trying to coherently describe this embodiment of the modernist era as displayed in Joyce’s writing–particularly his use of religious symbolism not as a representation of truth, but rather as a representation of art.
So far all i have is a title: Ulysses, Modernism and the Church.
how original.
Why am I having such difficulty in articulating my essay, but yet can manage to blog about it?!
Therin lies the rub.
I had hopped in blogging about my paper I might find myself inspired to actually write it.
20th Century British Lit has been the most enjoyable of my classes thus far, particularly because of the enlightening and intellectually stimulating discussions.
600+ pages provide ample questions upon which to discuss.
i’m hoping this essay doesn’t turn out like most other writings of mine…
my strength lies in narratives, i believe (though most narratives i’ve written to-date have been very weak in their construction).
research is something i enjoy, but not when i have to cite it. (this has nothing to do with plagarism-i will never try to claim another’s writing for my own-i simply hate having to write a paper that requires external sources. i loathe writing bibliographies or MLA formatted papers (something my high-school never really taught effectively).
My writing suffers due in large part to a lack of english classes prior to this semester. I am severly out of practice.
Wish me luck–here goes nothing!
oh Joy[ce]!
Post spring break, and I miss the west coast. Leah and I flew out to visit our good family friends, the Mitchells and the Whalens in Bremerton, which is just a short ferry ride from Seattle, WA.
Our week-long visit was spent in their company, antiquing, taking photos, boating, and enjoying snow flurries.
This was my fifth time visiting the Seattle area, and every time I’m there I fall in love with the Northwest even more! The Florida sunshine came with us, and it did not rain once! One afternoon, Leah and I took the ferry over to Seattle to visit Pike’s Market (where I ended up running into some UF Campus Crusade people) and to just explore more of the city. Most of our time was spent around the market area, though we did end up by Pioneer Square, where I took this photo (my favorite from the whole trip):
Rob had lent me a spare 35mm camera of his–while this photo is decent, my others confirm a need to practice my photography skills.
Leah and I had a wonderful time visiting with our friends (who are really more like family) and it was hard to leave on Friday morning.
I was only home with my family for an afternoon, and Leslie was by on Saturday to take me back to Gainesville with her. We stopped on the way up to have dinner with my grandparents and extended family before arriving home at our apartment.
I’ve settled back in now, but find that I cannot regain any sense of productivity.
Sunday, Leslie and I ran some errands before having friends over for dinner and a movie.
At a local video store I finally found the movie The Fall–I had been searching everywhere for it.
The film was all I hoped it would be, and I have to rank it among my favorite movies of all time.
It’s now monday evening, and I have homework that will most likely keep me up all night. I seem incapable of mustering the initiative to actually start working on it.
Plus (with the advent of allergy season) I also find myself taking lots of Benadryl to quell my incessant sneezing and watery eyes–so I’m also a might bit sleepy.
However, my 7 page paper on Ulysses, Modernism and the Church will not write itself…
Alas! if only I were back on the West coast, it would be three hours earlier!
