Transformation and Parallax: Joyce’s Style in “Proteus” and “Lestrygonians”
Jae-Oh Rheem
For James Joyce, language was the primary mode of apprehension of the real. Hovering behind all Joyce’s work is the notion that language and reality are one, that perfect truth was perfect language, that faulty language was somewhat sinful. Therefore, it is possible to view his career as a long drive to find perfect language; and it was this drive that led him to the stylistic extremities of Ulysses.The narrative technique of Ulysses expresses Joyce’s approach to the material. It arises out of his angle of vision, distance, and standing place. It is therefore a linguistic embodiment of, a large metaphor for, his approach to reality. But there is another element that dictates it-his attitude toward language. Thus, the style in Ulysses is dependant upon two sets of attitude and their connection-the relation between reality and language.In “Proteus,” Stephen Dedalus(Joyce) contemplates the connection between language and reality, repeating the transformation of metaphysical words continuously. For him, language is not merely a medium of communication but a crucial means through which he catches glimpses of the real world about him. In “Lestrygonians,” Leopold Bloom, contrary to Stephen, reveals the parallax about reality, expressing the functions of the human body by physical words. Despite this difference, Bloom offers Stephen his own flesh, and Stephen, if he accepts Bloom as the flesh in him, can solve his problem and conquer death through art, for Bloom is the flesh that completes the spirit in Stephen. Consequently, Bloom, Stephen’s spiritual father, enables Joyce(Stephen) to become the fabulous artificer, the master inventor and builder of wings and labyrinths.
Transformation and Parallax: Joyce’s Style in “Proteus” and “Lestrygonians”
Jae-Oh Rheem
For James Joyce, language was the primary mode of apprehension of the real. Hovering behind all Joyce’s work is the notion that language and reality are one, that perfect truth was perfect language, that faulty language was somewhat sinful. Therefore, it is possible to view his career as a long drive to find perfect language; and it was this drive that led him to the stylistic extremities of Ulysses.The narrative technique of Ulysses expresses Joyce’s approach to the material. It arises out of his angle of vision, distance, and standing place. It is therefore a linguistic embodiment of, a large metaphor for, his approach to reality. But there is another element that dictates it-his attitude toward language. Thus, the style in Ulysses is dependant upon two sets of attitude and their connection-the relation between reality and language.In “Proteus,” Stephen Dedalus(Joyce) contemplates the connection between language and reality, repeating the transformation of metaphysical words continuously. For him, language is not merely a medium of communication but a crucial means through which he catches glimpses of the real world about him. In “Lestrygonians,” Leopold Bloom, contrary to Stephen, reveals the parallax about reality, expressing the functions of the human body by physical words. Despite this difference, Bloom offers Stephen his own flesh, and Stephen, if he accepts Bloom as the flesh in him, can solve his problem and conquer death through art, for Bloom is the flesh that completes the spirit in Stephen. Consequently, Bloom, Stephen’s spiritual father, enables Joyce(Stephen) to become the fabulous artificer, the master inventor and builder of wings and labyrinths.