One of the very best guides to Ulysses is Gilbert's work. This is because Gilbert had a special advantage. He was a friend of Joyce himself. This friendship allowed him to have direct access to Joyce and validate his analyses with the author. This personal connection gave Gilbert unique insights into the novel. He could ask Joyce about specific details, clarify ambiguous passages, and gain a deeper understanding of the author's intentions. As a result, Gilbert's guide is highly regarded by scholars and readers alike. It provides a valuable resource for anyone seeking to understand the complex and multi-layered world of Ulysses.

It must be something truly remarkable to be a writer like Joyce, who pens books that are so deviously clever and obscure. His works are so complex that it takes another academic writer to simplify and explain them to those who are not "in on the joke."

Joyce, as a prankster, seems to have been one of a kind. He ran riot through the English dictionary, making use of allusion, metaphor, dual meaning, pun, and again, those cleverly diabolical turns of phrase and reference. It's as if he was playing a game with the readers, challenging them to understand his intricate web of words.

One can't help but wish that Joyce had written not just one but two extremely long books, both in need of such eternal explanations and explainers. To some, this is the mark of genius, while to others, it may seem like pure arrogance and/or annoyance.

And that's precisely the thing about Ulysses (and FW too). You can never be quite sure what he means unless you consult one of these other writers who have dedicated so much of their own time and energy to figuring him out exactly. It's a love-hate relationship with Joyce's works, but there's no denying the impact they have had on the literary world.

I read this book in accompaniment with Ulysses. This combination was truly quite helpful.

The book is written by someone who actually had a personal acquaintance with Joyce during his lifetime.

Therefore, I should imagine that this fact lends some extra credibility to its contents.

It provides unique insights and perspectives that might not be available otherwise.

As I delved into the pages, I felt a deeper connection to Joyce's work and the mind behind it.

The author's personal experiences and interactions with Joyce added a layer of authenticity and richness to the narrative.

It was like having a guide who could offer insider knowledge and shed light on the hidden aspects of Joyce's creative process.

Overall, reading this in conjunction with Ulysses enhanced my understanding and appreciation of both works.

It was a rewarding and enlightening experience that I would highly recommend to any Joyce enthusiast.

This is the guidebook to Ulysses that I refer to in my comments about that book. It is a very good place to start.

This book was written in consultation with Joyce, and it contains a wealth of the accepted ideas regarding the structure of his epic and the special characteristics of each unique chapter. It details how they correspond to The Odyssey and so on.

However, later scholars caution us to be careful not to take these ideas as the ultimate定论 on the book. They propose that Joyce, perhaps through Gilbert, might in certain cases have been having a bit of fun at our expense!

In other words, we should approach the ideas presented in this guidebook with a degree of skepticism and not blindly accept them as the absolute truth.

We need to consider other interpretations and analyses as well to gain a more comprehensive understanding of Ulysses.

A well-written and helpful adjunct/explication of Ulysses, this work offers valuable correlations with Homer's Odyssey. However, at times, Gilbert might have strayed too far into other myths. Published in the 1930s, the first edition understandably had Mr. Gilbert being circumspect about some of the more bawdy scenes.

My major complaint about this book is the lack of translation for all the numerous quotes in other languages such as Latin, German, French, and Italian. A critical essay written in French could take up almost a page and remain untranslated, causing me to miss a significant portion of what the author was trying to convey. I'm certain that I'm not the only reader without a PhD in the humanities who experiences this issue.

Nonetheless, despite this shortcoming, the overall analysis and insights provided in the book are still quite valuable and值得一读 (worth reading).

A great help when reading Ulysses is Gilbert's work.

In the first half of the book, Gilbert presents several essays that delve into the themes and style found within Ulysses.

These essays provide valuable insights and analysis, helping the reader to better understand the complex and multi-layered nature of Joyce's masterpiece.

In the second half, there is a chapter dedicated to each section of the novel.

Gilbert does an excellent job of making connections to The Odyssey, carefully explaining which parts of the chapter recall the original epic poem.

This not only enriches the reader's understanding of Ulysses but also provides a fascinating perspective on the relationship between the two works.

However, I gave this book 4 stars instead of 5 due to some issues with the formatting and length of quotations.

At times, these can make the text more difficult to read and can disrupt the flow of the narrative.

Especially after having just read Joyce's own words, I sometimes felt that the extensive quotations were not necessary.

Nonetheless, Gilbert's work remains a valuable resource for anyone studying or interested in Ulysses.

If you have an interest in the Homeric parallels within Ulysses, this article is definitely worth reading. However, it should be noted that at times the information can appear extremely esoteric. Moreover, there are extensive passages of untranslated non-English text. This can be rather off-putting, especially for someone like me who currently has only a semi-functional understanding of the English language. Nevertheless, by simply skimming through the areas that pique your curiosity, one can still glean some interesting tidbits.

Some of the episodes in Ulysses play more effectively to their Homeric references than others. Episodes such as "Telemachus," "Cyclops," and "Circe" are prime examples. Supposedly, Joyce essentially sat down and co-wrote this book with Stewart. As a result, a significant amount of the information presented comes directly from the source.

Finally, I have completed this study of Ulysses. It took some time as the print was extremely small, and it was best to be read outside in shaded daylight. However, it has been over 100°F all week, making it uncomfortable to read outside for an extended period.

Anyway, I thoroughly enjoyed this detailed analysis and explication of the book. What made it even better was that it was prepared with the full cooperation and input of Joyce himself. I was also glad that I had recently read Portrait of a Young Artist and Dubliners, as Gilbert frequently shows how the events in Ulysses call back to those in those books.

I was once again struck by the nature of classic British (in the broadest sense) education. The fact that university and even high school students had at least a smattering of classic Greek and Latin was quite sobering. True, only a small fraction of students attended secondary or tertiary school, but attaining a classical education was a significant achievement. I have had two former students attend St. John's, where they are instructed in a manner similar to the British. One of them is now a professor of political science, while the other I have lost track of. I imagine they would appreciate reading Joyce. The remnants of my modern Greek, along with what I know of classic plays and philosophy, did make many of the references clear without having to read Gilbert. Still, it was good to have those memories acknowledged.

I will now read at least one analysis of Finnegan's Wake, although I will hold off on the Skeleton Key for now. Then, I will launch into the Wake itself. The last time I tried to read it, about 50 years ago, I recall only getting to page 13!

It is truly beneficial to gain a sense of direction within the vast sea of recurrent themes and ideas that constitutes Joyce's Ulysses. At first, I found myself growing annoyed with his rather liberal use of quotes from the book, which I initially perceived as being excessive. However, as time passed and I delved deeper into the text, I gradually came to appreciate this aspect of his writing. As the majority of people are aware, reading Ulysses just once is simply not sufficient to fully grasp what on earth Joyce was attempting to convey. His work is so rich and complex that it demands multiple readings and a great deal of careful consideration. With each successive encounter, new layers of meaning and significance seem to emerge, making it a truly captivating and rewarding literary experience.

One of the three highly valued books that I had with me was of great significance in my attempt to decipher Joyce's complex puzzle. These books were like precious keys that I hoped would unlock the mysteries hidden within Joyce's works. Each page seemed to hold a clue, a hint that could lead me closer to understanding the enigma that Joyce had created. I spent countless hours poring over the words, analyzing the sentences, and trying to make sense of the convoluted narrative. The process was both challenging and rewarding, as I gradually began to see patterns and connections that I had previously overlooked. With each new discovery, I felt a sense of excitement and anticipation, knowing that I was getting closer to solving the puzzle that had intrigued me for so long.

This is one of the most original and outstanding guides for surviving James Joyce's Ulysses.

Although at times he quotes passages that are overly long and his analyses may be open to debate, Gilbert, on the whole, does an excellent job of making sense of the text.

I have read Ulysses twice, and both times, Gilbert was like a guiding hand, leading me through the complex and often challenging narrative.

If you are planning to take on the task of reading Ulysses, this guide is an absolute must-read. It provides valuable insights and interpretations that can enhance your understanding and appreciation of Joyce's masterpiece.

With Gilbert's help, you can navigate the labyrinthine world of Ulysses and discover the hidden gems and profound meanings that lie within.

Don't embark on this literary journey without Gilbert by your side.

I guess the common excuse for this book is that it's an "early critical account".

And for some reason, we're supposed to ignore its huge lapses in judgment, its gross sexism at several points, and its pseudo-scientific and astrological absurdities as somehow quaint.

Such a reading is really just condescending primitivism.

As far as I can tell, Gilbert was made an unwitting dupe to Joyce's PR strategy.

Viewed in that light, this book is an interesting read.

Gilbert's strained analyses and needlessly extended quotations make him a Haines to Joyce's Dedalus.

A parallel that any Haines-like figure is likely to miss the irony of.

It's important to note that while we may find some value in this early work, we cannot simply overlook its flaws.

We must approach it with a critical eye and consider the context in which it was written.

By doing so, we can gain a better understanding of both the book and the literary landscape of the time.

Perhaps Gilbert's work serves as a reminder of how far we have come in our understanding and acceptance of different perspectives.

Or maybe it challenges us to continue to question and reevaluate our own assumptions and biases.

Either way, it's a text that demands our attention and engagement.