Ulysses by James Joyce

[ed@das.llnl.gov (Edward Suranyi)]

We're all agreed now that "The Sensual World" was based on, or 
inspired by, Molly Bloom's speech at the end of _Ulysses_ by
James Joyce.  I thought I'd post part of this, so people who
haven't read it (I assume this is the vast majority) can see
what it's like.

I can only post part of it because it's actually quite long.  But
the last couple of pages is enough to give readers a taste of what
it's like, and it also includes many of the phrases Kate uses.

So here it is:

     . . .I love flowers Id love to have the whole place swimming
     in roses God of heaven theres nothing like nature the wild 
     mountains then the sea and the waves rushing then the beautiful
     country with fields of oats and wheat and all kinds of things and
     all the fine cattle going about that would do your heart good to 
     see rivers and lakes and flowers all sorts of shapes and smells
     and colours springing up even out of the ditches primroses and
     violets nature it is as for them saying theres no God I wouldnt
     give a snap of my two fingers for all their learning why dont 
     they go and create something I often asked him atheists or what-
     ever they call themselves go and wash the cobbles off themselves
     first then they go howling for the priest and they dying and why
     why because theyre afraid of hell on account of their bad 
     conscience ah yes I know them well who was the first person in the
     universe before there was anybody that made it all who ah that they
     dont know neither do I so there you are they might as well try to
     stop the sun from rising tomorrow the sun shines for you he said
     the day we were lying among the rhododendrons on Howth head in
     the grey tweed suit and his straw hat the day I got him to propose
     to me yes first I gave him the bit of seedcake out of my mouth and
     it was leapyear like now yes 16 years ago my God after that long
     kiss I near lost my breath yes he said I was a flower of the
     mountain yes so we are flowers all a womans body yes that was one
     true thing he said in his life and the sun shines for you today yes
     that was why I liked him because I saw he understood or felt what a
     woman is and I knew I could always get round him and I gave him all
     the pleasure I could leading him on till he asked me to say yes and
     I wouldnt answer first only looked out over the sea and the sky I
     was thinking of so many things he didnt know of Mulvey and Mr
     Stanhope and Hester and father and old captain Groves and the 
     sailors playing all birds fly and I say stoop and washing up dishes
     they called it on the pier and the sentry in front of the governors
     house with the thing round his white helmet poor devil half roasted
     and the Spanish girls laughing in their shawls and their tall combs
     and the auctions in the morning the Greeks and the jews and the
     Arabs and the devil knows who else from all the ends of Europe and
     Duke street and the fowl market all clucking outside Larby Sharons
     and the poor donkeys slipping half asleep and the vague fellows 
     in the cloaks asleep in the shade on the steps and the big wheels
     of the carts of the bulls and the old castle thousands of years old
     yes and those handsome Moors all in white and turbans like kings
     asking you to sit down in their little bit of a shop and Ronda with
     the old windows of the posadas glancing eyes a lattice hid for her
     lover to kiss the iron and the wineshops half open at night and the
     castanets and the night we missed the boat at Algeciras the 
     watchman going about serene with his lamp and O that awful deepdown
     torrent O and the sea the sea crimson sometimes like fire and the
     glorious sunsets and the figtrees in the Alameda gardens yes and all
     the queer little streets and pink and blue and yellow houses and the
     rosegardens and the jessamine and germaniums and cactuses and
     Gibraltar as a girl where I was a Flower of the mountain yes when I
     put the rose in my hair like the Andalusian girls used to or shall
     I wear a red yes and how he kissed me under the Moorish wall and I
     thought well as well him as another and then I asked him with my
     eyes to ask again yes and then he asked me would I yes to say yes
     my mountain flower and first I put my arms around him yes and drew
     him down to me so he could feel my breasts all perfume yes and his 
     heart was going like mad and yes I said yes I will Yes.

The resemblance to Kate's lyrics are striking -- not only do have several
of the phrases that appear in the song, and the repetition of the word
"yes", but Kate even managed to get some of the feel of the rhythm of this
passage.

I hope some people find this interesting.

Ed
ed@das.llnl.gov