4 page paper on James Joyce's Ulysses - Essay Example

rs at a particular time of day while others seem to be showcasing Joyce’s repertoire of voices – some journalistic, some featuring high drama, some in the modern stream of consciousness and some even in the form of questionnaires. It’s roughly divided into three segments. The first segment is about Stephen Dedalus, which reveals his perspective on life. The second and longest section is about Bloom, following him as he moves through his day. The third section is all about tying the three main characters together.

It can be argued that there is a fourth section in the final chapter which focuses on Molly. The protagonist of the story is considered to be Leopold Bloom. He works as an advertising canvasser and he’s 38 years old. He’s married to a woman named Molly who he knows is cheating on him and he spends his day socializing in a detached sort of way. Although he really likes to think and talk about science and the new inventions that are being thought up, his biggest concern in life is the separation he feels between himself and Molly.

He’s generally a good guy and has the unusual ability to see things from another person’s perspective. The main antagonist of the book seems to be a personified Death. Bloom is struggling against the idea of death in the immediate present with the funeral of Paddy Dignam, in the recent past when his father commited suicide and in the more distant past when his infant son died, placing a gap between himself and his wife that now has her sleeping around with other men. Bloom is realizing that his family line will die out with him and is feeling himself very mortal.

While there are many other minor antagonists in the story, Death seems to be the major cause of Bloom’s disquiet and the reason for his suffering. The story takes place throughout the day on June 16, 1904. Like the chapters themselves, the setting jumps around a lot, starting in the morning with Stephen Dedalus as he moves from his apartment