Joyce Annotated: Notes for Dubliners and A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man

by Don Gifford

In James Joyce's early work, as in Ulysses and Finnegans Wake, meanings are often concealed in obscure allusions and details of veiled suggestive power. Consistent recognition of these hidden signififances in Dubliners and A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man would require an encyclopedic knowledge of life in nineteenth- and twentieth-century Dublin such as few readers possess. Now this substantially revised and expanded edition of Don Gifford's Notes to "Dubliners" and "A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man" puts the requisite knowledge at the disposal of scholars, students, and general readers.

An ample introductory essay supplies the historical, biographical, and geographical background for Dubliners and Portrait. The annotations that follow gloss place names, define slang terms, recount relevant gossip, give capsule histories of institutions and political and cultural movements and figures, supply bits of local and Irish legend and lore, explain religious nomenclature and practices, and illuminate cryptic allusions to literature, theology, philosophy, science and the arts.

Professor Gifford's labors in gathering these data into a single volume have resulted in an invaluable source-book for all students of Joyce's art.

Genres: Reference, Literary Criticism, Ireland, Nonfiction, Irish Literature, Criticism

308 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1981

About the author

Don Gifford (1919-2000) was Professor of English and American studies at Williams College, Massachusetts.

Reviews

[Steve · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this along with the Oxford World Classics edition of "Dubliners". Jeri Johnson (editor of the OWC edition) uses a lot of his Notes, giving full credit where due.
Where this is especially useful is in the larger sized maps of the walking paths taken in each story.
I will be using this for "Portrait" as well later on down the line. And I already bought his huge volume on "Ulysses" - so many books on that that novel, but his seems to stand out. Details and descriptions, not literary criticism.
If you're using the OWC edition you might pass on adding this to your collection - unless the maps are important to you.

[Jerry Phillips · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unless the reader is perhaps a Dubliner and one who has an encyclopedic knowledge of turn of the century Dublin, there are many allusions, historical facts, geography, jargon and minutia that will be overlooked or ignored by the present day reader. Gifford does an incredible job of explaining all these obscurities and in so doing make these two works more accessible. Easy to use and a quality work of scholarship.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

These annotations are especially helpful with the locations referred to; and the religious and political backgrounds so necessary to appreciating the worldscape of Dublin.

[Richard]

Not exactly read as much as consulted. A helpful guide to Joyce.

[Unpil · Rating 5 out of 5]

Indispensable reference for spotting (and understanding) multitudinous allusions scattered in Dubliners and A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man.

I find James Joyce's works to be some of the densest. A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, for example, is already a challenging novel even without the allusions due to its stream-of-consciousness narration and internal monologues. Unless you are familiar with contemporary Irish geography, culture, and politics, different branches of Catholicism (especially the Jesuit Order), classical mythologies, many different languages including Latin, and other literary works such as Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo, I recommend you use this as a reference.

[Stephen Hero · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Blade Of Perseus:
From brainwaves To tidal waves, we're the sole occupants of a clinical cubicle somewhere. Whom among us is not as vicious as Des O'Conner? And it's a shame Des never had a sword and sorcery phase, regardless of pastures new. Anyway, go ahead and decry the potential evils of modern technology as it can be used as subterfuge for a lack of ability.

The Sword Of Damocles:
Life is a flimsy Formica table. And a rigid conformity to pressed slacks, Oxford shirts, and loafers.

The Rubber Knife Of Danny-Nerd:
I remain sipping at a foamy combination of Guinness and lager waiting, patiently, for that first deeply penetrative, incisive, soul-searching, getting-to-the-heart-of-the-matter Bartonian question. You see, I've so much to say and no idea which subject to raise first. This means occasionally facing off against the Radiator Gang, a group of jocks who hang around a centralized radiator at the school, so there's that. Worthy of the pathos intended, as it were.

[m · Rating 3 out of 5]

this was helpful.

[Tyler · Rating 3 out of 5]

I could not have gotten through reading A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man without this.

[Anirban Nanda · Rating 1 out of 5]

Don't use this annotation as it is too elaborate which will hinder you from enjoying the rich prose style of Joyce.

[Starfire · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you Senpai
Without you I had no hope