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Poems and Exiles
It is only James Joyce's towering genius as a novelist that has led to the comparative neglect of his poetry and sole surviving play. And yet, argues Mays in his stimulating and informative introduction, several of these works not only occupy a pivotal position in Joyce's career; they are also magnificently assured achievements in their own right. Chamber Music is 'an extraordinary début', fusing the styles of the nineties and the Irish Revival with irony and characteristic verbal exuberance. Pomes Penyeach and Exiles (highly acclaimed in Harold Pinter's 1970 staging) were written when Joyce had published Dubliners and was completing A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. Both confront painfully personal issues of adultery, jealousy and betrayal and so pave the way for the more detached and fully realized treatment in Ulysses. Joyce's occasional verse includes 'Ecce Puer' for his new-born grandson, juvenilia, satires, translations, limericks and a parody of Samuel Taylor Coleridge. All are brought together in this scholarly, fully annotated yet accessible new edition.
434 pages, Paperback
First published January 2, 1992
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About the author
James Joyce
1,692 books9,438 followersJames Joyce was an Irish novelist, poet, and a pivotal figure in 20th-century modernist literature, renowned for his highly experimental approach to language and narrative structure, particularly his pioneering mastery and popularization of the stream-of-consciousness technique. Born into a middle-class Catholic family in the Rathgar suburb of Dublin in 1882, Joyce spent the majority of his adult life in self-imposed exile across continental Europe—living in Trieste, Zurich, and Paris—yet his entire, meticulous body of work remained obsessively and comprehensively focused on the minutiae of his native city, making Dublin both the meticulously detailed setting and a central, inescapable character in his literary universe. His work is consistently characterized by its technical complexity, rich literary allusion, intricate symbolism, and an unflinching examination of the spectrum of human consciousness. Joyce began his published career with Dubliners (1914), a collection of fifteen short stories offering a naturalistic, often stark, depiction of middle-class Irish life and the moral and spiritual paralysis he observed in its inhabitants, concluding each story with a moment of crucial, sudden self-understanding he termed an "epiphany." This collection was followed by the highly autobiographical novel A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man (1916), a Bildungsroman that meticulously chronicled the intellectual and artistic awakening of its protagonist, Stephen Dedalus, who would become Joyce's recurring alter ego and intellectual stand-in throughout his major works.
His magnum opus, Ulysses (1922), is universally regarded as a landmark work of fiction that fundamentally revolutionized the novel form. It compressed the events of a single, ordinary day—June 16, 1904, a date now globally celebrated by literary enthusiasts as "Bloomsday"—into a sprawling, epic narrative that structurally and symbolically paralleled Homer's Odyssey, using a dazzling array of distinct styles and linguistic invention across its eighteen episodes to explore the lives of Leopold Bloom, his wife Molly Bloom, and Stephen Dedalus in hyper-minute detail. The novel's explicit content and innovative, challenging structure led to its initial banning for obscenity in the United States and the United Kingdom, turning Joyce into a cause célèbre for artistic freedom and the boundaries of literary expression. His final, most challenging work, Finnegans Wake (1939), pushed the boundaries of language and conventional narrative even further, employing a dense, dream-like prose filled with multilingual puns, invented portmanteau words, and layered allusions that continues to divide and challenge readers and scholars to this day. A dedicated polyglot who reportedly learned several languages, including Norwegian simply to read Ibsen in the original, Joyce approached the English language not as a fixed entity with rigid rules, but as a malleable medium capable of infinite reinvention and expression. His personal life was marked by an unwavering dedication to his literary craft, a complex, devoted relationship with his wife Nora Barnacle, and chronic, debilitating eye problems that necessitated numerous painful surgeries throughout his life, sometimes forcing him to write with crayons on large white paper. Despite these severe physical ailments and financial struggles, his singular literary vision remained sharp, focused, and profoundly revolutionary. Joyce passed away in Zurich, Switzerland, in 1941, shortly after undergoing one of his many eye operations. Today, he is widely regarded as perhaps the most significant and challenging writer of the 20th century. His immense, complex legacy is robustly maintained by global academic study and institutions such as the James Joyce Centre in Dublin, which ensures his complex, demanding, and utterly brilliant work endures, inviting new generations of readers to explore the very essence of what it means to be hum
His magnum opus, Ulysses (1922), is universally regarded as a landmark work of fiction that fundamentally revolutionized the novel form. It compressed the events of a single, ordinary day—June 16, 1904, a date now globally celebrated by literary enthusiasts as "Bloomsday"—into a sprawling, epic narrative that structurally and symbolically paralleled Homer's Odyssey, using a dazzling array of distinct styles and linguistic invention across its eighteen episodes to explore the lives of Leopold Bloom, his wife Molly Bloom, and Stephen Dedalus in hyper-minute detail. The novel's explicit content and innovative, challenging structure led to its initial banning for obscenity in the United States and the United Kingdom, turning Joyce into a cause célèbre for artistic freedom and the boundaries of literary expression. His final, most challenging work, Finnegans Wake (1939), pushed the boundaries of language and conventional narrative even further, employing a dense, dream-like prose filled with multilingual puns, invented portmanteau words, and layered allusions that continues to divide and challenge readers and scholars to this day. A dedicated polyglot who reportedly learned several languages, including Norwegian simply to read Ibsen in the original, Joyce approached the English language not as a fixed entity with rigid rules, but as a malleable medium capable of infinite reinvention and expression. His personal life was marked by an unwavering dedication to his literary craft, a complex, devoted relationship with his wife Nora Barnacle, and chronic, debilitating eye problems that necessitated numerous painful surgeries throughout his life, sometimes forcing him to write with crayons on large white paper. Despite these severe physical ailments and financial struggles, his singular literary vision remained sharp, focused, and profoundly revolutionary. Joyce passed away in Zurich, Switzerland, in 1941, shortly after undergoing one of his many eye operations. Today, he is widely regarded as perhaps the most significant and challenging writer of the 20th century. His immense, complex legacy is robustly maintained by global academic study and institutions such as the James Joyce Centre in Dublin, which ensures his complex, demanding, and utterly brilliant work endures, inviting new generations of readers to explore the very essence of what it means to be hum
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
September 15, 2023
James Joyce was a poet
Long before writing novels
When with a scarf round his throat
He frequented brothels
The poems he there penned
Weren't old-fashioned or quaint
But the works of a friend
Of night's whore and day's saint
Deliciously tuned
To moonlight and rain
His words were half-ruined
By pleasure's soft pain
And Love that great hunger
Hanging down from the sky
A sickle for plunder
Made his human heart cry
May 19, 2025
I enjoyed the poetry more than the play.
February 5, 2018
after reading the major works, i never doubted that my dearest friend would disappoint me. he didn't, actually.
1. poems: i admit that the poems of joyce are really inferior than his prose works, but some of his poems in this collection are so charming. his poems go to the range from the proto-modernist form of english poetry to the self-referential, light-hearted ones. his range of parody, writing limericks among the poems are, in my honest opinion, enjoyable to the criteria of reading pleasure but not for the scholarly aptitude. joyce knew that, you'll know that if you try reading it that these poems are for pleasure to the people of wounded hearts.
2. play - "exiles": when i was reading leonard cohen's "beautiful losers", i came across one comment on the blurb -- "james joyce is not dead, he's living under the name of leonard cohen in montreal, canada". this comment is somewhat funny, but somewhat true. while reading "exiles", my mind went back and back again to my most favourite cohen song, "famous blue raincoat" because the song's theme matches with the storyline of "exiles". the latter also deals with love, desire, betrayal, infidelity, and most importantly, doubt among three people who are friends to each other. pinter adapted this play for stage later, but if you have read "betrayal" by pinter, you'll know that the premise is very much familiar but now i know to whom he owed that premise of the play. anyway, yes, the play's pace is very slow, but it was maturely written from a genius artist whose forte is not writing drama (that's his only play). you'll stick to the end as what happened in the climax but you won't be disappointed to see the humane ending in a play about tumultuous relationship(s) between people and friends. this is the genius of my dearest friend, james joyce that he was so unique.
1. poems: i admit that the poems of joyce are really inferior than his prose works, but some of his poems in this collection are so charming. his poems go to the range from the proto-modernist form of english poetry to the self-referential, light-hearted ones. his range of parody, writing limericks among the poems are, in my honest opinion, enjoyable to the criteria of reading pleasure but not for the scholarly aptitude. joyce knew that, you'll know that if you try reading it that these poems are for pleasure to the people of wounded hearts.
2. play - "exiles": when i was reading leonard cohen's "beautiful losers", i came across one comment on the blurb -- "james joyce is not dead, he's living under the name of leonard cohen in montreal, canada". this comment is somewhat funny, but somewhat true. while reading "exiles", my mind went back and back again to my most favourite cohen song, "famous blue raincoat" because the song's theme matches with the storyline of "exiles". the latter also deals with love, desire, betrayal, infidelity, and most importantly, doubt among three people who are friends to each other. pinter adapted this play for stage later, but if you have read "betrayal" by pinter, you'll know that the premise is very much familiar but now i know to whom he owed that premise of the play. anyway, yes, the play's pace is very slow, but it was maturely written from a genius artist whose forte is not writing drama (that's his only play). you'll stick to the end as what happened in the climax but you won't be disappointed to see the humane ending in a play about tumultuous relationship(s) between people and friends. this is the genius of my dearest friend, james joyce that he was so unique.
May 9, 2016
Pomes a Penyeach *** This is a slight collection of poetry. Small in size – 13 short poems – and narrow in scope. There are some gems including Nightpiece, In Memory of the Players in a Mirror at Midnight, and Prayer.
The language is much more playful than Chamber Music – what one would expect from James Joyce. There are some striking phrases and neologisms:
Make brute music with their hoofs (p. 49)
Rosefrail and fair (p. 51)
Under the moongrey nettles, the black mould (p. 52)
Seadusk (p. 53)
A moondew stars her hanging hair (p. 55)
Night’s sindark nave (p. 57)
A starknell tolls (p. 57)
Nude green of flesh (p.59)
Gentling her awe as to a soul predestined (p. 61)
Blind me with your dark nearness (p. 61)
These are treasures, but the poems themselves are occasional and ordinary in subject matter and theme. More light than depth. (05/14)
The Holy Office, Gas from a Burner, Ecce Puer ** These are truly occasional poems, the first two being Joyce’s goodbye to Dublin, and the last about the death of his father and the birth of his grandson. The first two are satiric with a biting humor. More of a broadside than a profound expression. (I guess at one time poetry was an acceptable form of mockery. Now you’d be mocked for doing just that!) (05/14)
Chamber Music **** Simply beautiful verse. There's nothing extraordinary from an author known for verbal pyrotechnics. These are simply beautiful songs with minimal classical allusions, foreign languages, portmanteau words, complicated viewpoints, Irish history, etc. Read and enjoy the pure music. (04/11)
Exiles ** In this oft-derided Ibsenian play, Joyce tells the story of a love quadrangle. The play’s guilt-rid characters never really come to life, and where one would wish for Bertha to find her freedom and strength, the play ends up being a strange renewal of love (and the past). The play is more Ibsen then Joyce. Unless you are a Joyce completist, this could be skipped. (05/16)
The language is much more playful than Chamber Music – what one would expect from James Joyce. There are some striking phrases and neologisms:
Make brute music with their hoofs (p. 49)
Rosefrail and fair (p. 51)
Under the moongrey nettles, the black mould (p. 52)
Seadusk (p. 53)
A moondew stars her hanging hair (p. 55)
Night’s sindark nave (p. 57)
A starknell tolls (p. 57)
Nude green of flesh (p.59)
Gentling her awe as to a soul predestined (p. 61)
Blind me with your dark nearness (p. 61)
These are treasures, but the poems themselves are occasional and ordinary in subject matter and theme. More light than depth. (05/14)
The Holy Office, Gas from a Burner, Ecce Puer ** These are truly occasional poems, the first two being Joyce’s goodbye to Dublin, and the last about the death of his father and the birth of his grandson. The first two are satiric with a biting humor. More of a broadside than a profound expression. (I guess at one time poetry was an acceptable form of mockery. Now you’d be mocked for doing just that!) (05/14)
Chamber Music **** Simply beautiful verse. There's nothing extraordinary from an author known for verbal pyrotechnics. These are simply beautiful songs with minimal classical allusions, foreign languages, portmanteau words, complicated viewpoints, Irish history, etc. Read and enjoy the pure music. (04/11)
Exiles ** In this oft-derided Ibsenian play, Joyce tells the story of a love quadrangle. The play’s guilt-rid characters never really come to life, and where one would wish for Bertha to find her freedom and strength, the play ends up being a strange renewal of love (and the past). The play is more Ibsen then Joyce. Unless you are a Joyce completist, this could be skipped. (05/16)
February 17, 2014
This stuff feels a bit thin, for lack of a better descriptor. It's all interesting in light of Joyce's later and earlier work, which is why I imagine most people would read it. Exiles was especially interesting to me with respect to Finnegans Wake. Richard and Robert = Shem and Shawn? Bertha and Beatrice = ALP and Issy? In some ways Exiles lets you see some of the themes of Finnegans Wake rehearsed without all the texture, obscurity, allusion, etc. but then in other ways that makes it less fun to read. There is not the struggle you usually have with Joyce - it feels too straightforward, too autobiographical.
March 22, 2022
As someone who has never read any James Joyce, never read a collection of poems, and had never read any plays before I was extremely pleased and happy with my experience with this beautiful little introduction to all three.
This book must have found me with it being St. Patrick’s day the day I bought it.
This book must have found me with it being St. Patrick’s day the day I bought it.
April 29, 2015
It's been said Joyce wrote nothing but masterpieces. Whoever said that never read Exiles. It's the turd floating in the otherwise glittering Joyce pool. It essentially rehashes the same material used better in 'The Dead'; the dialogue is so wooden childhood sweethearts carve their initials in it.
February 13, 2023
Since I finished reading his novels last year, I decided to read Joyce's poems on his birthday. Anyone who skips these isn't missing out on much. For completionists only, these poems seem very personal to Joyce and are the least interesting thing he has written. Brief odes to lovers and family.
August 10, 2022
Maybe for Joyce "completists" only.
Worth it to read his 2 published collections, "Chamber Music" and "Pomes Penyeach". But then we get into unpublished fragments from early in his career (some from his earlier 2 books of poems, which were never published) and "Occasional Poems" - many limericks to or about his friends.
Editor J C C Mays does an outstanding job with voluminous Notes to the collection.
He was handicapped, because at the same time this was being collected and prepared for publication Faber (with a long history of publication of Joyce in England) was putting together "Poems and Shorter Writings" with Joyce scholar Richard Ellman, and A. Walton Litz once he had passed. Because of that Mays was not allowed to include a number of poems and pieces that are included in P&SW. Such as the 40 extant Epiphanies, and, more important, "Giacomo Joyce".
That seemed to drive Mays to prove his edition would be superior - and it is, in terms of Notes, and explaining the connection of the individual poems to Joyce's life, later publications, and philosophy.
The Ellman/Litz is sorely lacking when it comes to Notes as is, and even more so when compared to this volume. One thing the other volume does provide that Mays does not is line numbers. Since the Notes are referenced by line number, they would have been useful to have here.
There are a couple pieces included here that are not in P&SW, and there are some corrections and variants to the individual pieces as well (and he explains why he made the decison to use those changes here).
Buy both - this for the outstanding Notes, the other for some material not allowed to be published in this collection.
I had a "fun" time flipping between the two volumes. Luckily both have an Index of First Lines and Titles, so when they were not presented in the same order (e. g. Ellman presents "Ecce Puer" much earlier in the collection that does Mays - who publishes it at the very last, where Joyce wrote it in his career/life) the poem was easy enough to find in the corresponding volume.
While much of this volume could be filed under "Joyce ephemera", I was never bored working my way through it (and, as it does go on and on - and referring back to the other volume - it does at times seem a never ending chore), in large part thanks to Mays' Notes.
(I read "Exiles" earlier on its own, as a Oxford World Classics volume - again referring back and forth between the Notes in that volume and this one.)
Worth it to read his 2 published collections, "Chamber Music" and "Pomes Penyeach". But then we get into unpublished fragments from early in his career (some from his earlier 2 books of poems, which were never published) and "Occasional Poems" - many limericks to or about his friends.
Editor J C C Mays does an outstanding job with voluminous Notes to the collection.
He was handicapped, because at the same time this was being collected and prepared for publication Faber (with a long history of publication of Joyce in England) was putting together "Poems and Shorter Writings" with Joyce scholar Richard Ellman, and A. Walton Litz once he had passed. Because of that Mays was not allowed to include a number of poems and pieces that are included in P&SW. Such as the 40 extant Epiphanies, and, more important, "Giacomo Joyce".
That seemed to drive Mays to prove his edition would be superior - and it is, in terms of Notes, and explaining the connection of the individual poems to Joyce's life, later publications, and philosophy.
The Ellman/Litz is sorely lacking when it comes to Notes as is, and even more so when compared to this volume. One thing the other volume does provide that Mays does not is line numbers. Since the Notes are referenced by line number, they would have been useful to have here.
There are a couple pieces included here that are not in P&SW, and there are some corrections and variants to the individual pieces as well (and he explains why he made the decison to use those changes here).
Buy both - this for the outstanding Notes, the other for some material not allowed to be published in this collection.
I had a "fun" time flipping between the two volumes. Luckily both have an Index of First Lines and Titles, so when they were not presented in the same order (e. g. Ellman presents "Ecce Puer" much earlier in the collection that does Mays - who publishes it at the very last, where Joyce wrote it in his career/life) the poem was easy enough to find in the corresponding volume.
While much of this volume could be filed under "Joyce ephemera", I was never bored working my way through it (and, as it does go on and on - and referring back to the other volume - it does at times seem a never ending chore), in large part thanks to Mays' Notes.
(I read "Exiles" earlier on its own, as a Oxford World Classics volume - again referring back and forth between the Notes in that volume and this one.)
September 20, 2022
Poems read 16.7.2022—14.9.2022
Pretty poems, unrefined, sometimes beautiful and smart, but oftentimes not as significant, I fear. I love the author behind them and respect the status they hold in his artistic life, but they seemed to me to be those verses you would just write for yourself from time to time.
Despite that, there are some gems I deeply adored.
Exiles read 15.9.2022—20.9.2022
Very captivating deconstruction of loyalty of love. Actually, enjoyed the play way more than I expected. Didn't find it somehow remarkable as if to yell into the world for people to appreciate it, but it definitely has something to it.
Not broad — in fact, pretty reserved —, but subtly powerful.
Yes, the exemplary material to indulge in only if you're interested in the artist.
Pretty poems, unrefined, sometimes beautiful and smart, but oftentimes not as significant, I fear. I love the author behind them and respect the status they hold in his artistic life, but they seemed to me to be those verses you would just write for yourself from time to time.
Despite that, there are some gems I deeply adored.
Exiles read 15.9.2022—20.9.2022
Very captivating deconstruction of loyalty of love. Actually, enjoyed the play way more than I expected. Didn't find it somehow remarkable as if to yell into the world for people to appreciate it, but it definitely has something to it.
Not broad — in fact, pretty reserved —, but subtly powerful.
Yes, the exemplary material to indulge in only if you're interested in the artist.
April 17, 2019
A tiny, lovely edition which compiles Joyce's lesser-known works. "Gas from a Burner" is an exhilarating satire which demonstrates the author's artistry even when he's most pissed. "Exiles" has a rather forgettable plot, albeit with a great set of characters. Provodes a good background to Joyce's other works.
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November 4, 2021
I was vaguely aware Joyce had written some poetry and one play, but I never really hear it discussed, so I was curious. Turns out the reason no one talks about these is that they're really bad!
Quick caveat that I think it's ~possible a good director/ensemble could make something out of Exiles -- but the heavy lifting would really be theirs, as the text does not provide much to work with.
Quick caveat that I think it's ~possible a good director/ensemble could make something out of Exiles -- but the heavy lifting would really be theirs, as the text does not provide much to work with.
March 21, 2022
The poetry was OK, mostly simple forms. But Joyce isn't known for his poetry. He isn't known for his playwriting either, but his one and only play, Exiles, is a lovely character study in complicated webs of love. Socially ahead of its time, it is beautifully understated. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
March 16, 2020
More interesting than fun. I might need to reread this at some point, but I found it very strange to read his early work.
January 13, 2021
On occasion Joyce wrote some poetry that wasn't terrible and put together a few rhymes without being puerile.
January 10, 2025
James Joyce, conhecido por sua escrita densa e experimentações com o fluxo de consciência, também tem uma beleza lírica em sua poesia. Em Exílios e Poemas, ele traz um olhar diferente, mais introspectivo e pessoal, mas não menos complexo. A angústia do exílio - tanto o físico quanto o emocional - permeia as suas palavras, e isso cria um espaço de leitura cheio de introspecção.
O que mais me impressionou foi a habilidade de Joyce em condensar uma enorme carga emocional em frases curtas e de uma precisão quase cirúrgica. Como em Ulisses, a linguagem de Joyce cria uma sensação de desconforto, mas também de uma beleza quase poética. A comparação com À Espera de Godot de Beckett vem facilmente à mente, pois ambos lidam com temas de exílio e de busca por um sentido de existência.
A leitura foi mais desafiadora, levando cerca de 12 horas para explorar cada nuance do livro. A capa... deixa pra lá... A classificação indicativa seria 16 anos, devido à profundidade emocional e ao estilo de escrita complexo.
O que mais me impressionou foi a habilidade de Joyce em condensar uma enorme carga emocional em frases curtas e de uma precisão quase cirúrgica. Como em Ulisses, a linguagem de Joyce cria uma sensação de desconforto, mas também de uma beleza quase poética. A comparação com À Espera de Godot de Beckett vem facilmente à mente, pois ambos lidam com temas de exílio e de busca por um sentido de existência.
A leitura foi mais desafiadora, levando cerca de 12 horas para explorar cada nuance do livro. A capa... deixa pra lá... A classificação indicativa seria 16 anos, devido à profundidade emocional e ao estilo de escrita complexo.
September 23, 2025
Exílios, escrita em 1918, foi a unica incursão de Joyce no teatro, e costuma ser ofuscada por suas obras-primas Ulisses e Finnegans Wake, o que é um grande desconsolo, visto que essa linda obra oferece um vislumbre primoroso do universo psicológico do autor, explorando o casamento, o amor e ciúme, em todas as suas complexidades.
A narrativa gira em torno de Richard Rowan, um escritor que retorna para Dublin anos após um exilio voluntario na Italia, acompanhado de sua pareira Bertha e de seu filho Archie. Seu retorno provoca um reencontro com os fantasmas do passado: O jornalista Robert Hand e a professora de música Beatrice Justice. É nessa tensa reunião que se concentra a peça, evidenciando uma explosão de sentimentos, emoções, suspeitas e desejos em todas as personagens.
A peça é bastante ousada e ao apresentar um marido que encoraja uma espécie de liberdade total no casamento, desafiando convenções e testando, de forma perturbadora, possessividade, confiança e até mesmo o amor. Joyce nos lembrando que a vida é cheia de incertezas e incompreensões. Maravilhosa!
A narrativa gira em torno de Richard Rowan, um escritor que retorna para Dublin anos após um exilio voluntario na Italia, acompanhado de sua pareira Bertha e de seu filho Archie. Seu retorno provoca um reencontro com os fantasmas do passado: O jornalista Robert Hand e a professora de música Beatrice Justice. É nessa tensa reunião que se concentra a peça, evidenciando uma explosão de sentimentos, emoções, suspeitas e desejos em todas as personagens.
A peça é bastante ousada e ao apresentar um marido que encoraja uma espécie de liberdade total no casamento, desafiando convenções e testando, de forma perturbadora, possessividade, confiança e até mesmo o amor. Joyce nos lembrando que a vida é cheia de incertezas e incompreensões. Maravilhosa!
December 27, 2024
Im not a poetry person so these seemed a bit weak considering his later stature.
Exile, the play presents a few of the most dysfunctional snobs I've ever encountered.
Was it good playwriting?
I don't think so.
Exile, the play presents a few of the most dysfunctional snobs I've ever encountered.
Was it good playwriting?
I don't think so.
May 2, 2023
Well he’s not a good poet and he’s not a great playwright either so no wonder he’s famous for his prose instead.
May 14, 2023
O cara incentiva a esposa a trair ele, pra não se sentir culpado quando ele mesmo não se sentir culpado quando pegar outra mulher. Barraco grande.
February 26, 2017
Haven't really touched Exiles, but the poems were enjoyable. Especially 'The Holy Office', 'Gas from a Burner' and 'Ecce Puer'. I also really enjoyed finding Joyce's translation of Verlaine's 'Automne' in the collection; I didn't think it was possible to make it sound almost as good in English as in French. Chapeau bas, JJ.
March 11, 2015
I have a confession to make - I'm a huge fan of James Joyce. I've read both Dubliners and A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, and thoroughly enjoyed both of them. I'm currently trying to convince my wife to save up with me to go to Dublin on Bloomsday next year.
This collection wasn't as awesome as I hoped it would be, but I didn't think it was bad. The collection contains a good amount of his poetry, as well as his only existing play, Exiles.
I enjoyed the poetry just fine, but what I enjoyed most was the play Exiles. Exiles is about an unorthodox couple who moves back to Ireland after spending nine years abroad. Richard, the father of the family and a writer by profession, meets with an old friend of his named Robert. Robert, while Richard isn't around, hits on Bertha, Richard's wife. What ensues is the story of a love triangle, with Joyce handling the themes of love and freedom, jealously, and the relationship between an artist and his homeland.
All in all, this isn't Joyce's best work I've read, but it was something enjoyable for me.
This collection wasn't as awesome as I hoped it would be, but I didn't think it was bad. The collection contains a good amount of his poetry, as well as his only existing play, Exiles.
I enjoyed the poetry just fine, but what I enjoyed most was the play Exiles. Exiles is about an unorthodox couple who moves back to Ireland after spending nine years abroad. Richard, the father of the family and a writer by profession, meets with an old friend of his named Robert. Robert, while Richard isn't around, hits on Bertha, Richard's wife. What ensues is the story of a love triangle, with Joyce handling the themes of love and freedom, jealously, and the relationship between an artist and his homeland.
All in all, this isn't Joyce's best work I've read, but it was something enjoyable for me.
December 22, 2023
Pretty damn bad! Which is something that I find to be relieving, if anything. Thank God someone who writes so well can write so poorly!
August 20, 2009
Joyce isn't greatly celebrated for his poems, but that's only because his prose has grabbed everybody's attention. But some of his poetry is worthy of inclusion in any twentieth-century anthology. Ecce Puer is probably his best-known poem. A particular favourite of mine is The Holy Office.
I haven't started the play, Exiles. I'll rate the book when I finish it.
I haven't started the play, Exiles. I'll rate the book when I finish it.
November 27, 2014
A good thing Joyce wasn't really a poet by day. Though amusing enough was his love poetry. His satires - especially that of Katharsis - are much more interesting. And Exiles is more engaging than I remember it being though Ibsen still has him on playwriting. What does it mean to be free in a relationship? A fun query.
January 11, 2017
One cannot believe how Joyce was full of sense of humor when reads Exiles, the play. The observations which were occurred one hundred years ago will fascinate the reader. The agility of mind is obvious in the play while the poems are touchy and soulful. This book will bring up some reflections of a different and brilliant side of Joyce to the reader.
July 18, 2014
summer research does not get any better than this. for those of you who deem joyce's poetry juvenile and not worth your time, think again. especially with pomes penyeach.
March 2, 2015
Recommendable for those who are quite keen on studying the author or things related to him. The editor's work, especially providing detailed annotations, is highly professional and admirable though.
July 20, 2017
I didn't really like most of the poems but I liked the exile. And I didn't read the notes so ya
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