Ulysses/Wandering Rocks

Wandering Rocks explores the stream of consciousness narrative technique with other characters, following a priest, a shop woman, a bar maid, and other folks on the streets of Dublin.

Chapter 10 The Wandering Rocks

Gilbert Schema

Scene: The Streets

Hour: 3 PM

Organ: Blood

Symbol: Citizens

Art: Mechanics

Technic: Labyrinth

Odyssey Parallels

The Wandering Rocks is not an episode from Homer's Odyssey - it's the path that was not taken. As such, it represents a path not traveled. For a portion of this chapter, Joyce is following characters other than Stephen D and L Bloom, as if to explore various paths not taken for the narrator of Ulysses.

Major Themes

Given the theme of the chapter - the path not traveled, the wandering rocks, the labyrinth - a priest is an interesting choice of character to contrast with Bloom (a Freemason, a Jew, a freethinker, and a science-minded person). And yet similarities shine through. Stephen, though he is Catholic and "under the influence of the Church," is also a freethinker, and contrasts with the priest. Father Conmee has a very grounded, earthly stream of consciousness, probably as close to a stream of consciousness of Jesus as you'll get in literature. Compare to the inward, intellectual monologue of Stephen in Proteus (Ch. 3) the more sensual and covering-the-entire-map nature of Bloom's mental wanderings (Ch. 4, 5, 6, etc.).

Blazes Boylan also makes an appearance for a scene, another nod to the path not traveled. Bloom was rushing to avoid seeing Boylan on the street at the end of Lestrygonians (Ch. 8) - he doesn't mention Boylan by name, just pretends to be frantically searching his pockets - but it's Boylan he's trying to avoid by looking busy. The first real encounter with Blazes Boylan happens in this chapter, although he was also spotted on the way to the cemetery in Hades (Ch. 6). He appears here, buying pears, peaches, flowers, and pawing just about everything else on display at the store (merchandise and otherwise). To heighten the contrast, we see Stephen Dedalus's sisters scraping together food in the scene just prior. From the scene with Boylan: "Bending archly she reckoned again fat pears (pairs) and blushing peaches."

The fruit is also a callback to language from Chapter 4 Ulysses/Calypso when talking about Molly.

A veteran sailor, a beggar, walks about Dublin asking for alms, and ties together several characters and scenes. (A few other events or elements do the same for characters like Stephen and Leopold in different chapters, but this chapter is a microcosm of different characters.) The beggar is introduced near the beginning of Father Conmee's monologue, setting off a train of thought in Father Conmee. He also seems to experience a daydream/hallucination while on the tram: "Father Comnee at the altarrails placed the host with difficulty into the mouth of the awkward old man who had the shaky head."

Notes

p. 219-255

pp 219-229

The opening monologue following Father Conmee is notable for a number of reasons - first, it's the first extended stream of consciousness we've seen from a character other than Leopold and Stephen. Second, it repeats the name "Father Conmee" over and over again - like a litany, or an invocation, or a prayer. While it is similar to prior chapters in its narration technique (stream of consciousness), it's also very different in its narration style - it's more objective, descriptive, and grounded than Stephen or Leopold. His thoughts wander down shorter paths - mental culs-de-sac.

Corny Kelleher sped a silent jet of hayjuice arching from his mouth while a generous white arm from a window in Eccles street flung forth a coin.

- What's the best news? he asked. - I seen that particularly party last evening, the constable said with bated breath.

A onelegged sailor crutched himself round MacConnell's corner, skirting Rabaiotti's icecream car, and jerked himself up Eccles street. Towards Larry O'Rourke, in shirtsleeves in his doorway, he growled unamiably: - For England... He swung himself forward past Katey and Boody Dedalus, halted and growled: - home and beauty.

The beggar provides quite the contrast to an image on p. 226:

A plump bare generous arm shone, was seen, held forth from a white petticoatbodice and taut shiftstraps. A woman's hand flung forth a coin over the area railings. It fell on the path.

One of the urchins ran up to it, picked it up and dropped it into the minstrel's cap, saying:

- There, sir.

Several sections of the chapter exhibit

Blazes Boylan rattled merry money in his trousers' pocket. (p. 227)

By the stern stone hand of Grattan, bidding halt, an Inchicore tram unloaded straggling Highland soldiers of a band. (p. 228)

pp 230-239

Some language play: "He slapped a piebald haunch quivering near him" (piebald, ribald).

Links

Yale Modernism page: https://modernism.courseresource.yale.edu/2017/07/13/the-wandering-rocks/