James Joyce, Ulysses, and the Construction of Jewish Identity: Culture, Biography, and 'the Jew' in Modernist Europe

Representations of 'the Jew' have long been a topic of interest in Joyce studies. Neil Davison argues that Joyce's lifelong encounter with pseudo-scientific, religious and political discourse about 'the Jew' forms a unifying component of his career. Davison offers new biographical material, and presents a detailed reading of Ulysses showing how Joyce draws on Christian folklore, Dreyfus Affair propaganda, Sinn Fein politics, and theories of Jewish sexual perversion and financial conspiracy. Throughout, Joyce confronts the controversy of 'race', the psychology of internalised stereotype, and the contradictions of fin-de-siecle anti-Semitism.

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: United Kingdom, 24 September 1998

Format: Paperback / softback, 324 pages

Dimensions: 22.5 x 16.2 x 2 centimeters (0.51 kg)

Writer: Neil R. Davison, Anthony Julius

Table of ContentsForeword Anthony Julius; Introduction; 1. Silence: family values; 2. Silence: Jesuit years: Clongowes and Belvedere; 3. Silence: university years: the Church, Dreyfus, and aesthetics; 4. Exile: excursion to the Continent, bitter return; 5. Cunning and exile: Greeks and Jews; 6. Cunning: Jews and the Continent: texts and subtexts; 7. Cunning: the miracle of Lazarus times two: Joyce and Italo Svevo; 8. Ulysses; Conclusion; Notes; Bibliography; Index.

Promotional Information'At every turn this superb study introduces fresh perspectives on an important subject.' James Joyce Literary Supplement

Reviews'In this thorough and original study Davison poses fundamental questions: what did Joyce know or believe about the Jews, where did he derive his ideas, and to what use did he put them, especially in Ulysses? ... At every turn this superb study introduces fresh perspectives on an important subject.' James Joyce Literary Supplement 'Unlike previous books on the topic, Davison's book refuses simply to portray Joyce as a 'philo-Semite' who had an unproblematic identification with Jews as fellow marginals ... James Joyce, Ulysses, and the Construction of Jewish Identity does show convincingly how, along with Irish Catholocism, Ulysses was saturated with counter-reference to European anti-Semitism and the Jewish diaspora. Joyce's encyclopaedic reading of 'the Jews' has regained its rightful place in the texture and sinew of his writing.' The Times Literary Supplement 'Valuable and entertaining insights ... Highly recommended for undergraduates, graduates, and Joyceans in general.' Choice '[A] valuable and always interesting volume ... Davison's scholarship is impressive.' Irish Studies Review