Ulysses/Hades

Chapter 6 Hades

Gilbert Schema

Scene: The Graveyard

Hour: 11 AM

Organ: heart

Color: White/Black

Symbol: Caretaker

Art: Religion

Technic: Incubism

Summary

The Hades chapter of Ulysses corresponds (obviously) to Odysseus's descent into the underworld. Many of the symbols we see in that portion of Homer's Odyssey show up in this chapter.

The chapter begins with a carriage ride to Glasnevin Cemetery, on the outskirts of Dublin, featuring four characters: Martin Cunningham, Jack Powers, Simon Dedalus, and Leopold Bloom. Their arrangement in the carriage is not specified, but right away, Bloom is marked as an outsider in a subtle way: Martin Cunningham asks, while everyone is climbing into the carriage and when Bloom is conspicuously absent from the carriage, "Are we all here now? Come along, Bloom." This is the first chapter where we see Bloom interacting with other Dubliners, and the theme of Bloom as an ill-treated outsider will continue throughout the book (experiencing something of a culmination in Chapter 12, Cyclops, when Bloom is chased out of Barney Kiernan's and the chapter ends with a reference to the prophet Elijah's ascent into Heaven).

The carriage begins at the house of the deceased (Paddy Dignam) and is headed to the cemetery on the outskirts of town. The opening street scene, with an old woman "nose whiteflattened against the pane," is visually rich and contains many cross-references to folk tales, mythology, Irish funeral traditions, and Bloom's past. Soon after the carriage departs, Bloom spots Stephen - the first time both main characters have appeared together. Simon seems more interested in trashing Malachi (Buck) Mulligan, whom we met in the first chapter (Telemachus), than his son. In an ironic display of Irish contradictions, Dedalus simultaneously talks about what a sordid reputation Mulligan has and how everyone in Dublin knows it, while also saying that he will reveal Mulligan's true character and "tickle his catastrophe."

Simon Dedalus introduces several Shakespearean references. The first reference is "the wise child that knows her own father" (implying that Mulligan is a bastard who doesn't know who his father is, further repeated when Simon refers to Mulligan's "aunt, or mother, or whatever she is"). It's actually a dual inversion of the Shakespearean version, from The Merchant of Venice: "It is a wise father that knows his own child." Doubly inverted, both in the sentence structure and in the gender.

The second Shakespearean reference is "I'll tickle his catastrophe," also from The Merchant of Venice. It means, "I'll tickle his butt." (.........?)

Dedalus uses a wonderful sequence of no less than three strong adjectives to describe Mulligan: "That Mulligan is a contaminated bloody doubledyed ruffian by all accounts. His name stinks all over Dublin."

This leads Bloom's train of thought toward sons, and his own son, Rudy, who died 11 days after his birth. This leads him to think about Rudy's conception, in a particular passage that is both key and controversial:

"Must have been that morning in Raymond terrace she was at the window watching the two dogs at it by the wall of the cease to do evil. And the sergeant grinning up. She had that cream gown on with the rip she never stitched. Give us a touch, Poldy. God, I'm dying for it. How life begins."

In this passage, Bloom is guessing at the day of Rudy's conception. The Raymond terrace (where the Blooms had previously resided, different from their residence on the date of the novel) is across the street from a fort that was previously a prison (or, maybe vice-versa). The wall has a motto that says, "Cease to do evil... the Lord is near." That Molly Bloom is watching two copulating dogs beneath this motto, and getting horny watching them, is deliciously ironic. It was also very controversial, as it was unheard of to specifically mention womens' sexual desires, let alone to imply that a woman might get excited by the sight of copulating animals. The key phrase here is, "Give us a touch, Poldy." (Slang for sexual intercourse.)

Joyce made several modifications to this passage for the second printing of Ulysses.

There is some double entendre with the phrase "my son inside her" - every male's organ being a surrogate son, of sorts.

His thoughts have wandered from seeing Simon's son Stephen, to Simon's tirade about Malachi (Buck) Mulligan, to Simon's son, to his (Leopold's) own stillborn son, Rudy, to Molly and the day of Rudy's conception, and they wander on to Milly, and the young student she mentioned in her letter in Calypso (Ch. 4) - "Life, life." The cycle continues.

Martin Cunningham discovers crumbs on the seat, no doubt from a picnic. They're out of place and clash terribly with the mood of the occasion - and one of the many funny ways that the living poking fun at the dead just by, well, being alive, will appear in this chapter. The crumbs from bread are a symbol of life and nourishment, a fun occasion, a summer picnic in the country somewhere.

Quotes

—There’s a friend of yours gone by, Dedalus, he said.

—Who is that?

—Your son and heir.

—Where is he? Mr Dedalus said, stretching over across.

The carriage, passing the open drains and mounds of rippedup roadway before the tenement houses, lurched round the corner and, swerving back to the tramtrack, rolled on noisily with chattering wheels. Mr Dedalus fell back, saying:

—Was that Mulligan cad with him? His fidus Achates!

—No, Mr Bloom said. He was alone.

—Down with his aunt Sally, I suppose, Mr Dedalus said, the Goulding faction, the drunken little costdrawer and Crissie, papa’s little lump of dung, the wise child that knows her own father.

—The weather is changing, he said quietly.

—A pity it did not keep up fine, Martin Cunningham said.

—Wanted for the country, Mr Power said. There’s the sun again coming out.

Mr Dedalus, peering through his glasses towards the veiled sun, hurled a mute curse at the sky.

—It’s as uncertain as a child’s bottom, he said.

The carriage turned again its stiff wheels and their trunks swayed gently. Martin Cunningham twirled more quickly the peak of his beard.

—Tom Kernan was immense last night, he said. And Paddy Leonard taking him off to his face.

—O, draw him out, Martin, Mr Power said eagerly. Wait till you hear him, Simon, on Ben Dollard’s singing of The Croppy Boy.

—Immense, Martin Cunningham said pompously. His singing of that simple ballad, Martin, is the most trenchant rendering I ever heard in the whole course of my experience.

—Trenchant, Mr Power said laughing. He’s dead nuts on that. And the retrospective arrangement.

—Did you read Dan Dawson’s speech? Martin Cunningham asked.

—I did not then, Mr Dedalus said. Where is it?

—In the paper this morning.

Mr Bloom took the paper from his inside pocket. That book I must change for her.

—No, no, Mr Dedalus said quickly. Later on please.

References

Modernism wiki (Yale): http://modernism.research.yale.edu/wiki/index.php/%22Hades%22

Sparknotes: http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/ulysses/section6.rhtml