Wednesday, November 20, 2013

December 1923? Delivery of the Letter level one

And congruously enough the confusion of its composition was fitly capped by the zigzaggery of its delivering. The postman mentioned on page 80 and not for the 1st time in history for just as, it has been more than once pointed out, the demise of one parish priest or curator is sure to be followed by other parochial demises of an allied nature. Though, coming now to the postman mentioned on p 80, though his qualifications for that particular post were known only to a limited circle of friends the spectacle of the Lucalizod lettercarrier, an official of very superior appearance in his emptybottlegreen jerkin, at once gave doubters a vouch for his bifinalist zeal. Both sides of the roadway were visited by him in turn in the discharge of his important duty and during which he got a no of stumbles which seemed to startle him very much and while he allowed simple & unfranked correspondence to escape automatically from the mailbag ...ed to him, his unerring zeal in sorting for special delivery all missives containing bullion or eatables, made him a man, seen, pitied, & respected.
Thus two was a woman's petition, maid, wife & mother, offered by two sons of wild earth, Shamus Pennifera, and Johannes Epistoloforus, to their and of all the Lord, offering to him from whom all things came their gift of knowledge, thereby giving him of his own (the lion's mouth).
For it was she who still believed that her face was the best part of her & hoped for
It was this last alone that at last gave HCE the raspberry. Groaning of spirit, he lifted his hands & many who did not dare it, heard him say: I will give £10 to the 1st fellow who will put that W in [...] royal canal. [FDV]






And congruously enough the confusion of its composition was fitly capped by the zigzaggery of its delivering.

"confusion of its composition" Mamafesta?

"fitly capped" wearing a hat that fits? (cf 'tin hat on McGrath')

mailman on foot may cross street for each house (but if there's lots close together it will be more efficient to do each side in turn)

VI.A Eveline "she walked alone from school, told her friends pop walked zigzag: man followed"
VI.A Exiles2 "Trist's way for entering house (zigzag)"
ROC4 "the longest way out down the switchbackward road"

that FW should be preoccupied with the composition of Ulysses makes perfect sense... but what interested Joyce equally about its delivery/publication? how did St Kevin/ Stannie become Shem's esthetic counterweight... a mailman????


The postman mentioned on page 80 and not for the 1st time in history for just as, it has been more than once pointed out, the demise of one parish priest or curator is sure to be followed by other parochial demises of an allied nature.

Cad2 has this glancing mention: "Next morning postman handed him a letter superscribed to Humpty, Pot and Gallows King."

(previously: Kevin carrying tub? Tristan as "carrier of the ovum"? Mmlj "used to give the grandest lectures by the picture postcard"??)

is "page 80" a random placeholder? could Joyce have had approximate pagenumbers for his mental outline?
U80? (Bloom leaving church???)
"1st time in history" Viconian framing??
"demise of... priest" cf The Sisters?
"curator"
superstition: things come in threes


Though, coming now to the postman mentioned on p 80, though his qualifications for that particular post were known only to a limited circle of friends the spectacle of the Lucalizod lettercarrier, an official of very superior appearance in his emptybottlegreen jerkin, at once gave doubters a vouch for his bifinalist zeal.

"limited circle of friends" Stannie, or James? maybe postman = biographer??
"superior appearance" the opposite of Shem
empty (where Shem was full)
empty green beerbottle

'bottlegreen' leather
did Irish mailmen ever have green uniforms pre-1923?

1938
green jerkin
"bifinalist" one of two finalists for mailman job, has advantage of handsome uniform??
(i keep hearing 'bimetallist' but i can't see how it would fit)


Both sides of the roadway were visited by him in turn in the discharge of his important duty and during which he got a no of stumbles which seemed to startle him very much and while he allowed simple & unfranked correspondence to escape automatically from the mailbag ...ed to him, his unerring zeal in sorting for special delivery all missives containing bullion or eatables, made him a man, seen, pitied, & respected.

"Both sides" not just the more sympathetic pole of any duality?
"roadway" sounds rural
"important duty" distributing Joyce's writing?
"got... stumbles" why "got"? what sort of stumbles?
"simple and unfranked"
'franked' would imply official govt mail?
did Shaun drop the Revered Letter? was it never delivered?
"allowed... to escape" ??
"escape automatically" how? why?
"mailbag" 1st appearance of motif?
'entrusted'?
"bifinalist zeal... unerring zeal"
bouillon? cf "broth" in Kevineen
"eatables" hints at his weight vs Shem's skinniness
his priority was food not art
"a man, seen"
Issy pitied the devil
ROC4: "the body, you'd pity him"
pitied for burden, respected for persistence (cf Sisyphus)


Thus ?two was a woman's petition, maid, wife & mother, offered by two sons of wild earth, Shamus Pennifera, and Johannes Epistoloforus, to their and of all the Lord, offering to him from whom all things came their gift of knowledge, thereby giving him of his own (the lion's mouth).

'too'?
"woman's petition" aka Revered Letter 1?
wife more than maid, not mother (yet)
Blavatsky uses 'sons of the earth'
Colum used "wild earth"
(earliest Shem and Shaun?)
pennifera = feather-bearing? quill pen
epistoloforus = letter-bearing
-ifera/-oforus?
"the Lord" ie revered Majesty
"their gift of knowledge" Shaun's too??
phrase: put head in lion's mouth
'The original Lion's Mouth... was that Venetian orifice into which anonymous informers popped the names of such persons as they hoped thus to deliver over to the Council of Ten [for torture]' [cite]
cf the horse's mouth?


For it was she who still believed that her face was the best part of her & hoped for

Hayman relocates this line to the Revered Letter level two. (but it's 3rd person, and a letter can't show a face)


It was this last alone that at last gave HCE the raspberry. Groaning of spirit, he lifted his hands & many who did not dare it, heard him say: I will give £10 to the 1st fellow who will put that W in [...] royal canal.

what "last"? what raspberry?
ALP, with or without Shem and/or Shaun?
"dare it" ie, to earn the tenner

ungrateful HCE wants to kill/humiliate ALP... for her inadequate defense? he wishes she'd kept mum, he thinks she's making things worse...? is she hinting at things he's still keeping secret?

(are they separated?)

1907
Royal Canal = 90miles long, from  Maynooth, Kilcock, Enfield, Mullingar and Ballymahon
what's special about it?


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