Thanks to Jen for the January report!
We
picked up on page 104 with the start of ALP’s “mamafesta.” The passage begins
with a parody of The Lord’s Prayer in which the words have been feminized (“In
the name of Annah the Allmaziful, the Everliving, the Bringer of Plurabilities,
haloed be her eve…”), but could been seen to become unfeminized by the end of
the passage (“…unhemmed as it is uneven!). This brief prelude to the mamafesta
includes the phrase “her rill be run,” referring perhaps to ripples and waves
in a river. This connection between ALP and the river worked well with the last
river reference on page 103, which says, “…we have taken our sheet upon her
stones…”. With this in mind, it seems like the descriptors “Allmaziful,”
“Everliving,” and “haloed” indicate that, though she is dumped on and beaten
about a bit, ALP, like the river, keeps running on.
In
discussing plurabilities, we noted that the mamafesta could be read as a
monotheistic prayer to plurabilities. Additionally, it points out the plurability
of husband and wife, as well as global and cosmic plurabilities. We also
discussed the plurability of the gospels: the same story told over and over
again, with varying details each time.
Plurability could also be read as the constant dance of compromise and
sacrifice between a husband and wife, which relates to “Amoury Treestam and Icy
Siseule.” This can be read in a few different ways—as a reference to Tristan
and Isolde, as a reference to the husband as the tree and the wife icily
cutting him down, or as a reference to an amorous husband’s advances and his
icy wife. (Si seule is also French
for ‘if only.’) This “cutting down” of the husband almost seems like one of the
compromises or sacrifices between husband and wife, as, according to the reference
from page 103 (“…we have taken our sheet upon her stones…”) it seems that the
husband has probably behaved unjustly toward the wife as well.
We
spent some time discussing the word “Mosthighest,” used in describing the
mamafesta, and trying to decide what “Mosthighest” was referring to. ALP’s
story itself seemed to be the answer. The first in the very long series of
italicized phrases and statements is “Augusta Angustissimost,” which means most
highest.
A
little later on page 104, Joyce writes, “Ik dik dopedope et tu mihimihi.” “Ik
dope” means to baptize, presumably in a river, and “mihimihi” means ‘me,’
continuing with the river imagery and its relation to ALP.
The
references to Queen Victoria and Prince Albert continue when Joyce writes,
“Groans of a Britoness,” and “From Victrolia Nuancee to Allbart Noahnsy.” We
noted that two reservoirs of the Nile are named for Queen Victoria and Prince
Albert, and that Queen Victoria was indeed Queen of the Nile, perhaps in the
same way that ALP may be called Queen of the Liffey. This ties in with a
reference to Cleopatra made on page 104: “Cleopater’s Needlework.” Cleopatra’s
Needle is located in London. Cleopatra and Victoria also share the distinction
of being ruling foreigners—a link shared with Napoleon and Hitler as well. The
connection between Cleopatra and Victoria deepens after considering their
somewhat gnarled family trees, both of which were founded on some amount of
incest. We noted that incest is a crime that was considered permissible amongst
royals but not so among common people. If HCE’s crime was incest, he was
sinning above his station in life. However, this depends on the version of the
story, because in some versions, he is the Festy King. In such versions, we
could assume that incest wouldn’t be criminal.
The plurability of HCE’s story and its various iterations are somewhat
analogous to the gospels in this way.
The
parenthetical statement made on page 104 refers to the husband as “some such
nonoun,” which would be read alternately as ‘no one,’ ‘not known,’ or
‘nothing.’ The parentheses end with the statement “He Never Has the Hour,”
which refers to the incident in the park, where by asking for the time, HCE
incriminated himself. A bit earlier on the page, HCE is called to mind with
“Hoebegunne the Hebrewer Hit Waterman the Brayned.” As waterman, HCE would draw
water from the river, his wife.
The
sentence, “Peter Peopler Picked a Plot to Pitch his Poppolin,” is a reference
to Ireland itself—a plot of land was selected where the poor were to be sent.
“Peter Peopler” may also be a phallic reference, especially when paired with
“Pitch his Poppolin.” Following this play on Peter Piper and leading into the
previously mentioned parenthetical statement, Joyce writes, “An Apology for a
Big,” which is suggestive, given its placement beside “Peter Peopler.” The
parentheses are followed with “Ought We To Visit Him?” which might be read in a
variety of ways, but one way is certainly very suggestive of Peter Peopler’s
popularity.
This
passage was also replete with references to fabric and needlework: “unhemmed,”
“uneven,” “poppolin” (or poplin), and “needlework.” This brings to mind the
idea of the Fates, spinning and weaving, as well as Penelope unraveling her
shroud in order to continue her story. The tie to Penelope is especially
significant given ALP’s prominence in this passage.
At
the top of age 105, Joyce writes, “To Plenge Me High He Waives Chiltern on
Friends,” and we noted several different meanings here. The French word pleine means full, or pregnant. Reading
“plenge” as “pledge” instead, it could be interpreted as marriage, like taking
the “plunge,” or “plenge” could be taken to mean “plunge,” which could relate
either to marriage or to sex. Or to both.
Another
river reference appears later on page 105 with “He’s my O’Jerusalem and I’m his
Po,” with the Po being a river in Tuscany. The use of the apostrophe in
‘O’Jerusalem’ makes it seem like an Irish surname. ‘O Jerusalem’ is a hymn, so
the sentence could be reread to say “He’s my hymn (or him), and I’m his river.”
“The
Man That Made His Mother in the Marlborry Train” refers both to Jesus Christ,
who made his mother famous with his conception and birth, as well as Confucius,
who was born in a cave called the Hollow Mulberry Tree. This sets up another
East-West contrast.
Going
back to page 104, we begin to see versions of ALP as a girl. Joyce writes,
“Arcs in His Ceiling Flee Chinx on the Flur,” which reminds us of the rainbow
girls. In Spanish, a rainbow is called el arco iris, and the sky is called el cielo. Additionally, the use of the
word ‘arc’ reminds us of Noah’s ark. This statement appears right beside the
“Waterman” reference. We also noted that a rainbow has a start and an end, much
like stories or alphabets, and specifically alpha and omega. We found out that
apparently the Chinese have no record of the deluge, which pits an Eastern
version of Noah’s story against our Western tradition—yet another plurability.
Finally,
we discussed the different references to and images of cows and milk in this
passage. These ideas were reminiscent of Stephen Dedalus’s evolution from A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man
to Ulysses, from baby Tuckoo and the
milk cow in Portrait to the milkwoman
who appears in the Telemachus episode of Ulysses.
