James Joyce's Ulysses and Sigmund Freud - Bloom in "Circe" Interpreted Through Freud's Theory on Dreams

Term Paper (Advanced seminar) , 2008 , 42 Pages , Grade: 1,0

Didactics for the subject English - Literature, Works

This paper analyses the nighttown episode of Joyce's Ulysses through the framework of Freud's psychoanalytic understanding of dreams. Setting of from the assumption that Freud's ground-breaking claims must have found their way into the complex, allusion-laden writing of his contemporary Joyce, it works out elements in the hallucinatory "Circe" chapter that refer to Freud's theory on dreams, concentrating specifically on the portrayal of Bloom.

After an overview of the central aspects of Freud's Interpretation of Dreams, the structure of "Circe" will be introduced, justifying the analogy to dreams and tackling the general problem of applying psychoanalysis to literary criticism. The next chapter will take a closer look at Freud’s idea of regression and enumerate elements that may be considered allusions to this in “Circe”. Building on this, the final chapter will then be an attempt at a psychoanalytic reading of Bloom, also drawing upon some additional ideas from Freud’s later theories.

Inhaltsverzeichnis

• INTRODUCTION
• THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK: FREUD'S THEORY ON DREAMS.
• THE NATURE OF DREAMS.
• PSYCHOANALYTIC AIM AND METHOD
• THE CONSTITUTION OF DREAMS
• Wish-fulfilment and the Censor.
• Means of the Dream Work..
• "CIRCE" AND PSYCHOANALYSIS
• "CIRCE" AS A DREAM?
• STRUCTURE.
• DREAM ELEMENTS IN "CIRCE".
• REGRESSION - ARCHAIC ELEMENTS IN "CIRCE"
• DREAM MATERIAL
• FORM
• A PSYCHOANALYTIC READING OF BLOOM.
• WISHES AND THE INTRA-PSYCHIC AGENCIES
• DREAMS AND THE NATURE OF FEAR.
• REPRESSED MATERIAL, THE SUPEREGO AND THE REPRESENTATION OF THEIR BATTLE IN THE DREAM.
• CONCLUSION
• REFERENCES

Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte

This paper aims to analyze the chapter "Circe" in James Joyce's Ulysses through the lens of Sigmund Freud's theory on dreams. The paper will explore the extent to which "Circe" can be interpreted as a dream, identifying elements that allude to Freud's concepts of wish-fulfilment, the dream work, and regression. The analysis will focus on the character of Leopold Bloom, examining his desires, fears, and repressed material as they manifest in the dream-like structure of the chapter.

• The nature of dreams and their psychoanalytic interpretation
• The application of Freudian theory to literary analysis
• The dream-like qualities of "Circe" in Ulysses
• The psychoanalytic reading of Leopold Bloom's psyche in "Circe"
• The role of regression and archaic elements in the dream

Zusammenfassung der Kapitel

The paper begins by introducing Freud's theory on dreams, outlining his key concepts such as the dream work, wish-fulfilment, and the role of the unconscious. It then delves into the chapter "Circe" in Ulysses, exploring its structure and arguing for its interpretation as a dream. The paper examines the dream elements present in "Circe," including the hallucinatory nature of the events, the presence of archaic figures and symbols, and the distorted perception of reality. It then analyzes the chapter through the lens of Freud's theory on regression, highlighting the emergence of primal instincts and repressed desires in Bloom's psyche. Finally, the paper offers a psychoanalytic reading of Bloom, exploring his wishes, fears, and repressed material as they manifest in the dream-like structure of "Circe."

Schlüsselwörter

The keywords and focus themes of the text include James Joyce, Ulysses, "Circe," Sigmund Freud, dream theory, psychoanalysis, wish-fulfilment, dream work, regression, archaic elements, Leopold Bloom, unconscious, repressed material, and literary analysis.

• College: University of Augsburg (Englische Literaturwissenschaft)
• Course: James Joyce
• Grade: 1,0
• Author: Elisabeth Fritz (Author)
• Publication Year: 2008
• Pages: 42
• Catalog Number: V130737
• ISBN (eBook): 9783640363100
• ISBN (Book): 9783640363414
• Language: English
• Tags: Ulysses, Traumdeutung, Freud, Joyce, Circe