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Comparative Literature Studies 37.4 (2000) 434-436



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Book Reviews

Greek and Hellenic Culture in Joyce


R. J. Schork. Greek and Hellenic Culture in Joyce. Gainesville: UP of Florida, 1998. xviii + 322 pp. $49.95.

This volume is the companion piece to Schork's 1997 book, Latin and Roman Culture in Joyce. Like its predecessor, Greek and Hellenic Culture in Joyce stands as a reference guide to Joyce's writing that proves itself essential for any reader interested in developing a fuller understanding of the cultural and intellectual contexts from which Joyce's works emerged. Schork distinguishes himself as an erudite scholar, an excellent close reader, and an engaging stylist. Though most will consult the book for specific references, Greek and Hellenic Culture in Joyce remains a delightful work to read from cover to cover.

In some ways, readily acknowledged by Schork, Greek and Hellenic Culture in Joyce reflects a more oblique approach to classical influence on Joyce's canon than does Latin and Roman Culture in Joyce. Joyce's years studying with the Jesuits gave him a solid grounding in the Latin language as well as in the details of Roman history and culture. Specific allusions within Joyce's writing and more general compositional models consciously or unconsciously emulated by his creative consciousness came [End Page 434] from a more direct contact with the source. Hellenic references, as Schork points out, tend to be more derivative though no less important for that fact. What Greek and Hellenic Culture in Joyce does for contemporary readers is provide a context for Hellenic culture that many of us lack, and then develop specific areas of Joycean borrowing. In both instances one comes away from the book with a richer sense both of Joyce's canon and of his classic antecedents.

Like the tactful teacher who seeks to lead students without patronizing them, Schork opens his study with an outline of the "historical-political context for subsequent discussions of cultural, literary, and linguistic matters" (1). In two introductory chapters, Schork not only reviews the events that distinguished the Classical period of ancient Greece, he also reminds us of the historians who chronicled those events. Though he does not say so, with this overview of the language, culture, and history of ancient Greece, Schork in essence tries to make his readers aware of the rich humanist background that educated Joyce's contemporaries. While not filling in all of the gaps in our modern educations, Schork's introductory chapters give us a solid foundation for comprehending the Greek and Hellenic associations that the remainder of the book will highlight.

From there, Schork begins to examine specific allusions that appear in Joyce's writings and to comment upon how such references enhance the narrative structure of Joyce's works. Like a masterful teacher, Schork starts his examination with the most accessible material: a long chapter on the gods, goddesses, and heroes of Greek mythology. With neat background sketches he refreshes our memories (or simply enlightens us) as to the diverse figures to whom Joyce alludes and then pinpoints the significance of appearances within the canon. From there he turns to an examination of the influence of the Iliad, a source that most commentators overlook, and then devotes as one would expect considerable space to allusions from the Odyssey.

After that, the material becomes more complex. Schork surveys Greek philosophers and discusses Greek comedy and tragedy. The connections are particularly apt when one recollects that Joyce was educated nearly exclusively under the Jesuit curriculum. (Unlike his fictional counterpart, Stephen Dedalus, he spent a few months at a Christian Brothers school, though he did not like to be reminded of the fact.) The influence of Aristotle via St. Thomas Aquinas and the Schoolmen would have been quite pronounced if not necessarily readily evident. Schork's overview of classical Greek schools of thought gives clear insights into the intellectual atmosphere of Joyce's education. [End Page 435]

Greek and Hellenic Culture in Joyce closes with a chapter on Joyce's knowledge of modern Greek, surprisingly more detailed than one might...

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