Uploaded February 2022 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Drawing upon James Joyce’s innate sense of humour, this Window on Collections event will explore the reasons why so many readers enjoy Ulysses and its exaggerated parody of people, politics, cultural mores and gender.
Join us for a thought-provoking discussion hosted by Dr Kevin Molloy, Principal Librarian Victorian and Australian Collections, and guest Dr Frances Devlin-Glass as they interpret Ulysses through the lens of identity, diversity, ethnicity, and belonging.
About the book
James Joyce’s Ulysses is one of the great novels of twentieth-century modernist literature. Formerly banned in Australia from 1929 to 1937 and again from 1941 until 1953, Ulysses is renowned for its parodies and allusions, experimental language, sexual frankness and extraordinary range of thinking. Exploring life in a single day of its central character, Ulysses, is, above all, a very funny novel.
About Frances Devlin-Glass
Dr Frances OAM has been reading Joyce since 1968 and teaching his novels since 1980. She is the founding Creative Director of Bloomsday in Melbourne, which annually mounts theatre productions on different aspects of Joyce’s life and works, winning acclaim as one of the foremost Bloomsday’s globally. She is an Honorary Associate Professor at Deakin University.
About Window on Collections
For 165 years, State Library Victoria has collected books, maps, ephemera, objects and artworks on almost every subject you can think of, with a special focus on Victoria. The State Collection includes almost 5.5 million items which provide a vital window into the past and record of contemporary life.
Window on Collections is our new series of displays and events that give you a glimpse of what we’re collecting and why.
If you require a descriptive transcript for this video, please email us at websupport@slv.vic.gov.au.
Drawing upon James Joyce’s innate sense of humour, this Window on Collections event will explore the reasons why so many readers enjoy Ulysses and its exaggerated parody of people, politics, cultural mores and gender.
Join us for a thought-provoking discussion hosted by Dr Kevin Molloy, Principal Librarian Victorian and Australian Collections, and guest Dr Frances Devlin-Glass as they interpret Ulysses through the lens of identity, diversity, ethnicity, and belonging.
About the book
James Joyce’s Ulysses is one of the great novels of twentieth-century modernist literature. Formerly banned in Australia from 1929 to 1937 and again from 1941 until 1953, Ulysses is renowned for its parodies and allusions, experimental language, sexual frankness and extraordinary range of thinking. Exploring life in a single day of its central character, Ulysses, is, above all, a very funny novel.
About Frances Devlin-Glass
Dr Frances OAM has been reading Joyce since 1968 and teaching his novels since 1980. She is the founding Creative Director of Bloomsday in Melbourne, which annually mounts theatre productions on different aspects of Joyce’s life and works, winning acclaim as one of the foremost Bloomsday’s globally. She is an Honorary Associate Professor at Deakin University.
About Window on Collections
For 165 years, State Library Victoria has collected books, maps, ephemera, objects and artworks on almost every subject you can think of, with a special focus on Victoria. The State Collection includes almost 5.5 million items which provide a vital window into the past and record of contemporary life.
Window on Collections is our new series of displays and events that give you a glimpse of what we’re collecting and why.
If you require a descriptive transcript for this video, please email us at websupport@slv.vic.gov.au.
