Ulysses
from Homer to Derek Walcott
2. Nestor: some starting points
•Why does Dedalus pose the riddle to his students? What
relation does the "answer" have to the riddle itself?
What other suggestions lie there (as in a poem) to be
interpreted? What might we discern about the challenges of
reading Dedalus's consciousness and Ulysses on the basis
of this riddle?
•What is Milton's poem Lycidas about? Here it is. What place does it have in Milton's
poetic career, self-consciously modeled on Vergil's? Why does
Dedalus think about this particular poem?
•What are Mr. Deasy's politics? Why does this matter to
Stephen? Why does he act the way he does in response to Deasy's
baiting?
•Does Stephen have a goal or desire that can be dignified by
the name of "quest"?
•"History is a nightmare from which I am trying to
awake." Why? How does "history" show up in this
chapter and what do the main historical figures named (Parnell,
Moses, Pyrrhus) have in common?