2 February 1922: ‘Ulysses’ celebrates its centenary
Happy 101st birthday Ulysses! Irish author James Joyce’s magnum opus was first published in its entirety on this day in 1922 with an edition of 1,000 published in Paris. Spread over 18 chapters, Joyce’s Ulysses retells Homer’s Odyssey, changing the Greek hero Odysseus’ return journey from the Trojan wars to the Irish-Jewish Leopold’s wanderings around 20th-century Dublin. .
Ulysses, named after the Latin version of Odysseus, is one of the greatest achievements of modern fiction with the extremes that Joyce approached in the form of this novel. Each of the 18 chapters characterizes different literary styles, themes and storytelling purposes.
It is an amazing epic that many readers are accustomed to reading. But while most people today are aware of Ulysses’ reputation as a long and almost unreadable novel, widely published by the most offensive figures in English scholarship, in 1922 it sparked controversy. different.
Joyce had published chapters of Ulysses in the years before 1922. Chapters published in the UK in 1919 meant that the entire book was banned in the UK until 1936. The Little Review’ in 1921, articles on masturbation or femininity to satisfy them led to an abominable case.
A scandalous case in the United States led to the book being banned, and in the 1920s, the United States Postal Service burned copies, until the ban was lifted in 1934. Despite not being banned when Ulysses in Joyce’s home country, immigration restrictions prevented it from reaching the country. officially until the 1960s.
1653: New York becomes a city, not called New York
Few cities are as unique as New York City. In terms of culture, New York has provided a chameleonic setting for endless movies, TV shows, books, theater and more. Dense, with riches, poverty, humor and darkness, New York City is the perfect synecdoche for modern life around the world.
But it wasn’t always like that. New York City was once home to the Hudson River, an important trade route connecting the Atlantic Ocean with the new European colonies in America.
Wanting to protect its position on the river from other European colonial powers, in 1624 the Dutch West India Company paid 30 families to move to Manhattan Island where a fort was built. Fort Amsterdam.
Fort Amsterdam slowly grew in size as the Dutch discovered it as a developing scientific center, until this day in 1653, municipal rights were granted to establish New Amsterdam as a city. In 1664 the British captured New Amsterdam, naming it Duke of York the following year.
2009: Ru Paul’s Drag premieres
It’s hard to imagine television before Ru Paul filled our screens for weekly competitions of sewing, sewing and slut-shaming. Maybe it was a less pleasant place.
On February 2, 2009, Logo TV premiered the first episode of ‘Ru Paul’s Drag Race’. The series was hosted by BeBe Zahara Benet and the show has gone from strength to strength ever since.
It has spawned numerous shows around the world and has been sold in 15 other countries. Although some may complain about the commercialization of an important part of crazy culture, the show has undoubtedly raised the profile of a community of people who draw more than ever.
“If you can’t love yourself, how the hell are you going to love someone else! Can I get an amen?”