Bloomsday 2020 Facts: 10 Interesting Things About James Joyce and Ulysses You Should Know to Celebrate This Day

Bloomsday is an annual celebration of the central character Leopold Bloom of the book Ulysses by James Joyce. The festival is a significant event in Dublin and also celebrated with great vigour in many parts of the world. In the book, June 16, 1904, is the date when Leopold Bloom has a series of encounters and appointments, and the date was largely chosen because James Joyce met with his wife to be – Nora Barnacle on the particular date. The hugely popular novel has several characters -both real and fictional that revolve around the life of Leopold Bloom, its protagonist. The festivities include lectures, readings, walking tours to pubs and costume contests wherein the participants dress up as their favourite character from the novel. James Joyce is central to the celebration, and people remember the hugely popular writer for coming up with this masterpiece. All About Bloomsday, Dedicated to Irish Writer James Joyce and How It's Celebrated. 

Here We Take A Look At Some Interesting Facts About Bloomsday

1. Modern Library named Ulysses as the greatest English-Language novel of the 20th century. Such is the impact of the novel on the lives of the people, it has a day reserved to commemorate the book’s torch-bearer.

2. Many of the landmark structures and buildings mentioned in the book still stand in much of the same state even today.

3. It is believed that Bloomsday is celebrated around 60 countries with Republic of Ireland leading the way in the commemorations.

4. James Joyce’s friends began to mark June 16 as Bloomsday after the novel Ulysses was published in 1922. There have been references of Bloomsday celebrations in France prior to Ireland.

5. The first Bloomsday celebration in Ireland was held in 1954 when writers Patrick Kavanagh and Flann O’Brien visited the Martello Tower, Davy Bryne’s pub and 7 Eccles Street reading Ulysses and having drinks.

6. Food is central to Bloomsday celebrations with people sticking to a breakfast of pork kidney and a lunch of Gorgonzola and Burgundy.

7, In order to celebrate this great literary festival, whiskey which was James Joyce’s favourite drink is massively consumed.

8. The boater hat is synonymous with Bloomsday as people love dressing up like characters of the famous novel. Wearing full petticoats and parasols are also always in trend.

9. The festivities are now not limited to a day with Bloomsday turning into more of Bloomsweek with several initiatives like art shows, reading and city tours lined up.

10. The book Ulysses though is highly controversial and was banned in most of Europe and US throughout the 1920s with large scale book burning events.

Today, Bloomsday is an ideal opportunity to learn the great Irish culture and interact with the affable people of Ireland. With so much to look forward to in the festivities, it truly is a joyous ride.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 16, 2020 08:30 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).