‘Ulysses’ at 100 divides Irish critics

James Joyce’s “Ulysses,” regarded by many as the greatest novel of the 20th century and by some as the finest work ever written in English, is under attack.

As Ireland gears up to celebrate the centenary of Bloomsday -- the day in June 1904 on which the novel is set -- some disgruntled writers and columnists say they are sick to death of the impenetrable book and its devoted following.

By elevating him to the status of a literary god, Joyce’s fans are doing other Irish writers a disservice and creating a “Joyce industry” that has more to do with tourism and moneymaking than literature, they say.

Roddy Doyle, author of the comic bestseller “Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha” and the screenplay for the hit film “The Commitments,” opened the literary Pandora’s box last week with a scathing attack on “Ulysses” and its most intense enthusiasts.

“ ‘Ulysses’ could have done with a good editor,” Doyle told a literary gathering in New York. “People are always putting ‘Ulysses’ in the top 10 books ever written, but I doubt that any of those people were really moved by it.”

Continuing his attack in an Irish newspaper interview during the weekend, Doyle said Joyce’s legacy casts a long and pernicious shadow over Irish literary life.

“If you’re a writer in Dublin and you write a snatch of dialogue, everyone thinks you lifted it from Joyce,” he said. “It’s as if you’re encroaching on his area.... It gets on my nerves.”

Journalist Sean Moncrieff, writing in the Irish Examiner, said “Ulysses” would not see the light of day if written now.

But Joyce’s fans hit back.

“It’s unfair to say that no one is moved by ‘Ulysses,’ ” said Helen Monaghan, director of the James Joyce Center, a museum in Dublin dedicated to the writer and his works. “Many people enjoy Joyce’s work and are moved by it.”

Thousands of people flock to Dublin each June 16 to retrace the footsteps of the character Bloom, and this year the celebrations will be bigger than ever.

Some 10,000 people are expected to savor a Bloomsday breakfast on Dublin’s O’Connell Street, and there will be dozens of readings, Joyce-inspired art exhibitions and other “Ulysses”-related events in the city over the coming months.