the stereotype with which the Dublin citizens perennially saddled Jews? Bloom is constantly being berated for being Jewish, describe by Martin Cunningham as "a perverted Jew" (Joyce 276). He is made to feel ashamed of his heritage: "The Jew hates the Jew in the Jew" (Gordon 251).While Leopold Bloom may appear to outwardly lack the qualities of honor and courage which have historically defined the classical hero, he remains faithful to his adulterous wife, Molly, loyal to the marriage regarded by many as a sham. Unlike Homer's mighty Ulysses, who sought to kill his wife's suitors, Bloom looks the other way and is solicitous to Molly. He truly loves her and remembers how their marriage used to be. Bloom also wishes to serve as a father figure to the wandering Stephen Dedalus, who, perhaps reminds him of himself as a young man. The two often argue matters of principle, as fathers and sons often do. But beneath it all, there seems to be an underlying respect between the two. Bloom offers the young man a place to stay at the end of Ulysses, which he refuses. He prefers to continue on his own journey. While it is true that Leopold Bloom is coarse, downright obnoxious at times, he is also compassionate, doing the best he can in a world where he is continually victimized by prejudice.James Joyce had little interest in the external adventurous exploits of ancient Greek warriors who were willing to lay down their lives on the battlefield simply because it was the honorable thing to do. Instead, Joyce was interested in the internal motivations which made a man act in a certain way. In his epic poetry, Homer glorified that which was extraordinary, making the characteristics of mortals and Gods interchangeable. In Odyssey, Ulysses was an old war hero whose courage carried him through a 25-year-journey which happily reunited him with his wife and son. In Ulysses, James Joyce paid homage to the ordinary, detailing the monotony of an average 24 hours ...
