Ulysses

Although he is perceiving physical details with a sharp eye, however, Bloom finds that his thoughts in "The Lestrygonians" constantly return to one subject: the upcoming affair between Boylan and Molly. No matter how often Bloom thinks of the happy times that he has shared with Molly, especially those before the death of their son, Rudy, ten years before (the last time the couple had complete sexual intercourse), the specter of Boylan overshadows his present moments. (Rudy Bloom was born on December 29, 1893, and died on January 9, 1894. Since the death of his son, Bloom has practiced interrupted coitus with Molly, spilling his seed on her rump.) At one point, as he thinks of venereal disease, Bloom's thoughts turn to Blazes: "If he . . . O! . . . He wouldn't surely? . . . Think no more about that." Again, in Davy Byrne's pub, a question by Nosey Flynn causes Bloom to look desperately at the pub clock, which reminds him that it is now two o'clock, just two hours away from the lovers' meeting. Even later, when he thinks of buying a silk petticoat for Molly, the image of Boylan supersedes any possible voluptuousness, even in memory: "Today. Today. Not think." Bloom's thoughts of Boylan seem to bring forth his presence, just as they did when Bloom was on his way to Glasnevin Cemetery; seeing the straw hat and tan shoes that always signal Boylan's appearances in Ulysses, Bloom, on the last page of this episode, enters the temporary haven of the museum, clutching his good luck charm, the lemon-scented soap — the moly of Odysseus that kept him safe from the enchantress Circe. It is no wonder then that Bloom is forced to compare his wretched present with his past happiness. As he puts it, "Happier then.'; Or, "I was happer then." Or, with perhaps the greatest pathos of any single expression in the novel: "Me. And me now."