The episode parallels the aftermath of Odysseus’s visit
to Aeolus, the god of the winds in the Odyssey. One
of Odysseus’s men disobeys him, opening a bag of winds that then
blows them off-course. In the “Aeolus” episode of Ulysses, wind
is represented by the windy rhetoric used in journalism and oratory.
The newspaper-room setting of the chapter, the episode’s headlines,
and the men’s own inflated speech, together with the conversation
about rhetorical and journalistic triumphs, all support the theme
of the episode. Additionally, within the headlines and within the
general text of the episode, over sixty different rhetorical figures
(such as hyperbole, metonymy, chiasmus) are demonstrated.
Episode Seven also recalls one of Joyce’s earlier
works—the short-story collection, Dubliners. Several Dubliners characters appear
here (Lenehan, Ignatius Gallaher), and the sense of futility and
paralysis of Dubliners filters into this episode
depicting mid-day idleness, disappointment, and frustration. Just
as Odysseus’s ship was blown off-course by the winds released from
the bag, several characters are thwarted in their individual quests.
Bloom does not get the Keyes ad in the paper, O’Molloy does not
get a loan from Crawford, Stephen never makes it to meet Buck at
the Ship pub at noon. If rhetoric is a means for making arguments
and convincing listeners, it gets short shrift here. Few comprehensive
connections are made in this episode—points and arguments trail
off or are swallowed in the noise of the newspaper pressrooms. Instead,
language works to obscure and divide: inside jokes, cryptic remarks,
and stage-whispered comments abound.
Episode Seven is the first episode in which Stephen and
Bloom actually cross paths (at the very end of the episode). Notably, Stephen
ignores Bloom, while Bloom, father-like, notes Stephen’s newer boots
and, with disapproval, that Stephen has muck on his shoes and is
leading the way to the pub. Bloom’s and Stephen’s separate but equal
time in the episode invites comparison between their appearances
in the Freeman offices. Bloom fails in his task
of securing the Keyes ad for three months, while Stephen succeeds
in getting Deasy’s letter printed. Stephen has the center of the
room, physically and symbolically, while Bloom remains unseen on
the outskirts, bumped more than once. Bloom is jokingly referred
to as a representative for the art of advertising, while Stephen
is treated like a near-equal by the men and is even offered the
chance to write for the paper. We also notice the two men’s differing
approaches to the domain of public expression. Bloom, as we have
seen, has a pragmatic approach to the art of writing, oratory, and
advertising. In Episode Four, we saw him consider writing fiction
himself, in part to make money by it. Stephen, though flattered
by the newspapermen’s high expectations for him, will not waste
himself on their type of writing—he will remain focused on his art,
his poetry.
