On the lead up to centenary anniversary of Ulysses in 2022, Dublin shows why it is a city where great works are formed, books are treasured, the finest writers gather and literary fans yearn to be. The pull of one of the world’s great literary cities is magnetic at any time – but it will be particularly irresistible in 2022 when the centenary anniversary of the publication of Ulysses comes around.
James Joyce’s modernist masterpiece, as well as works such Dubliners, Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man and Finnegan’s Wake, mark him out as one of the greatest writers of all time.
Next year, the Irish capital will be the place to be as Joyce’s home city puts on a world-class programme of events to mark the 100-year anniversary of one of the most seminal works in English literature.
In 2022, milestone celebrations will run in the first half of the year, spanning the original publication date of Ulysses on 2 February 1922, which was also Joyce’s 40th birthday.
Among Dublin’s literary attractions marking the centenary will be the Museum of Literature Ireland, branded MoLI in homage to Molly Bloom, Joyce’s heroine in Ulysses, and recently re-opened to the public.
To get literary fans all over the world excited about the Ulysses Centenary, a new film has just been launched, called Opening Ulysses, created by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) and MoLI in collaboration with 40 Irish Embassies and Consulates worldwide. The film is being shared on the lead up to Bloomsday – a celebration of Ulysses which takes place each year on 16 June – and invites global audiences to engage with Ulysses through a playful reimagining of its opening line: Stately, plump Buck Mulligan came from the stairhead, bearing a bowl of lather on which a mirror and a razor lay crossed.