Molly Bloom and Ulysses

I was talking with a literature professor on Instagram and what started out as a like and comment turned into a discussion on different versions of Ulises which is where I am out of my depth as I found Ulysses hard enough to read in English without trying it in Spanish.

While I am exposed to plenty of readings of Ulysses in Spanish through the Bloomsday Society in Madrid, it is one thing to listen to a passage or two and another thing to pick up the book and start from the beginning in Spanish.

Maybe I should start with some snippets or start an audiobook to listen to but Professor Gabriel Boffano from Uruguay made an interesting comment about an Argentinian version versus a Spanish translation. I had overheard people speaking in Spanish about an Argentinian version but I didn't understand what they were referring to until now.

According to @0801killingjoke on Instagram who I now know to be a professor of literature and a comic collector, an Argentina translation is better than a Spanish one and the reason is because the Argentinians understand foreign occupation whereas the Spanish were colonisers.

Apparently the Argentineans can relate more to the Irish and it reflects in their translations.

It is a conversation I will have to have with some Spanish friends and I hope it isn't an awkward one. Professor Killing Joke knows his literature, comic books and Joyce but I couldn't help notice his cat among the books and asked its name.

Her name is Molly Bloom and she is absolutely beautiful and I wonder if she shouldn't have her own Instagram account if Professor Boffano has more insights into Joycean translations.

I'm sure Joyce found that behind every good book is a good woman and here you can see little Molly Bloom hiding behind Gabriel's bookshelves too.

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