#006.0 - Telemachus - The Irish Jug

We are using the original 1922 First Printing by Shakespeare & Co. - section attached

"The doorway was darkened" - to - "More would be laid at your feet"

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Old Shrunken Paps

Buck Mulligan, delighted at the arrival of milk, welcomes an old milk woman into the tower. On the surface, this scene seems straightforward: a milk woman delivers milk, engages in a brief conversation with the men at the table, and leaves. But, as with everything in Joyce’s world, simplicity is just a veil for layered meanings. Take this for the story line or if you wish to dive deeper, read below!

Buck, ever the blasphemous provocateur, spares no one from his irreverent humor. During the brief exchange, the milk woman praises God, to which Buck cheekily replies:

'That's a lovely morning, sir, she said. Glory be to God. To whom? Mulligan said, glancing at her. Ah, to be sure.'

Buck’s mocking tone reveals his disdain for religious piety, which he flaunts regardless of his audience. He later explains to Haines that the lives of “the islanders” revolve around religion. But what are Buck’s intentions with this comment?

By calling the Irish “islanders,” Mulligan distances himself from his countrymen. His reference to the “collector of prepuces” is an audacious jab at religious practices, specifically alluding to circumcision, which is a Jewish tradition and its ties to the Old Testament covenant. Mulligan’s irreverent humor critiques both religion and the state of Ireland, highlighting a tension between cultural identity, colonial influence, and modern skepticism.

The scene then shifts to Stephen’s inner dialogue, marked by the stream-of-consciousness style that defines Joyce’s narrative. We see Stephen observing the milk woman:

'He watched her pour into the measure and thence into the jug rich white milk, not hers. Old shrunken paps."

This moment brims with hidden references. Joyce frequently invokes the mother figure as a recurring theme throughout Ulysses. Here, as Stephen asks for a quart of milk, his thoughts connect milk to mothers and then to breasts (shrunken paps). This chain of associations—milk → mothers → breasts—offers an intimate glimpse into how the human mind wanders, linking the mundane with deeper, primal imagery.

The milk woman, as a symbol, embodies both the nurturing past and the decayed state of Ireland—“old shrunken paps” suggesting a nation past its prime, yet still sustaining its people. Through her, Joyce reflects on themes of identity, motherhood, and cultural decline, layering this simple scene with profound meaning.

Maybe a Messenger

Ambiguity deepens as we explore Stephen’s complex and introspective mind further:

"Old and secret she has entered from a morning world, maybe a messenger."

The milk woman, described as “old and secret,” represents an Ireland that is ancient, mysterious, and steeped in tradition. Her entry “from a morning world” evokes a past era of purity and spirituality. As a “messenger,” she seems to carry a symbolic message about Ireland’s state—its decay, persistence, or its enduring role as a mother figure (aged but nurturing).

Cuckquean

The next section of Stephen’s internal dialogue builds on Joyce’s symbolism and its relation to Ireland:

The milk woman is likened to a “wandering crone,” symbolizing Ireland as an aged and exploited figure. References to “Silk of the kine” (the mystical, beautiful cattle of Irish mythology) and “poor old woman” (an allegorical name for Ireland) connect her to Irish folklore and nationalist sentiment.

A cuckquean—a woman whose husband is unfaithful—becomes a poignant metaphor. Ireland (the milk woman) is metaphorically cuckolded by her “conqueror” (the British) and her “gay betrayer” (perhaps her own leaders or countrymen who failed her). She is doubly wronged—betrayed by both external forces and internal failings. This reflects Ireland’s colonial history under British rule and its struggles with internal divisions and political betrayals.

Living In A Bogswamp

We are released from the neuropaths of Stephens mind and back to the converstaion with the trio and milkwoman.

The milkwoman ask Buck to taste the milk in which he does and offers support for the good goods of the country. He insinuates that the diet of the country is poor in which they have rotten teeth and guts. Continuing to enlighten us on the current state of the country, he describes the conditions of the times:

"Living in a bogswamp, eating cheap food and the streets paved with dust, horsedung and consumptives' spits."

(Consumptives spits, meaning phlegm from the rampant tuberculosis of the time.)

She asks Buck if he is a medical student, which we learn he is, and we return to the neuropathways of Stephens mind.

While Buck confirms his chosen medical profession, Stephen obsserves the interaction and physical responsivness of the milkwoman. While wincing, Stephen observes her bowing her head, out of respect for the soon to be doctor representing the hierarchy of society, which Stephen disagrees with, as she is giving Buck the attention and ignores Stephen.

"She bows her old head to a voice that speaks to her loudly, her bonesetter, her medicineman: me she slights"

This is an insight into Stephen or Joyce in his confidence of himself. He feels slighted by Buck and Ireland. There is respect for a doctor, but little worth is put into an intellectutal like himself.

"To the voice that will shrive and oil for the grave all there is of her but her woman's unclean loins"

Here, Stephen critiques the Catholic Church’s role in preparing the faithful for death (through sacraments like confession and anointing of the sick) while maintaining a judgmental attitude toward women’s bodies, viewing them as impure or sinful. The unclean loins reference reflects the Church’s historical views on women’s sexuality as sinful, shaped by religious doctrines about original sin and Eve as the “serpent’s prey.”

"To the voice that will shrive and oil for the grave all there is of her but her woman's unclean loins"

Stephen’s disdain intensifies as he contemplates humanity’s fallen nature, with women particularly positioned as “serpent’s prey” due to the biblical association of Eve and the Fall. This phrase critiques the doctrine that views human bodies as inherently sinful and flawed, especially those of women, who are often cast as temptresses.

I Thought It Was Irish

Once again, we are pulled from Stephen’s labyrinthine thoughts to the present moment. He asks the milk woman if she understands what Haines is saying. She doesn’t. Haines is speaking Irish—an ironic twist, given that he is English and not Irish. What does it mean that a British outsider speaks the ancestral language of Ireland, while an old Irish woman cannot?

"Sure we ought to, the old woman said, and I'm ashamed I don't"

This moment underscores the cultural erosion Ireland has endured under British rule. The milk woman, a symbol of the Irish people, expresses shame over her inability to speak Irish, reflecting a profound sense of loss and disconnection from her heritage. Meanwhile, Haines, a colonizer, has taken an academic interest in the language, his fluency serving as a reminder of how colonial power not only suppressed but also appropriated Irish culture.

The milk woman’s inability to speak Irish isn’t merely a personal failing; it reflects a systemic suppression of the language. Under British rule, English dominated schools, governance, and daily life, leaving Irish to fade from common use. Her shame is poignant, a symbol of the collective guilt and helplessness of a people disconnected from their history.

This dynamic creates a paradox: the language that once united the Irish people is now more likely to be studied and spoken by outsiders, such as Haines, out of scholarly curiosity or exoticism, rather than by the Irish themselves.

Pay Up and Look Pleasant

As the milk woman prepares to leave, it’s time to settle the bill. Who will pay? The hierarchical dynamic of the scene offers an answer.

Would it be Haines, the British elite, the usurper at the top of the colonial food chain? No.

Would it be Buck, the flamboyant medical student and self-proclaimed king of the tower? Again, no.

The burden falls on Stephen, the intellectual Irishman, who represents Joyce’s vision of Ireland’s plight: a people burdened by the weight of their colonial past and the complexities of their present.

As the milk woman departs, Buck serenades her:

"Heart of my heart, were it more,

More would be laid at your feet."

This verse, though mocking, is not without deeper significance. It parodies the romantic language often found in Irish poetry and song, where Ireland is personified as a beloved woman. In this context, the milk woman symbolizes a diminished Ireland—aged, exploited, and yet still nurturing. Buck’s exaggerated adoration underscores the tension between the idealized vision of Ireland and the stark reality of its decay.

Through the milk woman’s humble exit, Joyce leaves us with an image of Ireland’s duality: nurturing yet diminished, revered yet overlooked, burdened by its history but still moving forward.

References:

Gifford, Don, and Robert J Seidman. Ulysses Annotated. Univ. California P., 1992

“The Joyce Project : Ulysses : Telemachus:. M.Joyceproject.Com, http://m.joyceproject.com/chatpers/telem.html.