The Redefinition of Identity and the Challenge of Self-Determination in Ulysses and Call It Sleep

Abstract

This thesis examines the role of identity in James Joyce's Ulysses and Henry Roth's Call It Sleep. It argues that the two novels redefine identity as something fluidly interwoven with an individual's surroundings and experiences, rather than as something static or fixed. Thus, the approach to the construction of identity in this argument is much like the narratological approach to narrative. This thesis also examines the challenges characters face as a result of this identity construction, including achieving self-determination despite conflicts with society, personal relationships, and the physical world. The argument is derived from the construction of the novels, including the relationships built between internal and external worlds. It is also derived from the individual odysseys of the protagonists—Stephen Dedalus and Leopold Bloom in Ulysses, and David Schearl in Call It Sleep. The fluid approach to identity is used to examine to what degree each of these characters achieves self-determination.