Is the Sirens episode a fugue?
Joyce described the technique of Episode 11, “Sirens”, as “fuga per canonem”, a fugue according to rule. The episode opens with an overture of fragments, then repeats and develops them like musical themes, in a hotel bar full of singing.
Edited by Aidan O'Leary · Last updated 30 October 2026
Where it appears
Episode 11, Sirens. The end of the overture, as the episode proper begins.
Begin! Bronze by gold, miss Douce’s head by miss Kennedy’s head
What it means in plain English
In music, a fugue weaves several voices around a theme. Joyce imitates it with repeated phrases, sounds and rhythms.
Whether the episode is a true fugue is still argued.
Literary context
Joyce told Budgen he wrote Sirens with all the eight parts of a fugue.
References
- Ulysses, Episode 11, “Sirens”
- The Linati and Gilbert schemas
- Frank Budgen, James Joyce and the Making of Ulysses (1934)
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Questions readers ask
What music is played in Sirens?
Simon sings “M'appari” and Ben Dollard sings “The Croppy Boy”.
Related terms
“Bronze by gold”
“Bronze by gold” refers to the two barmaids of the Ormond Hotel, the bronze-haired Miss Douce and the golden-haired Miss Kennedy. The phrase opens Episode 11, “Sirens”, the musical episode, where Joyce writes prose as if it were a piece of music.
Ormond Hotel
The Ormond Hotel on Ormond Quay is the setting of Episode 11, “Sirens”. Bloom eats liver and bacon in the dining room while Simon Dedalus and Ben Dollard sing in the bar, and Boylan leaves to visit Molly.
The Linati and Gilbert schemas
The Linati and Gilbert schemas are two charts Joyce made to explain Ulysses. They list each episode's Homeric title, hour, organ of the body, art, colour, symbol and technique. Joyce sent one to Carlo Linati in 1920 and lent another to Stuart Gilbert, who printed it in 1930.