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What special affinities appeared to him to exist between…

“What special affinities appeared to him to exist between the moon and woman? Her antiquity in preceding and surviving successive tellurian generations: her nocturnal predominance: her satellitic dependence: her luminary reflection: her constancy under all her phases, rising, and setting by her…” quote by James Joyce
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““What special affinities appeared to him to exist between the moon and woman? Her antiquity in preceding and surviving successive tellurian generations: her nocturnal predominance: her satellitic dependence: her luminary reflection: her constancy under all her phases, rising, and setting by her appointed times, waxing and waning: the forced invariability of her aspect: her indeterminate response to inaffirmative interrogation: her potency over effluent and refluent waters: her power to enamour, to mortify, to invest with beauty, to render insane, to incite to and aid delinquency: the tranquil inscrutability of her visage: the terribility of her isolated dominant implacable resplendent propinquity: her omens of tempest and of calm: the stimulation of her light, her motion and her presence: the admonition of her craters, her arid seas, her silence: her splendour, when visible: her attraction, when invisible.””

James Joyce

About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

The passage poetically links the moon’s cycles to feminine archetypes, highlighting mystery, influence, and emotional tides.

In simple terms: Moon and woman are compared as ever‑changing yet constant forces.

Key Takeaway

Recognize the deep, cyclical connections in nature and humanity.

Themes

nature gender mythology

Mood

reflective enigmatic

Type

literary metaphorical

When to use this quote

  • poetry
  • psychology
  • astrology

Key Concepts

symbolism cycle duality

Questions to Reflect On

  • How do lunar cycles reflect human emotions?
  • What does the moon symbolize in your life?
A Different Perspective

Interpretations may vary across cultures and personal belief.

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