Ulysses (novel)

Ulysses is a 1922 novel by James Joyce that takes its title from the Latin version of the Greek name 'Odysseus'. In 1999, the Modern Library ranked Ulysses first on a list of the 100 best novels in English of the 20th century. The book has been the subject of much scrutiny, criticism and controversy.

Obscenity trial

In 1920 after the magazine The Little Review serialized a passage of the book dealing with the main character masturbating, a group called the New York Society for the Suppression of Vice, who objected to the book's content, took action to attempt to keep the book out of the United States. At a trial in 1921 the magazine was declared obscene and as a result Ulysses was banned in the United States.

Related Topics:
1920 - New York Society for the Suppression of Vice - 1921

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The publisher, Random House, decided to try to get the ban lifted. In 1933, an arrangement was made to import the French edition, and the publisher arranged to have a copy seized by customs when the ship was unloaded. A trial, United States v. One Book Called Ulysses ensued, and US District Judge John M. Woolsey issued a ruling on December 6, declaring that the book was not pornographic and therefore could not be obscene. Augustus Noble Hand ruled for the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in affirming the ruling, which allowed the book to be imported into the U.S.

Related Topics:
Random House - 1933 - United States v. One Book Called Ulysses - December 6 - Augustus Noble Hand - Second Circuit Court of Appeals

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