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Mariott Posted 15 years ago
Essay & Composition Writing

Hacking chestnut?

Stephen Dedalus shivered as if he had cold slimy water next skin. That was mean of Wells to shoulder him into the square ditch because he would not swop his little snuffbox for Wells's seasoned hacking chestnut, the conqueror of forty."

This is from James Joyce's Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man.
I have some questions as below:

1) cold slimy water next skin: is this sewage running on his skin?
2) hacking chestnut, the conqueror of forty: I have no idea what this could mean.

Thanks for your help in advance!
  

Top answer

1-- No, just the sensation of ditch water (rain water runoff - 'sewage' means human waste water). Remember that at this point in the novel, Stephen is thinking/talking like a young boy. 'Cold slimy water next skin' (if that is accurate typing - my copy is not handy) does not hold together grammatically; the words grouped are merely meant to convey an image.

— Mister Micawber

  • 1-- No, just the sensation of ditch water (rain water runoff - 'sewage' means human waste water).
  • Remember that at this point in the novel, Stephen is thinking/talking like a young boy.
  • 'Cold slimy water next skin' (if that is accurate typing - my copy is not handy) does not hold together grammatically; the words grouped are merely meant to convey an image.
  • 2-- A formerly common boy's game.
  • A chestnut was tied to a string, and a boy would compete to shatter another boy's chestnut by swinging ('hacking') his own chestnut at it.
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2 Answers
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1-- No, just the sensation of ditch water (rain water runoff - 'sewage' means human waste water). Remember that at this point in the novel, Stephen is thinking/talking like a young boy. 'Cold slimy water next skin' (if that is accurate typing - my copy is not handy) does not hold together grammatically; the words grouped are merely meant to convey an image.

2-- A formerly common boy's
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Thanks so much!
1. The right sentence is "as if he had cold slimy water next his skin."
2. Wow, I couldn't find this after surfing the Internet for quite a while.

Thanks again Mr. Micawber!
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