The stranger becomes a leader

What I mean by the title is that throughout this section Bloom is repeatedly likened to Parnell. This connects to the thematic Odysseus story line in that when Odysseus returns to Ithaca he is disguised as a stranger and over time he reveals himself to Telemachus as the heroic leader figure of his father. This allows us to see the paternal connection that Bloom feels for Stephen, in that until able to talk alone with Stephen and hear about his feeling towards the state of Ireland and family, Bloom is ever the foreigner/ stranger in Ireland. However, when Stephen and he agree on their feelings about pacifism and overblown nationalism, then Bloom is revealed to the reader as truly Irish, and similar to Ireland's national hero of Parnell.

some explicit similarities, even if not historically correct:
pg. 651 "Can real love, supposing there happens to be another chap in the case, exist between married folk?"
pg.649- rumors of Parnell as still alive and returning is like Odysseus, which is the figure of Bloom in this section.
pg. 652- Parnell's mistress is Spanish, Molly is half.
pg. 644 - Bloom's view on Jews and equality, slightly Marxist and hearkening back to his transformation into social leader during the Circe episode.
pg. 660 - Rumor that Parnell was not in his coffin or that he was killed by people that used to be his followers connects to resurrection and crucifixion, that Jesus was a Jew which is persistently in Bloom's thoughts, making his mental processes the connecting bridge between these events, making him into two of Ireland's national heroes at the same time.

Stephen embodies Telemachus in this section more strongly then I felt he did in any of the previous. His dilemma at not being to return home because of the trap of the usurpers at the tower aids in this connection as Telemachus meets his disguised father because he cannot enter the house due to the suitors.

One thing that came as a surprise at the end of this section was that Bloom's thoughts turn to how he can exploit the talents and friendship he hopes to make with Stephen. Suddenly he becomes similar to Buck Mulligan in a sense. And he and Buck Mulligan are repeatedly insulting each other to Stephen, discouraging him to associate with the other. This strikes me as odd since Mulligan has been, from the very first events of the morning, painted as the villain in regards to our protagonists. Now for Joyce to connect them feels very off putting and portrays Bloom as the Jewish figure in the typically prejudiced way that Jews are derided throughout the book. Did anyone else feel this way? Or are you all going to call me an anti-Semite in class tomorrow?