Master Goff

Stephen's intention in fantasizing that his uncle Richie works for "master Goff and master Shapland Tandy" is obscure, but it seems both disrespectful and distinctly Irish (not an unusual combination). A "goff" is an idiot. Napper Tandy was a hero of the United Irishmen rebellion in the 1790s. The second name may also involve an allusion to Tristram Shandy, hero of the brilliantly digressive novel of that name written by the Irishman Laurence Sterne.

John Hunt 2017

Bust of Laurence Sterne sculpted by Joseph Nollekens in 1766, held in the National Portrait Gallery, London. Source: Wikimedia Commons.