Monday,19 November 2018, Pages 511 - 512

We read as far as "... but shekleton's my fortune?" (512.28)

As on earlier pages, an inquest/enquiry is going on. A witness is being asked question after question. Who could be this witness? Who is the questioner?

At the start of this chapter 38 pages earlier (only 38 pages earlier (!), on page 474) Shaun was being interrogated by four old men, whom we have met many times in earlier chapters too. So, let us assume that the witness, the one being asked questions, is still Shaun. And that the one who is asking questions is one of the four old men. And that the entire inquest is taking place in the dream world of Earwicker.

Last week we had read about a ball that took place in the Taylors' Hall and the breakfast afterwards at Heaven and Covenant. Only two people, the bride and the priest were sober. McGraw the wedding beastsman was kicking the bedding out of the old sexton. The witness, Shaun, says that while that was going on he and some others were gickling his missus to gackles (tickling Mcgraw's wife to giggles?).
He also describes the dress the bride was wearing: a floating panel, secretairslidingdraws, a budge of knees on her schalter,...

Joseph Campbell says that here 'Joyce is describing the costume of the bride in terms of modern paintings (Dali, Klee, Croce) and esthetic philosophies.'

Monday, 12 November 2018, Pages 509 - 511

We read till "Or he was in serge?" (511.5)

Louties also genderymen, according to Joseph Campbell, my help in the matters of FW, the inquest about the incidence in the Phoenix park is continuing. A witness (we do not know who it is) is on the stand. He had watched the two girls in the park. That night there was a ballay (ball) at the Tailors' Hall. Everybody there was thomistically drunk.  In the morning they all went for breakfast at the Heaven and Covenant.The witness then describes how it was at the ball and at breakfast. He says that only the priest (the right reverend priest, Mr Hopsinbond) and the bride-elect (the reverent bride eleft, Frizzy Fraufrau) were sober.

Monday, 5 November 2018, pages 507 - 509

The reading stopped at "... outer my ear." (509.29)

Apologies for the one-line post!

Monday, 29 October 2018, Pages 505 - 507

Our reading stopped at "...would be finished with his tea?" (507.12)

Today's passage seemed mostly to be located in the Garden of Eden with references to God (Grand Precurser) Adam, Eve, Lucifer (looseaffair) turned into snake (Bomslinger) and apple tree (Upfellbowm). But it did turn in the end to HCE, a man of around fifty, struck on Anna Lynsha's Pekoe...

Joseph Campbell interprets the scene as a description "of the great World Tree, or World Axis, known to all mythologies. ... a primal symbol of Life. Eternally growing, eternally casting its dead leaves and branches, masculine and feminine and neuter at once, all-sheltering, ..."

Monday, 22 October 2018, Pages 502 - 505

Our reading stopped at "... all sides out of him, ..." (505.5)

An interrogation is taking place in Earwicker's dream. The focus is again on that infamous incidence in the Phoenix park.
A witness (?) is describing the place/day/time when the illassorted first couple first met with each other. Accordingly they met at a place fairly exposed to the four last winds (fully exposed to the wind?) There was a flagstone and a sign proclaiming 'Trickpissers will be pairsecluded" (Tresspassers will be prosecuted!) A somewhat long description of the trees, birds etc that are around there follows... to be continued in the coming reading session.

Our Exagmination Round His Factification....

"Your exagmination round his factification for incamination of a warping process."
(Finnegan's Wake, 497.2)

Wikipedia has a special webpage on 'Our Exagmination Round His Factification....' Accordingly it is a collection of essays and two letters published in 1929 and is on the subject of Finnegans Wake. Edited by Samuel Beckett, the essays were by people who knew him personally and followed the Work in Progress.

The book itself can be downloaded here!

Monday, 15 October 2018, Pages 499 - 502

Our reading stopped at "... Foxrock to Finglas." (502.35)

We covered almost 3 pages as what we read consisted mostly of single sentences and occasionally very short paragraphs.

An enquiry /examination is still going on. Many voices are speaking. Their exclamations/comments are intercepted again and again with the 'word' Zinzin. Well, I again consulted Joseph Campbell's book as to its meaning. He writes: 'This theme is associated throughout with the noise of jubilee at the wake; it accompanies the Fall theme; it is the sound of a dry leaf scratching Earwicker's bedroom window.'

The section we read hints at Tristan and Isolde and Wagner. Lewd's carol (Lewis Carroll or Xmas carols) is also alluded to. It is fun to decode the popular xmas carols from the following:
1. jusse as they rose and sprungen (502.7)
2. Lieto galumphantes (502.10)
When the above can be decoded it is easy to decode the sentence, 'Hail many fell of greats!' (502.22)

By the way, today was the 6th anniversary of our starting to read FW. Some of us celebrated the event in style here after the reading!