Day 4 - Finnegan awakes from the dead at his wake - arrival of Humphrey Chimpden Earwicker by boat

Daily Summary                    Reading Finnegans Wake

Chapter / Pages :                22-29

What happens?               Back at the wake scene, the word for whiskey is mentioned and the dead Finnegan, being waked, awakens. This is unacceptable, so the “wakers” gradually cajole Finnegan to lie down and sleep again, he will be better off than he would be joining the living.  Also, one thinks, the partying would be disrupted if he doesn’t go back to death. 

At the same time, Finnegan’s usurper, Earwicker is arriving by boat.

Experience of the text:      I have the sense, very clearly, that with each repeated reading of any given section of the text, you can render a completely alternative reading. This is quite an unusual phenomenon.  For instance, the first time through the “waking of Finnegan”, I didn’t read it as that, but more as a discussion on education.  When I went back and re-read, I saw it for what it is (the waking Finnegan).

A second long invocation of thunder occurs, the word used to describe this “Perkodhuskurunbargg….etc.”   is a bit shorter than the thunder on the first page.  The word for whiskey “Uhsqueadbaugham!” awakens Finnegan.   These funny sort of words stand out in the text, requiring translation, but are not really translateable.

The parts of the text where characters interact and converse with each other are much more easily legible than the descriptive passages.

Procedure:                           1. First reading – aloud    2. Second reading – read with annotations / gloss  and the Skeleton Key text by Campbell 3. Third reading – silent read through following first two readings.                                                        

Discussion:                          

I have to admit some negativity at this point as my head bounces off the floor of FW on initial reading of each passage.  But when I revert to the annotations, read up in Campbell and return to the text, it starts to come together and I feel happy with the whole project.

The book is certainly unlike a novel. More, it is like a medieval history written partly in extreme poetry. It is starting to become something of a familiar, or a friend.  The page layout, the long, crazy sentences are becoming more expected.

I think that in seeing things recycle, thunder, the fall, Finn, Finnegan, HCE, etc the book becomes more transparent. Slowly, slowly it reveals itself.