EPTThe attempt will eventually fail, rather sooner than later, but at least I will have had witnesses.
Finnegans Wake is known to be the most ridiculous of all novels.
It took James Joyce 17 years to write it.
Since I would never read this novel on my own, I will use this blog to read it in book club style.
====================Finnegans Wake I================================
riverrun, past Eve and Adam's, from swerve of shore to bend of bay,
brings us by a commodius vicus of recirculation back to Howth Castle
and Environs.
Sir Tristram, violer d'amores, fr'over the short sea, had passencore
rearrived from North Armorica on this side the scraggy isthmus of
Europe Minor to wielderfight his penisolate war: nor had topsawyer's
rocks by the stream Oconee exaggerated themselse to Laurens County's
gorgios while they went doublin their mumper all the time: nor avoice
from afire bellowsed mishe mishe to tauftauf thuartpeatrick: not yet,
though venissoon after, had a kidscad buttended a bland old isaac: not
yet, though all's fair in vanessy, were sosie sesthers wroth with twone
nathandjoe. Rot a peck of pa's malt had Jhem or Shen brewed by
arclight and rory end to the regginbrow was to be seen ringsome on the
aquaface.
==========================================================
"riverrun, past Eve and Adam's, from swerve of shore to bend of bay,
brings us by a commodius vicus of recirculation back to Howth Castle
and Environs."
"Riverrun" is a word I happen to know. It is the castle of House Tully in Game of Thrones.
"from swerve of shore to bend of bay", yes makes sense:
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/bf2XHBh.jpg)
"past Eve and Adam's" suggests that the book takes place after Adam and Eve.
This is already huge! Wow! Who would have thought!
"brings us by a commodius vicus of recirculation back to Howth Castle and Environs."
"commodius" seems to be a fancier word for 'comfortable'.
"Vicus" meant 'neighborhood' in Ancient Rome.
"Recirculation" is pretty clear:
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/VeXzUwQ.jpg)
So there is castle riverrun and maybe upstream the river there is castle Howth and Environs.
Not bad right? We are doing great so far!
OK, now it starts to get annoying. Apparently the sentences don't end in periods but in colons.
"Sir Tristram, violer d'amores, fr'over the short sea, had passencore rearrived from North Armorica on this side the scraggy isthmus of Europe Minor to wielderfight his penisolate war:"
"Sir Tristram" at least we got a character to work with.
"violer d'amores" a little heartbreaker I assume, our dear Tristram
"fr'over the short sea, had passencore rearrived from North Armorica"
a 'Murican obviously, from the land of love (France!)
"passencore" he was a passenger??
"scraggy isthmus"
An isthmus is apparently a narrow strip of land. We even learned sth today.
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/5CMQhsU.jpg)
"Europe Minor" is Spain I suppose and the isthmus of Spain is the stuff that connects it to France?
"to wielderfight his penisolate war" Sir Tristram is a little Napoleon
"nor had topsawyer's rocks by the stream Oconee exaggerated themselse to Laurens County's
gorgios while they went doublin their mumper all the time"
I guess he means Tom Sawyer, right? The rocks of Tom Sawyer exaggerate themselves to some other place. Yeah, makes sense...
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/FXGDWXu.jpg)
"mumper" seems to be a beggar. The rocks were doubling the beggar. mhm...
"nor avoice from afire bellowsed mishe mishe to tauftauf thuartpeatrick"
Wtf? Let's just hope this sentence doesn't play a role in the grand scheme of things.
"not yet, though venissoon after, had a kidscad buttended a bland old isaac"
"venissoon": very soon, after he ate the venison.
"buttended" obviously means one thing or another goes up the rear
"a bland old isaac": he has an old statue of Isaac Newton and uses it as a sex doll.
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/genaq5Z.jpg)
"not yet, though all's fair in vanessy, were sosie sesthers wroth with twone nathandjoe."
He hesitates since Vanessa, the twin sister of Nathan and Joe, is hot too.
"Rot a peck of pa's malt had Jhem or Shen brewed by arclight and rory end to the regginbrow was to be seen ringsome on the aquaface."
New character: Shen (or Jhem) is a beer brewer.
"Rot a peck" He had a nip of the beer (I'm making stuff up).
"regginbrow" rainbow?
"rory end to the regginbrow was to be seen ringsome on the aquaface" at the rear end of the rainbow the water was rippling the lake.
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/dMaorWE.jpg)
=========================!===============================
This concludes part one, I have no idea what's going on, but I'm sure the next parts will bring more clarity. Feel free to participate in this glorious quest for Finnegans Wake!
