From silenthand
I basically use online as a kind of autistic stimming. normally ignore requests for contact- but your bio lists Finnegan's Wake... seriously? you need a couple of biographies of Joyce, maybe Nora and Beckett too, Hugh kenner's guide, and a bunch of work on semiotics, Romance languages, and Irish myths and history... or how did you approach the Wake? what started it? listening to the Pogues? or just taking the piss out of literary types...
bob_dylan:
Yes, Finnegans Wake is my favorite novel. But it feels more like a long poem to me. I approached it with no preconceived notions. Just knew that it had a reputation for being weird. I can only read about one page at a time, because (as you said), every word is basically a reference to something else. So my marginalia are off the charts. Basically, my main copy is marked up to the highest degree. I can’t remember where I heard about it. I read Portrait of the Artist and his short stories in high school English. I like The Pogues, but only really know the song “Summer in Siam”. I love that one! No, definitely not taking the piss. Joyce is my favorite novelist. Although I don’t like Ulysses because it’s too normal for me. Thank you for your question 🙏