About this title: This is a beautiful new edition of Joseph Campbell and poet Henry Robinson's seminal decoding of Joyce's final masterpiece, Finnegans Wake. The authors break down Joyce's 'unintelligible' book page by page, stripping the text of much of its obscurity and serving up thoughtful interpretations via footnotes and bracketed commentary. They outline the book's basic action and clarify its complex web of images and allusions.
Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is described below.
Binding: Hardback
Publisher: NEW WORLD LIB
Date Published: 2005
ISBN-13:9781577314059ISBN:1577314050
Description: New. Since its publication in 1939, countless would-be readers of Finnegans Wake-James Joyce's masterwork, which consumed a third of his life-have given up after a few pages, dismissing it as a "perverse triumph of the unintelligible. " In 1944, a youn... read more
"For those merely curious about an intended meaning behind the Wake, reading this study may suffice; but for readers of Joyce's "Night Tome" looking for more, the Key is a better compliment than guide. It's opening and closing chapters do present a laudable insight into Joyce's technique; but in demonstrating the possibility of a linear narrative, the Key invites the danger of experiencing more difficulty in reading Finnegans Wake than is typically assumed, as readers may attempt to fit a conventional plot into a work that cannot be read in any conventional way. Anyone with an interest in Finnegans Wake is probably as fascinated by what it isn't, as those who disdain are irritated by what it is; it's probably best to keep that fascination alive."
"So far, a great commentary to read along with The Wake. The line-by-line translations are silly, but the footnotes are great. I'm sure they do not match Joyce's intentions exactly - they are obviously defenses of Campbell's own idea of the unity of mythology - but they point out many allusions I would read over, and I'm interested in Campbell's interpretation because his fascination with myths mirrors my own."
"I don't think any book can fully explain Finnegans Wake, but this one does a pretty damn good job. If you're going to attempt The Wake, this isn't a bad guide to have."
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