FINNEGANS WAKE

We periodically update the site to add new features and/or to incorporate new information (sources, scholarly attributions, revisions, corrections, etc.) as we develop them and/or as they are made known to us.

NOTE: Users of the Finnegans Wake notebooks are recommended to install Ian Gunn's WAKE font (obtainable here) as it renders the famous sigla (e.g. “H”) in the way they should appear (i.e. not as “H”!).

• August 2018: In addition to implementing a number of corrections and revisions, on the suggestion of a correspondent we have added a link to further information at the head of each draft level and notebook page.
• For corrections and new information, in particular numerous additions and corrections to notebook N5 (VI.B.2), we would like to thank Robbert-Jan Henkes and Viviana-Mirela Braslasu.
• December 2018: For numerous corrections to, and additional placings for, the Finnegans Wake notebook entries, especially those relating to I.6 and III.4, we are grateful to Vincent Deane.
• January 2019: Acting on a suggestion by Ronan Crowley we have updated all the notebook/notesheet links to include direct links (from the notons) to the relevant notebook/notesheet edition. It is unfortunate, however, that because we are as yet unable to include all the Finnegans Wake notebook editions these links in most cases go nowhere! We have also begun the task (also suggested by Ronan) of highlighting the particular phrases lifted by Joyce from his sources.
• Once again we are indebted to Vincent Deane for numerous corrections and substantial new information relating to the Finnegans Wake notebooks.
• April 2019: For further corrections and additions to the placings, sources, etc. for the Finnegans Wake drafts and notebooks, we are grateful to Vincent Deane, Robbert-Jan Henkes and Viviana-Mirela Braslasu.
• May 21, 2019: For further corrections and additions to the placings, sources, etc. for the Finnegans Wake drafts and notebooks, we are again grateful to Vincent Deane, Robbert-Jan Henkes and Viviana-Mirela Braslasu.
• August 2, 2019: Most of the improvements in the notebook units (the notons) in this update follow the work of Ian MacArthur, Viviana-Mirela Braslasu and Robbert-Jan Henkes communicated either personally or gleaned from their contributions to Genetic Joyce Studies, or both. For a fuller understanding of the context of Joyce's use of individual sources the user of the Archive is encouraged to read the original articles: click on the source title in the unit noton; this brings up a source noton which has a direct link to the relevant article. Alternatively, the individual GJS articles links can be found in the list of sources.
• August 21, 2019: In this update, missing notebook VI.D.2 has been substantially improved by incorporating recent discoveries of Robbert-Jan Henkes and Viviana-Mirela Braslasu.
• September 15, 2019: For this update numerous corrections have been made to the notebooks, notesheets and their associated notons. Some links have been reconfigured.
• March 11, 2020: Ian MacArthur and Viviana-Mirela Braslasu have provided a number of corrections and additions for the notons, as well as a few new placings in the drafts.
• March 22, 2020: Viviana-Mirela Braslasu hss provided numerous corrections and new details for notebook VI.B.46, which has been substantially updated.
• March 28, 2020: A list of corrections by Vincent Deane has been incorporated, together with further notes and source quotations in VI.B.46 by Viviana-Mirela Braslasu and John O'Hanlon.
• April 10, 2020: Viviana-Mirela Braslasu has revised the Buddha and King Arthur notes in VI.B.46, in addition to providing further corrections.
• April 29, 2020: Thanks to Vincent Deane, Ian MacArthur, and Skaar for emendations to the notebooks.
• June 6, 2020: For this major update, Stacey Herbert has re-designed the appearance of the notebooks, the notebook descriptions and the source lists. Thanks are also due to Vincent Deane and Skaar for emendations to many details.
• June 17, 2020: In this update, the re-design has been extended to the draft analyis and the source lists.
• July 17, 2020: The Finnegans Wake notebooks and their associated notons have been substantially improved for this update thanks to the work of Viviana-Mirela Braslasu, Ian MacArthur, Geert Lernout, and Dirk Van Hulle. We have also added the “names” that have recently begun to be attached to several of the notebooks by Robbert-Jan Henkes and the above-named scholars.
• August 11, 2020: The VI.C scribal notebooks and related links have been revised. Thanks to Skaar for pointing out errors and inconsistencies.
• August 21, 2020: Vincent Deane and Skaar have supplied corrections to the notebooks.
• October 4, 2020: For this update we have updated the draft analysis. Thanks also to Skaar and Vincent Deane for corrections and additions.
• October 19, 2020: Among other details, the I.7 prototexts have been revised following corrections supplied by Skaar.
• October 22, 2020: Thanks to Ian MacArthur and Skaar for further revisions.
• November 14, 2020: Thanks to Skaar and Robbert-Jan Henkes for notebook revisions.
• November 19, 2020: Thanks to Skaar and Vincent Deane for further corrections.
• December 9, 2020: Thanks to Vincent Deane for further corrections.
• January 23, 2021: Thanks to Raphael Slepon for corrections to the notebooks.
• February 2, 2021: Thanks again to Raphael Slepon, Vincent Deane and Mark West for numerous corrections.
• February 23, 2021: Vincent Deane and Raphael Slepon have provided yet more corrections.
• March 4, 2021: Further emendations from Vincent Deane and Raphael Slepon have been incorporated.
• March 19, 2021: Further emendations from Vincent Deane and Raphael Slepon to the notebooks have been incorporated. Also thanks to Viviana-Mirela Braslasu and Robbert-Jan Henkes for a list of new names for several of the notebooks.
• April 13, 2021: Thanks to Raphael Slepon for numerous notebook corrections.
• April 24, 2021: The pages in N53(VI.B.46) relating to Secret Lnguages have been rewritten. Thanks also to Ian MacArthur, Raphael Slepon and Vincent Deane for draft and notebook corrections.
• May 21, 2021: Thanks to Raphael Slepon, Kent Skaar, Robbert-Jan Henkes and Viviana-Mirela Braslasu.
• June 3, 2021: Thanks to Vincent Deane and Kent Skaar for further notebook corrections.
• June 29, 2021: Thanks to Raphael Slepon, Vincent Deane and Kent Skaar for further corrections.
• September 26 2021: Thanks to Vincent Deane, Raphael Slepon, Ian MacArthur and Kent Skaar for further corrections.
• October 8 2021: Coding errors in the notebooks have been corrected.

We have augmented the Finnegans Wake volume of the JJDA by integrating into it a revised and expanded version of Understanding Finnegans Wake: a guide to the narrative of James Joyce's masterpiece first published in 1979 by Garland. Its purpose is twofold: to enable the reader to follow Joyce's otherwise unreadable book and, once the idea that the book is at least in principle followable, to marvel at how much better its prose is and sounds, whether or not one understands it, when compared to the ordinary prose of the Guide.