Finnegans Wake

Shaun the Post continues on a mission. His identity remains in flux. As he tries to deliver the letter written by his mother ALP, he becomes Jaunty Jaun. As Jaun, he goes on a nighttime stroll. Shaun stops only to hector his sister and her female friends, who are “rushing and making a tremendous girlsfuss over him” (430). Shaun stops his journey so that he can lecture them about manners, behavior, and “demoralizing home life” (434), though eventually, many of his comments become sexual in nature. During this lecture, Shaun’s tone takes on an almost-Biblical manner. He speaks in archaic language and criticizes the girls in increasingly severe and austere ways, such as telling them they should not smile and warning them about men who are “trespassing on your danger zone in the dancer years” (439). The lecture is mainly intended for Issy, for whom he hides his romantic affection. Shaun’s recollections become sentimental descriptions of a voyage across the sea when he was “sailspread over the singing” (453) when he fell in love and kidnapped Iseult. Even as he thinks about Issy, he remembers the previous scene in which he (as the father of James Joyce) shot a Russian general (HCE). The execution of the Russian general reminds Shaun that he may also be removed and replaced by a younger person. While Issy talks about love and whether she can find it in another place, Shaun decides to continue his journey. Announcing that it is time to “be up and ambling” (468), he returns to the river in his beer barrel.

Shaun’s identity changes again; his “dream monologue was over, of cause, but his drama parapolylogic had yet to be” (474). Now, he is Yawn. He imitates his father HCE’s earlier vision, in which he was a mythical giant laying at the heart of the island of Ireland, “all of asprawl he was laying too amengst the poppies” (476). His memories and his actions are empty echoes of his father before him. The four elderly judges appear. Now, they are not only judges but also the authors of the four gospels of the Bible: Mathew, Mark, Luke, and John. At the same time, they also represent the four provinces of Ireland: Connacht, Ulster, Munster, and Leinster. Shaun talks to the four judges, who question him about his father’s alleged crimes. The judges hear a description of Finnegan’s wake. The so-called “Quinnigan’s Quake” (497) is the funeral of HCE, which was attended by many historical figures and alternative identities. The wake ended in violence and chaos. Their conversation begins to strain, becoming increasingly abstract until it is just a single word in the middle of the page: “SILENCE” (501).

Kate enters the scene, accompanied by others. She witnesses the judges question Shaun, who cannot answer the questions that they put to him. The interrogation is interrupted when HCE’s voice echoes from somewhere below. HCE launches into a lengthy defense of his behavior, not just of his time as HCE but of his time as many figures throughout Irish history. In this respect, he is the city of Dublin itself. He talks about how much he loves his wife, referring to her in her form as the River Liffey. HCE loves ALP; she is the Liffey to his Dublin. He finishes with a call to the judges, using their gospel names: “Mattahah! Marahah! Luahah! Joahanahanahana!” (554).

The scene returns to the rooms above the pub, where Mr. Porter and his wife— who are “very nice people” (560)—are woken up by their crying baby, Jerry. In this moment, Mr. Porter is HCE, Mrs. Porter is ALP, and the “badbrat Jerry Godolphing” (555) is Shem. The adults are roused from their dream world, and once they have comforted the baby and put him back to sleep, they return to their bed. As the couple becomes intimate, the judges—still functioning as the authors of the gospels—narrate the scene as it becomes increasingly abstract and complicated, to the point where the scene shifts to a courtroom in which men argue about the nature of love and faith. The judges do not reach a decision, and the scene returns to the Porters’ bedroom.

Before Mr. and Mrs. Porter return to sleep, they have sex. They try to be quiet so as not to wake the children in the house. As they have sex, the four judges become the four corners of the bedposts. They are not impressed by HCE’s sexual prowess. Eventually, the couple finishes, rolls over, voices their displeasure at each other’s sexual inadequacy, and returns to sleep. The judges continue to survey the scene as the dawn begins to break outside. A rooster crows as the same hen that found the letter clucks in the “poultryyard” (589).