Gemini.Finnegans.Wake.26
It was of a night, late, lang time agone, in an auldstane eld, when Adam was delvin and his madameen spinning watersilts, when mulk mountynotty man was everybully and the first leal ribberobber that ever had her ainway everybuddy to his lovesaking eyes and every billy lived alove with everybiddy else, and Jarl van Hoother had his burnt head high up in his lamphouse, laying cold hands on himself.
This paragraph is a classic fairy tale opening, a “once upon a time” that sets the stage for a new story by introducing a lonely, giant-like patriarch.
A Mythical “Once Upon a Time”
The scene is set lang time agone, in an auldstane eld (a long time ago, in an old stone age). This is the dawn of humanity, a mythical time evoked by the famous medieval rhyme:
…when Adam was delvin and his madameen spinning watersilts…
“When Adam delved and Eve span.” It was an idyllic age of universal love, when every billy lived alove with everybiddy else.
The Lonely Jarl of Howth
Into this scene of harmony, a solitary figure is introduced: Jarl van Hoother. This is another name for our main character, HCE, this time appearing as a Jarl (a Norse chieftain) who is the embodiment of the Hill of Howth.
He is described as a lonely giant in his lighthouse:
…Jarl van Hoother had his burnt head high up in his lamphouse, laying cold hands on himself.
His lamphouse is the Baily Lighthouse on Howth Head, and his burnt head is the lamp itself, red like the setting sun or flushed with anger. While the rest of the world is interconnected in love, the great father figure is isolated and sterile, laying cold hands on himself. He is the lonely beacon, watching the world from his solitary perch.
This is the classic setup for a fable: a lonely, powerful king in his castle, observing the world of common folk below.
25/08/2025, P.21.11, to be continued.