Alchemy and Finnegans Wake

by Barbara DiBernard

In the first full-length study of Joyce's direct and indirect use of alchemical allusions, DiBernard shows how an awareness of the alchemical metaphor guides a reader through the richness of Finnegans Wake. For example, the alchemical transmutation of lead into gold parallels the transmutation of the dross and commotion of ordinary life into a work of art.

This study shows how the themes of Joyce's novel--death and rebirth, the conflict between physical and spiritual, incest, colors, forgery, and the reconciliation of opposites--relate to the alchemical process. The author then presents a theory, based on alchemical metaphor, on the much debated subject of Joyce's view of the artist.

163 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 1980

Reviews

[Joey · Rating 4 out of 5]

one of the few essentials for the wake. many of the more general works on FW tend to not have a detailed analysis of the occult and while they're right in ascribing much of this to being Joyce satirizing crazies, few have done what Barbara does, which is clearly show the ways the occult in the wake is not just a mere joke but a serious motif that is used both to reflect considerable criticisms of the idea of alchemy and the generally mindset of occultism while also unveiling a symbolic alchemy essential in its more philosophically rigorous methods which help unite the layered symbols of the work.