Digital Manuscript ProjectL'Innommable / The Unnamable

[1976] lamps, lamps, lit and trained on the within, to make him think
they are still there, notwithstanding the silence, or to make him
think the grey is true [place = supralinear] natural, or to make him go on suffereing, for he
does not suffer only from the noise [place = supralinear] [⁁] alone, he suffers from the grey too,
the light, he must, it's preferable, or to enable them to come
[1976] back, if the master commands them to, without his knowing they have
gone, as if he could know, or for no other reason than their ignor-
ance of what to do, whether to fill up the holes or let them fill
up by [place = supralinear] of themselves, it's like shit, there we are [place = supralinear] have it at last, there it is
at last, he the right word, one has only to search, search in vain,
to be sure of finding in the end, it's a question of elimination.
[1977] Enough now about holes.[1978] The grey means nothing, the grey silence is
not necessarily a mere lull, to be got through somehow, it may be
final, or it may not.[1979] But the lamps unattended will not burn [place = supralinear] on for
ever, on the contrary, they will go out, little by little, without
attendants to charge them anew, and go silent, in the end.[1980] Then
it will be dark [place = supralinear] black.[1981] But it is with the dark [place = supralinear] black as with the grey, the dark [place = supralinear] black
proves nothing either, as to the value of the silence which [place = supralinear] so to speak it
thickens [place = supralinear] inspissates so to speak.
[1982] For they may come back, long after the lights
are spent, having pleaded [place = supralinear] in vain for years before the master
, without [place = supralinear] and failed to convince him there is nothing to be done, with Worm,
succeeding in satisfying
for Worm.[1983] Then all will start over again, obvios [place = overwritten] usly.
[1984] So that it will
never be known, Worm will never know, let the silence be black, or
let it be grey, it will never be possible to know [place = supralinear] it can never be known, as long as it
lasts, whether it is final, or whether it is a mere lull, w [place = overwritten] and what
a lull, when he must listen, strain his ears for the mum [place = overwritten] rmurs of
other silen olden silences, hold himself ready for the next instal-
ment, under pain of drawing supplementary thunderbolts.[1985] But Worm
must not be confused with another.
[1986] Though this has no importance, as
it happens.[1987] For he who has once had to listen will listen always,
whether he knows he will never hear anything again, or whether he
does not.[1988] In other words, they like other words, no doubt about
that, silence once broken will never again be whole.[1989] Is there then
no hope?[1990] Good gracious, no, heavens, what an idea!Just a faint
[1991] Just a faint
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L'Innommable / The Unnamable © 2013 Samuel Beckett Digital Manuscript Project.
Editors: Dirk Van Hulle, Shane Weller and Vincent Neyt