Digital Manuscript ProjectL'Innommable / The Unnamable

[1976] 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 natural, or to make him go on suffering, for he
does not suffer from the noise [⁁] 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 of themselves, it's like shit, there we have it at last, there it is
at last, 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 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 black.[1981] But it is with the black as with the grey, the black
proves nothing either, as to the value of the silence which so to speak it
inspissates.
[1984] So it will
never be known, Worm will never know, let the silence be black, or
let it be grey, it can never be known, as long as it
lasts, whether it is final, or whether it is a mere lull, and what
a lull, when he must listen, strain his ears for the murmurs of
olden silences, hold himself ready for the next instal-
ment, under pain of 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