I'm interested in Beckett, and thought this would be a good place to start. Is this worth reading? What should I expect...

I'm interested in Beckett, and thought this would be a good place to start. Is this worth reading? What should I expect? Google tells me Beckett is an avant-garde writer, what did they mean by this? Am I gonna find some late Joycean stuff, or heavy symbolism, or what?

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I've only read waiting for godot and endgame but I found his works enjoyable, I've never tried deeply analysing anything but he can make you laugh at things that are properly depressing

I read this last month as my first Beckett. I thought it was more Flann O'Brien than Joyce. It's a funny book. Had to reread a paragraph every now and then to catch the meaning but nothing too dificult.

plays and radio plays better than his novels. i like words and music best. version with morton feldman.

Where were you when Beckett sent Joyce's daughter to the asylum?

I really liked Molloy. Waiting for Godot is great. I also really like Eh Joe and that one with the guy that listens to tapes he recorded in his youth.

There's a good version of Eh Joe with Liam Neeson on YouTube. I saw one live with some no-name actors that I loved.

There's definitely some symbolism though Beckett himself sometimes didn't want to say much about it. For example, he always denied that Godot was simply a representation of God, maybe implying that there's more in it than that

>Where were you when Beckett sent Joyce's daughter to the asylum?
Big uh-oh when Beckett questions your sanity, or cant handle you.

Oh and I was in my Fathers ball and by that I mean our Gods Sun

Murphy is good, probably one of the most accessible novels to begin with along with Molloy
>late Joycean stuff
not in his early/mid writings and even afterwards not quite that
>heavy symbolism
not in these either. In the later novels, but it's hard to tell how relevant it's meant to be

this is what such a thing as a wrong opinion would be like

Insofar as one would consider that saying something is a representation of god is saying there is nothing to that thing, yes

Just finished reading Murphy last week. Very funny and unique. I'd read Godot first, it's easier to digest. That said, it's still not very difficult and only took me a week.

This book was useful in deciphering some of the more obscure references: books.google.com/books?id=JRurBgAAQBAJ

>not in his early/mid writings and even afterwards not quite that
his early writings are joyce clones.. try to read fair to midling

I'd suggest reading Molloy before Murphy, but that's just me.

Obviously, but not late joyce clones.

A lot of his plays and novels are stripped bare -- anti-stories, narrative dark matter.

Molloy is a monologue structured like a lemniscate, Waiting for Godot is a play in which "nothing happens, twice," and his play Endgame takes place inside a human skull. He's pretty experimental (avant-garde).

Murphy is probably his most accessible "novel" (hard to call them novels). A good place to start. If you want something short/just a taste, read Waiting for Godot. It's a good distillation of his philosophy.

Enjoy. He's fantastic.

Heh, heh, start with Watt

>Beckett the romantic
Happy Days or Mercier and Camier

>Beckett the sentimental
Krapp's Last Tape

>Beckett the petulant adolescent
Malone Dies

>Beckett the sadist
How It Is or What Where

>Beckett the philosopher
Watt or Rough For Theatre I

>Beckett the engineer
Quad

I love Beckett. Never read Murphy though. Maybe read Godot first? Then, I'd say hop right into the trilogy. Watt is amazing as well.

>Beckett the unsteady
*trips*

lmao.

>Beckett the Chess Master
Endgame

>Beckett the Chaplin fan
Waiting for Godot

>Beckett the Schizophrenic
Not I

>Beckett the Voyeaur
Film

>Beckett the Old Man
That Time

>Beckett the Woman who had a miscarriage
Footfalls

>Endgame takes place inside a human skull
I've actually never heard this interpretation.

Endgame was always my favorite, personally.