I'm interested in Beckett, and thought this would be a good

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.

>>9172125
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

>>9172238
>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

>>9172125
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

>>9172228
this is what such a thing as a wrong opinion would be like

>>9172413
Insofar as one would consider that saying something is a representation of god is saying there is nothing to that thing, yes

>>9172125
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: https://books.google.com/books?id=JRurBgAAQBAJ

>>9172772
>not in his early/mid writings and even afterwards not quite that
his early writings are joyce clones.. try to read fair to midling

>>9172125
I'd suggest reading Molloy before Murphy, but that's just me.

>>9175094
Obviously, but not late joyce clones.

>>9172125
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.

>>9172125
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

>>9172125
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.

>>9176777
>Beckett the unsteady
*trips*

>>9178670

lmao.

>Beckett the Chess Master
Endgame

>>9180760
>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

>>9176390
>Endgame takes place inside a human skull
I've actually never heard this interpretation.

Endgame was always my favorite, personally.