CliffsNotes on Sartre's No Exit & The Flies [Paperback]

W. John Campbell (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0822009048 | ISBN-13: 978-0822009047 | Publication Date: September 29, 1983

The original CliffsNotes study guides offer expert commentary on major themes, plots, characters, literary devices, and historical background — all to help you gain greater insight into great works you're bound to study for school or pleasure.

In CliffsNotes on Sartre's No Exit & The Flies, you examine two well-known plays by Jean-Baptiste Sartre and discover how Sartre uses his work to put forth his philosophy of existentialism. Both plays were written during the Nazi occupation of France in WWII and deal with the central of theme of freedom, which is a hallmark of Sartre's existential philosophy.

In this study guide, you'll find Life of the Author, as well as detailed Summaries and Commentaries of both plays. You'll also find critical essays on the following topics:

• Sartrean existentialism: Principles and philosophies, existentialism before Sartre, an overview of existentialism, and Sartre's specific principles of existentialism
• Sartre's political ideas
• Sartre's dramatic formula
• Plus suggested essay topics and a selected bibliography

Classic literature or modern-day treasure — you'll understand it all with expert information and insight from CliffsNotes study guides.

Product Details

• Paperback: 56 pages
• Publisher: Cliffs Notes (September 29, 1983)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0822009048
• ISBN-13: 978-0822009047
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.2 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #571,780 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Weird and wild!, July 16, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: CliffsNotes on Sartre's No Exit & The Flies (Paperback)

My mother told me she had to read the original "Huis Clos" in French class. Being interested in unorthodox interpretations of Hell (such as the beautiful Grey Town in C.S. Lewis' "The Great Divorce") I've always been curious about "No Exit." At last Mama bought it for me. While "No Exit" wasn't as captivating a tale as I anticipated, it has its own merits. It's very... well... "out there." When I try to find words to describe it, my face twists up in knots. I've read the highly philosophical sci-fi work "White Bread" by William Meyer, and yet "No Exit" is the only book I've ever read that I can describe just by saying "That was WEIRD!" Do you like bizarre literature? Read "No Exit."

I think if I were one of the characters in this little drama, I'd be Inez. Sadly enough, she reminds me of myself. On the other hand, if I were trapped in a hotel room for eternity, I wouldn't act stuffy and grown-up like Sartre's characters. I'd probably begin by building a fort out of those accursed sofa cushions. Hey, I'm a kid.

What I like about Garcin is his straightforward honesty. He doesn't weasel-word around his sins the way Estelle does... "Cosi fan tutte," as Mozart would say. "Women are like that." On the other hand, if I were confronted as he was with the hotel room's open door, I would have run outside to wander the halls, or at least propped the portal open!

Read "No Exit," and enjoy.

5.0 out of 5 stars NO EXIT and THE FLIES, December 25, 2010

By 

Fred (Holbrook, Massachusetts, US) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: CliffsNotes on Sartre's No Exit & The Flies (Paperback)

I have searched for this out of print CliffsNotes on NO EXIT for a long time. Thank you Amazon. It was worth the wait!