Malone Dies [Hardcover]

Samuel Beckett (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1968 | ISBN-10: 0714503568 | ISBN-13: 978-0714503561 | Edition: New impression

This is the second in the famous trilogy of novels written by Samuel Beckett in the late 1940s. An old man is dying in a room. His bowl of soup comes, his pots are emptied. He waits to die. And while he waits, he constructs stories, mainly to pass the time. Saposcat, the Lambert family, Macmann and his nurse Moll. Other figures weave in and out of his vision and his imagination. This remarkable soliloquy, so intrinsically Beckettian, is as important as Waiting for Godot or Endgame, the famous plays that made his name. Sean Barrett gives a masterly performance.

--This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Novel by Samuel Beckett, originally written in French as Malone meurt (1951) and translated by the author into English. It is the second narrative in the trilogy that began with MOLLOY and concluded with THE UNNAMABLE. The novel's narrator, Malone, is dying. He spends his time writing an inventory of his meager possessions, a description of his condition, and stories about a character who is clearly an aspect of himself. Malone's struggles to tell his character's story can be viewed as a satire on the creative process as well as an attempt to understand the essence of the self. -- The Merriam-Webster Encyclopedia of Literature --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Samuel Beckett was born in Dublin in 1906. He was educated at Portora Royal School and Trinity College, Dublin, where he graduated in 1927. His made his poetry debut in 1930 with Whoroscope and followed it with essays and two novels before World War Two. He wrote one of his most famous plays, Waiting for Godot, in 1949 but it wasn't published in English until 1954. Waiting for Godot brought Beckett international fame and firmly established him as a leading figure in the Theatre of the Absurd. He received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1961. Beckett continued to write prolifically for radio, TV and the theatre until his death in 1989. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 120 pages
• Publisher: Calder Publications Ltd; New impression edition (June 1968)
• ISBN-10: 0714503568
• ISBN-13: 978-0714503561
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)

More About the Author

Samuel Beckett was born in Dublin in 1906. He was educated at Portora Royal School and Trinity College, Dublin, where he graduated in 1927. His made his poetry debut in 1930 with Whoroscope and followed it with essays and two novels before World War Two. He wrote one of his most famous plays, Waiting for Godot, in 1949 but it wasn't published in English until 1954. Waiting for Godot brought Beckett international fame and firmly established him as a leading figure in the Theatre of the Absurd. He received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1969. Beckett continued to write prolifically for radio, TV and the theatre until his death in 1989.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Drama and Meaning without Plot, April 22, 2011

By 

CJA "CJA" (Minneapolis, MN) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Malone Dies (Paperback)

This is a remarkable monologue, told by man who knows he is dying. He drifts in and out of consciousness and interacts with no one. The story is one of his thoughts only, and when he dies he just stops talking.

Beckett does not envision one's dying thoughts along the classic lines of one's life flashing before his eyes -- more or less chronologically remembering one's childhood, first love, then adulthood. Beckett is more interested in philosophy than relationships, and for Beckett man's relationships with things seem to define him. The most remarkable passage is one where Malone recalls a menial farm task -- one that a person could stay up all night doing with no hope of finishing. Yet, some progress on the task is still a positive good and something worthwhile. This is Beckett's metaphor for life.

It's a difficult book to read, though the tension and drama of a man's dying thoughts makes up for the lack of plot.

5.0 out of 5 stars This is another Beckett masterpiece., October 25, 2011

By 

Wobert (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Malone Dies (Paperback)

Even though the subject matter is utterly depressing--I've rarely read such a vivid depiction of abject loneliness and physical and mental degradation, as the narrator and his protagonist progressively rot into nothingness--I found the book to be incredibly exhilarating and uplifting. The earthy realism, pessimistic wisdom, dark humor, and liquid poetry made me feel as if I'd not merely read a book, but lived and suffered, and learned some deep truths about human existence that I can't even express in words.