Gathers the Nobel Prize winning poet and dramatist's short prose into one volume that affords the reader a view of Beckett's development as an artist.

Nobel Prize winner Samuel Beckett was one of the most profoundly original writers of the 20th century. He gave expression to the anguish and isolation of the individual consciousness with a purity and minimalism that have altered the shape of world literature. A tremendously influential poet and dramatist, Beckett spoke of his prose fiction as the "important writing," the medium in which he distilled his ideas most powerfully. Here, for the first time, his short prose is gathered in a definitive, complete volume by leading Beckett scholar S. E. Gontarski.

Explores the hidden political and ethical dimensions of the work of Samuel Beckett, an author who might otherwise be considered indifferent to such considerations.

From the contents: Beckett and the quest for meaning (Martin Esslin). - Beckett's tonic laughter (Manfred Pfister). - The magic triangle: James Joyce, Samuel Beckett, Arno Schmidt (Friedhelm Rathjen). - Beckett performed in Italy (Annamaria Cascetta). - Beckett and synaesthesia (Yoshiki Tajiri). - Beckett versus the reader (Michael Guest).

Theatre on Trial is the first full-length analysis of Samuel Beckett's later drama in the context of contemporary theatre. Audrey McMullan employs a close, textual examination of the later plays as a springboard for exploring ideas around authority, voyeurism, gender and the ideology of stage and TV space. Her application of deconstruction and psychoanalytic feminism to Beckett's work will break new and exciting ground.

This volume is the first full-length account of the British prose poem, its history, and status as a genre. This book not only aims to place British prose poetry within the larger literary framework, but also contributes to the discussion of what constitutes the genre, while posing the question: is there a discernible British style? Extending from the Romantic period to the twentieth century, Such Rare Citings offers analyses of prose poems by writers from Coleridge to Samuel Beckett.