The Unnamable (Cyclopedia of Literary Places)
At a glance:
- Author: Samuel Beckett
- First Published: 1953
- Type of Work: Novel
- Type of Plot: Absurdist
- Time of Work: Mid-twentieth century
- Genres: Long fiction, Absurdist literature
- Subjects: 1950’s, Self-discovery, Memory, Traveling or travelers, Philosophy or philosophers, Psychology or psychologists, Authors or writers, Art or artists, 1940’s, Paris, Death or dying, Existentialism, Old age or elderly people
Places Discussed
Ideal room. Perhaps the most frequent reference to place in the novel alludes to a room that the narrator wishes for, in contrast to the room in which he perceives himself to be. His “ideal” room would be doorless, even windowless, with nothing but its six surfaces. It could be dark black. To the narrator, the room would be “home,” a home that he would “find a way to explore.” The narrator has trouble with motion, however, and has no idea how he might get around in his ideal space to do his exploration. He would like to put himself in the room: a...
[The entire page is 689 words long]
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