A Taste for the Negative: Beckett and Nihilism

by Shane Weller

Since the mid-1950s, when the works of Samuel Beckett began to attract sustained critical attention, commentators have tended either to dismiss his oeuvre as nihilist or defend it as anti-nihilist. On the one side are figures such as Georg Lukacs; on the other, some of the most influential philosophers and literary theorists of the post-war era, from Theodor Adorno to Alain Badiou. Taking as his point of departure Nietzsche's description of nihilism as the 'uncanniest of all guests', Weller calls this critical tradition into question, arguing that the relationship between Beckett's texts and nihilism is one that will always be missed by those who are simply for or against Beckett.

Genres: Philosophy

Paperback

First published December 1, 2004

Reviews

[Steven · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a grueling and difficult, yet ultimately rewarding read. On my second time through now and will try to add some summary later. Suffice to say this is not a casual read but post-graduate level philosophy. Be prepared to dust off your German and French, your Nietzsche, Heidegger, Deleuze, Derrida, Adorno, and Schopenhauer, among others, and to wade deep into the muddy or pristine waters of Nihilism, and especially Beckett’s works, because to read Weller’s book with any level of understanding requires concurrently reading not only the Beckett under discussion but frequently the other reference materials (unless, of course, you are philosophically fluent enough that your understanding survives on Weller’s quotes alone.) Tough to pare this down, but Weller’s mission here is take on both the critics who view Beckett as a nihilist and those who view Beckett as an anti-nihilist, and to try to express, in Beckett’s words, what lies “at the core of an eddy.”