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Beckett's Space In Between

  • Journal of Modern English Drama
  • Abbr : JMBARD
  • 2014, 27(1), pp.71-92
  • Publisher : 한국현대영미드라마학회
  • Research Area : Humanities > English Language and Literature > English Literature > Contemporary English Drama

Ilhyung Park 1

1홍익대학교

Accredited

ABSTRACT

Over the past half a century, the central issue in Beckett studies has always been the inside rather than the outside of stage. The problem was that there was nothing, virtually nothing happened on stage. “Nothing happens, twice.” Vivian Mercier’s famous statement summarizing his first impression of Waiting for Godot has become the starting point for numerous studies thereafter. Even though his witty summary clearly embraces insight that goes beyond criticism based on impression, it is not an incontrovertible description of the dramatic piece. The second act of Waiting for Godot is not a simple repetition of the first act. Simply because a lot of things do take place on stage. What does not happen is a specific incident. Primarily, the act of Godot making an appearance on stage does not occur. The majority of scholars including Mercier have analyzed the negativity of the piece by concentrating only on the incident on stage. Interpretation of the theatrical space of Beckett has been based on questions such as what this piece suggests, what is happening on stage, or inversely, what this theatrical stage lacks, and what is not happening on stage. What these questions disregard is the fact that the theatrical space of Beckett inherently contains fundamental boundaries, moreover, that the theatrical space is produced and redefined by the boundaries created through the dialectics of the inside and the outside. Rather than being an isolated space, it is a sort of ‘in-between space’ that exists in between a space and another. The space does not exist on its own, it is defined by its relationship with other spaces. The space is generated not only by the protagonists and their actions but also by the boundaries of the space or its relationship with the outside of the boundaries. This suggests that the theatrical space of Beckett is an antithesis of the tradition of nineteenth century drama as well as an extension and reinterpretation of classical drama. The paper reinterprets the negativity of space in some of Beckett’s major dramatic pieces with particular emphasis on Waiting for Godot and Endgame.

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