Samuel beckett and eugene ionesco biography

Introduction

The Theatre of the Absurd is a movement made up of many diverse plays, most of which were written between and When first performed, these plays shocked their audiences as they were startlingly different than anything that had been previously staged.

In fact, many of them were labelled as &#;anti-plays.&#; In an attempt to clarify and define this radical movement, Martin Esslin coined the term &#;The Theatre of the Absurd&#; in his book of the same name. He defined it as such, because all of the plays emphasized the absurdity of the human condition.

Samuel beckett and eugene ionesco biography

Whereas we tend to use the word &#;absurd&#; synonymously with &#;ridiculous,&#; Esslin was referring to the original meaning of the word&#; &#;out of harmony with reason or propriety; illogical&#; (Esslin 23). Essentially, each play renders man&#;s existence as illogical, and moreover, meaningless.

This idea was a reaction to the &#;