Beckett and Aristotle: How Samuel Beckett's work violates the law of the excluded middle

What is it about?

The paper explains "neither" (1976), a prose poem by Beckett by using Aristotelian logic. It comments on the fundamental ambivalence and in-betweenness of Beckett's work that deals in oxymorons, loves paradoxes, and refuses to be pinned down one way or the other. The prose poem "neither" is a landmark text because, in its themes and composition, it reflects Beckett's earlier fiction, more specifically, his so-called trilogy - Molloy, Malone Dies, and The Unnamable - and his shorter prose pieces from the later period.

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Photo by Etienne Girardet on Unsplash

Photo by Etienne Girardet on Unsplash

Why is it important?

It gives an exegesis of a relatively less-known work of Samuel Beckett. The prose poem "neither", written in 1976, is a landmark text because, in its themes and composition, it reflects Beckett's earlier fiction, more specifically, his so-called trilogy - Molloy, Malone Dies, and The Unnamable - and his shorter prose pieces from the later period.

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