Buzz
Samuel Beckett, born in 1906 in Dublin, Ireland, was a playwright, novelist, and poet known for his explorations of solitude, despair, and existential futility. Writing in both English and French, he used dark humor to examine the human condition. Though he passed away at 83 in 1989, his legacy endures. In honor of his birthday, here are 12 fascinating insights into his life and work.
1. BECKETT DEFIED TRADITION BY CRAFTING STORIES WITHOUT PLOTS OR CONVENTIONAL CHARACTERS.
Often regarded as one of the last Modernists—or the first Postmodernist—Beckett challenged literary norms by creating novels and plays with sparse characters, minimal narrative structure, and stark settings. His works, categorized under the 'Theatre of the Absurd,' including his most renowned play, Waiting for Godot, reflect a bleak, existentialist perspective on human existence, portraying life as devoid of meaning and purpose.
2. HE FORGED A FRIENDSHIP WITH JAMES JOYCE, BUT IT ENDED IN CONFLICT.
In the late 1920s, while in Paris, Beckett served as an assistant to renowned writer James Joyce, helping with transcription and research for Joyce’s masterpiece Finnegans Wake. Beckett admired Joyce deeply, even publishing an essay in 1929 defending Joyce’s work. However, Joyce's daughter, Lucia, developed feelings for Beckett, which he did not reciprocate, and the resulting tension is believed to have caused a rift between the two writers.
3. HE WAS PASSIONATE ABOUT SPORTS...
During his time at a boarding school in Northern Ireland, Beckett excelled at cricket, even playing a few matches for the Dublin University Cricket Club when he was 20. But his love for sports wasn’t confined to cricket alone. Beckett was also an avid tennis fan, both playing the sport and following matches on television throughout his life.
4. ...AND HIS WRITING INSPIRED A TENNIS CHAMPION'S TATTOO.
Swiss tennis star Stanislas Wawrinka triumphed over Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic to claim victory at the 2014 Australian Open and the 2015 French Open, respectively. To stay motivated on the court, Wawrinka looks down at a tattoo on the inside of his left forearm, which features a quote from Samuel Beckett's 1983 novella Worstward Ho: “Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better.” Wawrinka shared with The Guardian, “I first encountered this quote a long time ago. It has always stuck with me. It's how I view both life and tennis.”
5. THE QUOTE RESONATES WITH ENTREPRENEURS, TOO.
As startup culture has surged, business leaders have searched for memorable quotes that offer both inspiration and quick motivation. Beckett’s words from Worstward Ho—“Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better”—have ironically become a go-to mantra in the business world. Though Beckett was more inclined towards nihilism than positive thinking, successful entrepreneurs like Richard Branson and Tim Ferriss have adopted Beckett’s “Fail better” as a powerful motivational phrase.
6. HE DROVE ANDRÉ THE GIANT TO SCHOOL IN HIS PICKUP TRUCK.
During the 1950s, Beckett lived in a small French village and became friends with a neighbor, Boris Roussimoff. Roussimoff’s 12-year-old son, André, had gigantism, which meant he was too large to fit in a school bus or regular car. With his own pickup truck, Beckett kindly offered to give André rides to school. The two often chatted about cricket, and André would later go on to become a famous professional wrestler and actor, best known for his role as Fezzik in The Princess Bride.
7. HE BELIEVED HE HAD NEVER TRULY BEEN BORN.
Following the death of his father in 1933, Beckett struggled with night terrors, stomach pains, and deep depression. He sought treatment from British psychoanalyst Wilfred Bion for two years. During this time, Beckett attended a lecture by Carl Jung, where Jung discussed the idea of a girl who had never really been born—a concept that resonated deeply with Beckett. He is said to have confided in close friends that he felt the same way, and much of his work delves into themes of alienation, existentialism, and the void.
8. HIS FUTURE WIFE CAME INTO HIS LIFE AFTER HE WAS STABBED BY A PIMP.
In January 1938, Beckett was attacked by a pimp on a Paris street, leaving him with a perforated lung and serious injuries. During his two-week hospital stay, a tennis acquaintance named Suzanne Dechevaux-Dumesnil learned about the incident and visited him regularly. Over time, the two fell in love—Suzanne, six years older than Beckett, lived with him for many years, and they eventually married in 1961. Suzanne passed away in July 1989, and Beckett died just a few months later, in December 1989.
9. HE JOINED THE FRENCH RESISTANCE TO FIGHT AGAINST THE NAZIS.
During World War II, Beckett joined the French Resistance to resist the Nazi occupation of France. He translated documents and used his apartment as a secret information drop, putting himself at risk of arrest. After some of his resistance colleagues were captured, Beckett fled to southern France in 1942, but continued his support for the cause. For his bravery, the French government later awarded Beckett the Croix de Guerre (Cross of War) and the Médaille de la Résistance (Medal of the Resistance).
10. HE COLLABORATED WITH BUSTER KEATON ON AN UNUSUAL FILM.
In the early 1960s, Beckett penned his sole screenplay, casting 70-year-old silent film legend Buster Keaton in the lead role for a movie titled Film. Released in 1965, Film presents Keaton navigating a busy street and later isolated in a room surrounded by pets and a single artwork. The highly experimental film received mixed reviews, and Beckett himself referred to it as an interesting failure.
11. HE WAS AWARDED THE NOBEL PRIZE BUT DIDN’T EMBRACE THE HONOR.
In 1969, Beckett was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in recognition of his groundbreaking novels and plays. Upon learning the news, his wife reportedly exclaimed, “Quelle catastrophe!” (What a catastrophe!) because she knew her husband shunned the limelight. Due to his aversion to fame, Beckett declined to attend the ceremony in person and refused to deliver a speech. His publisher accepted the award on his behalf, and Beckett donated his prize money, mostly to the library at Dublin’s Trinity College, his alma mater.
12. DUBLIN HAS A STUNNING BRIDGE NAMED IN HIS HONOR.
In December 2009, Samuel Beckett’s nephew and niece attended the opening ceremony of the Samuel Beckett Bridge in Dublin. Spanning the River Liffey, the bridge is designed with 31 cables that give it the appearance of a giant harp. Created by architect Santiago Calatrava, who also designed the nearby James Joyce Bridge, the Samuel Beckett Bridge serves both car and pedestrian traffic.
