Degree Name
MA (Master of Arts)
Program
English
Date of Award
5-2020
Committee Chair or Co-Chairs
Katherine Weiss
Committee Members
Mark Baumgartner, Matthew Hohlmeier
Abstract
Samuel Beckett penned novels, short stories, poetry, stage plays, radio plays, and scripts—and he did each in a way that blended genre, challenged the norms of creative writing, and surprised audiences around the globe. His experimental approach to creative writing included the use of absurdism, genre-hybridization, and ergodicism, which led to Beckett fundamentally changing the approach to creative writing. His aesthetics have trickled down through the years and can be seen in contemporary works, including Aimee Bender’s short story collection The Girl in the Flammable Skirt and Mark Z. Danielewski’s novel House of Leaves[1]. By examining these works in comparison to Beckett, this project hopes to illuminate the effects of Beckett’s experimentation in form and genre on contemporary creative writing.
[1] The word ‘house’ appears in blue to honor Danielewski’s decision to have the word printed in that color each time it appears in his novel.
Document Type
Thesis - unrestricted
Recommended Citation
Campbell, Sam Nicole, "Blend it Like Beckett: Samuel Beckett and Experimental Contemporary Creative Writing" (2020). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. Paper 3769. https://dc.etsu.edu/etd/3769
Copyright
Copyright by the authors.
Included in
Digital Humanities Commons, Fiction Commons, Film and Media Studies Commons, Literature in English, North America Commons, Nonfiction Commons, Poetry Commons