City Libraries, City of Gold Coast

The absurd in literature, Neil Cornwell

eng

Includes bibliographical references (pages 314-335) and index

index present

non fiction

The absurd in literature

dictionariesbibliography

Neil Cornwell

Neil Cornwell presents a study of the absurd, covering fiction and theatre. He includes sections on the antecedents, history, and theory of the absurd, which are complimented by case studies of four authors. He concludes by examining how it has infiltrated the 21st century in television, radio, film and advertising., Neil Cornwell's study, while endeavouring to present an historical survey of absurdist literature and its forbears, does not aspire to being an exhaustive history of absurdism. Rather, it pauses on certain historical moments, artistic movements, literary figures and selected works, before moving on to discuss four key writers: Daniil Kharms, Franz Kafka, Samuel Beckett and Flann O'Brien. The absurd in literature will be of compelling interest to a considerable range of students of comparative, European (including Russian and Central European) and English literatures (British Isles and American) - as well as those more concerned with theatre studies, the avant-garde and the history of ideas (including humour theory). It should also have a wide appeal to the enthusiastic general reader