Beckett, Derrida, and the Event of Literature (Cultural Memory in the Present Cultural Memory in the Presen)

Derrida refused to comment on Beckett, although he took pains to comment on his refusal, which he blamed on simple inability. Fortunately Szafraniec (comparative literature, U. of Amsterdam) has no such reservations and ably takes on both giants of twentieth century thought. She starts with the premise that Derrida believed literary works shared a double, judicial-economic gesture, and that the judicial more closely favors Beckett's work. From this she branches into commentary on criticism by Deleuze, Cavell and Badiou on Beckett, bringing into focus not only Derrida's thought but also that of his contemporaries. The result is a new reading of Beckett and to approaches to contemporary literature in general. It would have been fascinating to read Derrida's response to this approach, but Szafraniec's mastery of Derridean concepts is both sophisticated and confident. Annotation ©2007 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Jacques Derrida' s repeatedly stated admiration and professed inability to comment on the work of Samuel Beckett are the point of departure for this book' s exploration of the relation between philosophy and literature.