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What is the plot of Samuel Beckettâs novel Murphy?
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Samuel Beckett
Irish playwright, author, and critic Samuel Beckett, known for his plays on existential themes, won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1969.
Published in 1938, Murphy is a novel by Irish author Samuel Beckett that follows an Irishman living in London who desires only to sit in his rocking chair and daydream.1
Seeking to avoid all action, Murphy attempts to disengage from the world by escaping from his fiancĂ©e, associating with a kind prostitute, and eventually securing a job as a nurse in an asylum, where he spends his time playing nonconfrontational chess. His efforts to remain detached are ultimately thwarted when his fiancĂ©e tracks him down, accompanied by a detective and two new lovers. The story concludes with Murphyâs death, which occurs when the gas in his apartment is accidentally turned on.1