martin esslin coined the term the theatre of the absurd.
martin esslin coined the term the theatre of the absurd.
who coined the term the theatre of the absurd?
martin esslin
critic martin esslin coined the term in his 1960 essay "theatre of the absurd". he related these plays based on a broad theme of the absurd, similar to the way albert camus uses the term in his 1942 essay "the myth of sisyphus". the absurd in these plays takes the form of man's reaction to a world apparently without meaning, or man as a puppet controlled or menaced by invisible outside forces. this style of writing was first popularized by the samuel beckett play "waiting for godot" (1953). although the term is applied to a wide range of plays, some characteristics coincide in many of the plays: broad comedy, often similar to vaudeville, mixed with horrific or tragic images; characters caught in hopeless situations forced to do repetitive or meaningless actions; dialogue full of clichés, wordplay, and nonsense; plots that are cyclical or absurdly expansive; either a parody or dismissal of realism and the concept of the "well-made play". these plays were shaped by the political turmoil, scientific breakthrough, and social upheaval going on in the world around the playwrights during these times.
theatre of the absurd
absurd









































absurd or the absurd may refer to:









































section::::entertainment.









































bullet::::- absurd (band), german metal band









































bullet::::- "absurd" (song), 1997 song by fluke









































bullet::::- theatre of the absurd, art form utilizing the philosophy of absurdism









































bullet::::- "absurd" (film), 1981 italian film









































bullet::::- absurd or surreal humour









































bullet::::- absurdist fiction









































section::::philosophy.









































bullet::::- absurdity, general and technical usage—associated with extremely poor reasoning, the ridiculous, or nonsense









































bullet::::- absurdism, a philosophy based on the belief that the universe is irrational and meaningless









































bullet::::- absurd, a term used in logic to describe a contradiction









































bullet::::- "reductio ad absurdum", a type of logical argument
absurd