قصة الكتاب :
Molloy is the first part of a trilogy of novels written by Samuel Beckett collectively referred to as The Beckett Trilogy. It was originally written in French and published in 1947. The English translation of the book followed in 1955. The book is a dark, existential comedy written in two voices. One of these belong to Molloy, a man who suffers from several ailments and the other to an agent, Jacques Moran who has been assigned the task of finding Molloy. The book is unique in that it does not follow the normal patterns that novels do. It has no distinct plot, scenes or characters and has been referred to as the “…. novelistic equivalent of abstract painting” (Kunkel, B.).

\r\nThe book is split into two parts in which each of the main narrators speak. In the first, Molloy describes how he ended up bedridden in his mother’s house. In the second, Moran who is looking for Molloy appears to be losing his own sanity in the process. Molloy appears to be Beckett’s portrait of how someone who would not ordinarily tell stories, would tell one if compelled to. Molloy, the central character in the story sets out on a quest – a search for his mother Countess Casa. Molloy has been incarcerated for reasons he appears not to be completely aware of. The entire first part consists of Molloy’s memories and his contemplations of life and death. Moran, who appears in the second half of the book is also on a quest. He is searching for Molloy for reasons which are not explicitly spelt out in the narrative. The book ends with a picture of a crippled, defeated Molloy. Neither of the two characters in the story interact with each other. Many see Beckett’s novel as his attempt to decode mental disorders and give it a voice. The eccentric characters in this piece appear to be reflecting schizophrenia and paranoia. Molloy provides the reader with evidence of possible schizophrenic features. Moran, on the other hand, is a paranoid character with characteristics that are quite Molloy’s opposite. As the story progresses, we see him end up as a Molloy-like character thereby revealing the possible progression of paranoia to schizophrenia. With the help of his fragmented subjects, Beckett helped demystify the previously-held rigid views of self and its integrity.

\r\nThe lack of a linear structure and the ambiguity that characterized the novel leaves it open to multiple interpretations. It gives the readers a taste of the same lack of comprehension that Molloy himself seems to suffer from. This characterizes what many believe Beckett was trying to convey through his work regarding the post-World War II condition that he witnessed. Molloy remains Beckett’s best-known work of fiction. \r\n