All That Fall: Analysis of Setting
"All That Fall" is a play by Samuel Beckett that intricately analyzes its setting, which plays a crucial role in shaping both the humor and tragedy of the narrative. Set in an unnamed rural community in Ireland, the village serves as a backdrop that reflects the themes of existential struggle and the human condition. The country road leading to the village is depicted as treacherous and laborious, symbolizing life's precariousness where danger lurks at every turn, much like the inevitability of death. This road mirrors the journey of Mrs. Rooney, who grapples with her grief as she makes her way to Boghill train station. Initially a place of hope for her, the station ultimately becomes a site of despair following a tragic accident involving a child, which highlights the fragility of life and the dark undercurrents of fate.
Through Mrs. Rooney's experiences, Beckett illustrates the tension between the desire to escape the harsh realities of life and the inescapable nature of mortality. The setting of "All That Fall" is thus not merely a backdrop but a vital element that enhances the play's exploration of themes such as loss, memory, and the human experience. The interplay between humor and tragedy within this rural landscape invites a deeper reflection on the complexities of existence.
All That Fall: Analysis of Setting
First published: 1957
First produced: 1957, BBC Third Programme, London
Type of work: Drama
Type of plot: Absurdist
Time of work: Twentieth century
Places Discussed
Village
Village. Unnamed rural community in Ireland that serves as the peripheral setting of the play and establishes the foundation of its humor and tragedy. While Samuel Beckett’s dramatic themes are universal in scope, they are also rooted in his native Ireland.
Country road
Country road. Road to the village that is a dangerous and toilsome place—one on which a person might be run over by a passing motor van at any moment and whose dust and filth cling to people. In a broader sense, the country road mirrors the human condition as Beckett presents it—a place where every action is merely a hesitation before death. Parents rear children only to be struck down by disease or by the wheels of a train. Mrs. Rooney shuffles along the country road, suffering under the weight of her own body and the memory of her dead daughter, toward a meeting at the train station with her blind and embittered husband.
Boghill train station
Boghill train station. The station is initially a source of hope. Mrs. Rooney plans to surprise her husband on his birthday by meeting him there. It becomes, however, another source of death when she discovers that a child has fallen beneath a train’s wheels and has died—a tragedy that might have been caused by Mr. Rooney. Mrs. Rooney’s trip to the station also compels her to leave home, where she would prefer to stay, waiting for death to come, as she describes it, by a “drifting gently down in the higher life, and remembering, remembering . . . all the silly unhappiness . . . as though . . . it had never happened. . . .”
Bibliography
Alspaugh, David J. “The Symbolic Structure of Samuel Beckett’s All That Fall.” Modern Drama 9 (December, 1966): 324-332. An overview of the play’s features. Discussion focuses on the work’s plot, and on such themes as paternity and Christianity. The idea of movement in the play is also examined.
Bair, Deirdre. Samuel Beckett: A Biography, 1978.
Cohn, Ruby. Samuel Beckett: The Comic Gamut, 1962.
Federman, Raymond, and John Fletcher. Samuel Beckett, His Works and His Critics, 1970.
Fletcher, John. Samuel Beckett’s Art, 1967.
Fletcher, John, and John Spurling. Beckett the Playwright. Rev. ed. New York: Hill and Wang, 1985. A helpful introductory study of all of Beckett’s dramatic works, with a chapter on All That Fall. Discussion focuses on the work’s motifs of love and loss and on the wit of its complicated verbal play.
Kenner, Hugh. A Reader’s Guide to Samuel Beckett, 1973.
McWhinnie, Donald. The Art of Radio. London: Faber, 1969. The author produced the first broadcast of All That Fall. As well as general thoughts about radio as an artistic medium, detailed information regarding the play’s production is included. Of particular interest are the insights regarding the challenges of Beckett’s script.
Van Laan, Thomas F. “All That Fall as ‘a Play for Radio.’” Modern Drama 28 (March, 1985): 38-47. An analysis of how the play uses radio as an artistic idea. The ways in which language and action in All That Fall are significantly reshaped by the medium are discussed. The relationship of the play to the overall preoccupations of Beckett’s work is also explored.
Zilliacus, Clas. Beckett and Broadcasting. Abo, Finland: Abo Akademi, 1976. The definitive account of Beckett’s artistic and professional involvement with radio and television. Beckett’s thoughts about the various productions of his broadcast works are included. Detailed accounts of the productions are provided, including some illuminating commentary on the use of sound effects in All That Fall.