First Love (Première amour) by Samuel Beckett (Type of Work)

 

First Love (Première amour)

by Samuel Beckett

(Type of Work) 

Type of Work: First Love by Samuel Beckett

Samuel Beckett’s First Love is a modernist short story that blends elements of existential fiction, absurdist literature, and psychological narrative. Written in 1946 and published later, the work reflects Beckett’s early transition from traditional narrative forms toward the minimalist, bleak, and introspective style that would define his mature writing.

At its core, First Love is a prose fiction narrated in the first person, structured as a retrospective account of a man recalling his brief and emotionally barren relationship with a woman named Lulu (later Anna). The story does not follow a conventional plot arc; instead, it unfolds as a fragmented, episodic recollection, emphasizing mental states over external action. This places the work firmly within modernist literature, where psychological depth and subjective experience replace linear storytelling.

The story also belongs to the tradition of existential literature. The unnamed narrator embodies existential alienation: he is detached from society, indifferent to death, resistant to intimacy, and burdened by the mere fact of existence. Love, home, family, and responsibility—values traditionally celebrated in realist fiction—are portrayed as oppressive intrusions. Human relationships offer no redemption or meaning, aligning the work with existential themes of absurdity, isolation, and the futility of connection.

In addition, First Love can be classified as an early example of absurdist fiction. The narrator’s obsessive habits, mechanical routines, emotional numbness, and darkly comic observations reduce human life to repetitive and meaningless gestures. Beckett’s use of irony—especially in titling the story First Love despite its complete absence of romance—reflects the absurdist rejection of sentimental conventions.

Stylistically, the work exhibits psychological realism, though stripped of empathy and moral judgment. The narrator’s mind is presented with stark honesty, revealing discomfort, irritation, and fear rather than emotional growth. Language is sparse, ironic, and deliberately flat, reinforcing the story’s thematic bleakness. The prose anticipates Beckett’s later minimalist style while still retaining a narrative framework.

Finally, First Love can be seen as a transitional work in Beckett’s career. It bridges his early, more traditional prose and his later experimental novels and plays. While it remains a recognizable short story, it already undermines narrative purpose, emotional development, and social meaning.

In conclusion, First Love is best classified as a modernist, existential, and absurdist short story that challenges conventional ideas of love, identity, and human connection. Its significance lies not in its plot but in its philosophical exploration of alienation and the failure of intimacy, marking it as an important early work in Samuel Beckett’s literary evolution.