LETTERS OF SAMUEL BECKETT AS A SOURCE OF SCIENTIFIC COMMENTARIES
The article touches upon the issue of value of studying the private correspondence of Irish modernist Samuel Beckett for commenting his works. The writer has always been careful to hide all facets of his personal life. He also refused to discuss the events that may have had an influence on him while he was making his texts. Meanwhile, biographical studies showed the existence of the deep connection between motifs, which the author used in his oeuvre, and his real life experience. The publication of Beckett’s authorized biography made the phenomenological approach very popular among scholars. A major development in that respect was the publication of his letters accompanied by explanatory commentaries which should help the reader to understand the historical context of events. Surveying writer’s letters revealed new areas in Beckett studies. In particular, scientists obtained a possibility to examine his extensive reading and to make references to his first novels which were based on citing. Beckett’s remarks that he made in his letters proved wrong his previous statements that philosophy did not interest him. His reflections on different works of literature, music and paintings allowed scholars to address the problem of defining the art influences on him. The translations of his letters, written to the Irish poet Thomas McGreevy, make it clear that Beckett’s correspondence was rich with facts connected to his art.