Exit the King by Eugène Ionesco (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide

By Bright Summaries

Unlock the more straightforward side of Exit the King with this concise and insightful summary and analysis!

This engaging summary presents an analysis of Exit the King by Eugène Ionesco, an absurdist drama which follows the king of the title as he struggles to come to terms with his impending death. The apparently absurd play, whose title gives away its ending, contains plenty of strange and humorous situations, but also gives the author the opportunity to reflect seriously on important themes such as death, destiny and human relationships. Ionesco was a Romanian-born French playwright and one of the leading figures of the movement known as the Theatre of the Absurd. He wrote many plays, including The Bald Soprano and Rhinoceros, and his work is still performed around the world today.

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This in-depth and informative reading guide brings you:
• A complete plot summary
• Character studies
• Key themes and symbols
• Questions for further reflection

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• Language: English
• Publisher: BrightSummaries.com
• Release date: May 24, 2017
• ISBN: 9782806295583

Book preview

French dramatist

Born in Slatina (Romania) in 1909.

Died in Paris in 1994.

Notable works:

The Bald Soprano (1950), play

The Lesson (1951), play

Rhinoceros (1959), play

Born to a Romanian father and a French mother, Eugène Ionesco arrived in France as an infant and was made a French citizen in 1951. Although he was born in 1909, he always claimed he was born in 1912 to make himself appear younger. His theatrical works (such as The Bald Soprano; The Lesson; The Chairs, 1952) left their mark on literature: today, he is one of the most performed French dramatists in the world. He wanted to make sure his works were understood, so he wrote many commentaries on them (including Notes and Counter Notes, 1962; Fragments of a Journal, 1967). He was elected to the Académie française in 1970.

Ionesco was the leading figure of the Theatre of The Absurd, a new theatrical genre which rewrote the rules of classical theatre in the aftermath of the Second World War (1939-1945).

An unconventional play

Genre: play

Reference edition: Ionesco, E. (1994) Exit the King, The Killer, Macbett. Trans. Marowitz, C. and Watson, D. New York: Grove Press.

1st edition: 1962

Themes: anxiety, death, destiny, royalty, marriage

The single-act play Exit the King was published in 1962. The fact that the title alone sums up its plot (in French this is even clearer: the title is Le roi se meurt, or The King Dies) highlights the fact that Ionesco is on the margins