Eugène Ionesco, Le Roi se meurt [The King is Dying/Exit the King]

Edward Forman (University of Bristol)

Ed. by David Houston Jones, University of Exeter
The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.5.2.07: French Writing and Culture: Postwar and Contemporary, 1945-present.
Vol. editors: Kate Averis (University of Western Australia), Hugo Azerad (University of Cambridge), Patrick ffrench (King's College London), Edward Forman (University of Bristol), Akane Kawakami (Birkbeck, University of London), Siobhán McIlvanney (King's College London), Sinan Richards (King's College London), Tim Unwin (University of Bristol), David Williams (University of Sheffield)

Dates

First circulation or publication Dec 1962

Places

France (Country of Origin)

Genres and Modes

Play
Tragedy

Resources

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Eugène Ionesco’s

Le Roi se meurt

[literally

The King is Dying

, often translated as

Exit the King

] was first performed at the Alliance française in Paris on 15 December 1962, directed by Jacques Mauclair. Whilst retaining many of the features associated with the Theatre of the Absurd, it is a serious and challenging reflection on the inevitability of death, and an investigation into the reactions of a powerful leader and his entourage as he comes to terms with his own end. Set in an imaginary realm with an imaginary king, it combines symbolism with realism, comedy and tragedy, in a sometimes disconcerting way.

The name Bérenger, given to the king, was frequently used by Ionesco to represent an Everyman figure. In this play he is surrounded by two queens, Marguerite and Marie, a guard

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1535 words

Citation: Forman, Edward. "Le Roi se meurt". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 17 January 2012 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=33125, accessed 25 April 2024.]

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