Molloy by Samuel Beckett. Short summary

5 seconds

The first story is a monologue of the crippled Molloy, who overcomes difficulties and suffers from paralysis on his way to his mother’s house. The second is by the detective Jacques Moran. He, too, becomes infirm and loses his son.

1 minute

A novel of a trilogy. Conventionally it can be divided into two monologues of the characters.

The first is the inner conversation of the crippled Molloy. He discusses some incidents from his life.

The hero is partially paralyzed. At first he cannot feel one leg, and as the narrative progresses, his other leg fails as well. Another of his ailments is memory problems. Gradually the hero becomes completely infirm. Starved and unable to move, he crawls toward the woods. By chance, he rolls into a deep ditch. That is the end of his story.

The second part is the report of the detective Jacques Moran. He has been given the task of tracking down Molloy. On the road, Jacques sets out with his son. In the woods, they lose each other. While Jacques was waiting for his son, he accidentally kills the wanderer. The man’s leg also begins to fail. When the son finds Jacques, they return to the village by bicycle. After an argument, the son leaves. Moran receives orders to stop searching and go back. When he arrives at his house, he finds it abandoned.