Worstward Ho
Page 2
of sight. Still dim and yet -. No. Nohow
so on. Say better worse words gone
when nohow on. Still dim and nohow
on. All seen and nohow on. What words
for what then? None for what then. No
words for what when words gone. For
what when nohow on. Somehow
nohow on.
W o r s e n i n g w o r d s w h o s e
unknown. Whence unknown. At all
costs unknown. Now for to say as worst
they may only they only they. Dim void
shades all they. Nothing save what they
say. Somehow say. Nothing save they.
What they say. Whosesoever whencesoever say. As worst they may fail ever worse to say.
�0
SAMUEL BECKE1T
Remains of mind then still.
Enough still. Somewhose somewhere
somehow enough still. No mind and
words? Even such words. So enough
still. Just enough still to joy. Joy! Just
enough still to joy that only they. Only!
Enough still not to know. Not to
know what they say. Not to know what
it is the words it says say. Says? Secretes.
Say better worse secretes. What it is the
words it secretes say. What the so-said
void. The so-said dim. The so-said
shades. The so-said seat and germ of all.
Enough to know no knowing. No knowing what it is the words it secretes say.
No saying. No saying what it all is they
somehow say.
3 1
HO
That said on back to try worse say
the plodding twain. Preying since last
worse said on foresaid remains. But
what not on them preying? What seen?
What said? What of all seen and said not
on them preying? True. True! And yet
say worst perhaps worst of all the old
man and child. That shade as last worse
seen. Left right left right barefoot
unreceding on. They then the words.
Back to them now for want of better on
and better fail. Worser fail that perhaps
of all the least. Least worse failed of all
the worse failed shades. Less worse
than the bowed back alone. The skull
and lidless stare. Though they too for
worse. But what not for worse. True.
True! And yet say first the worst perhaps worst of all the old man and child.
Worst in need of worse. Worse in -
SAMUEL BECKE1T
Blanks for nohow on. How long?
Blanks how long till somehow on?
Again somehow on. All gone when
nohow on. Time gone when nohow on.
Worse less. By no stretch more.
Worse for want of better less. Less best.
No. Naught best. Best worse. No. Not
best worse. Naught not best worse. Less
best worse. No. Least. Least best worse.
Least never to be naught. Never to
naught be brought. Never by naught be
nulled. Unnullable least. Say that best
worse. With leastening words say least
best worse. For want of worser worst.
Unlessenable least best worse.
The twain. The hands. Held holding hands. That almost ring! As when
first said on crippled hands the head.
Crippled hands! They there then the
words. Here now held holding. As
when first said. Ununsaid when worse
said. Away. Held holding hands!
The empty too. Away. No hands in
the - . No. Save for worse to say. Somehow worse somehow to say. Say for now still seen. Dimly seen. Dim white.
Two dim white empty hands. In the dim
void.
So !eastward on. So long as dim
still. Dim undimmed. Or dimmed to
dimmer still. To dimmost dim. Leastmost in dimmost dim. Utmost dim.
Leastmost in utmost dim. Unworsenable worst.
SAMUEL BECKETf
What words for what then? How
almost they still ring. As somehow from
some soft of mind they ooze. From it in
it ooze. How all but uninane. To last
unlessenable least how loath to leasten.
For then in utmost dim to unutter leastmost all.
So little worse the old man and
child. Gone held holding hands they
plod apart. Left right barefoot unreceding on. Not worsen yet the rift. Save for some after nohow somehow worser on.
On back to unsay clamped to all
the stare. No but from now to now this
and now that. As now from worsened
twain to next for worse alone. To skull
and stare alone. Of the two worse in
want the skull preying since unsunk.
Now say the fore alone. No dome. Temple to temple alone. Clamped to it and stare alone the stare. Bowed back alone
and twain blurs in the void. So better
than nothing worse shade three from
now.
Somehow again on back to the
bowed back alone. Nothing to show a
woman's and yet a woman's. Oozed
from softening soft the word woman's.
The words old woman's. The words
nothing to show bowed back alone a
woman's and yet a woman's. So better
worse from now that shade a woman's.
An old woman's.
Next fail see say how dim
36
SAMUEL BECKEtT
undimmed to worsen. How nohow save
to dimmer still. But but a shade so as
when after nohow somehow on to
dimmer still. Till dimmost dim. Best
bad worse of all. Save somehow
undimmed worser still.
Ooze on back not to unsay but say
again the vasts apart. Say seen again. No
worse again. The vasts of void apart. Of
all so far missaid the worse missaid. So
far. Not till nohow worse missay say
worse missaid. Not till for good nohow
on poor worst missaid.
Longing the so-said mind long lost
to longing. The so-missaid. So far somissaid. Dint of long longing lost to longing. Long vain longing. And longing
WORSTWARD HO
still. Faintly longing still. Faintly vainly
longing still. For fainter still. For faintest. Faintly vainly longing for the least of longing. Unlessenable least of longing. Unstillable vain last of longing still.
Longing that all go. Dim go. Void
go. Longing go. Vain longing that vain
longing go.
Said is missaid. Whenever said
said said missaid. From now said alone.
No more from now now said and now
missaid. From now said alone. Said for
missaid. For be missaid.
Back is on. Somehow on. From
now back alone. No more from now
SAMUEL BECKE'IT
now back and now back on. From now
back alone. Back for back on. Back for
somehow on.
Back unsay better worse by no
stretch more. If more dim less light
then better worse more dim. Unsaid
then better worse by no stretch more.
Better worse may no less than less be
more. Better worse what? The say? The
said. Same thing. Same nothing. Same all
but nothing.
No once. No once in pastless now.
No not none. When before worse the
shades? The dim before more? When if
/> not once. Onceless alone the void. By
no stretch more. By none less. Onceless
till no more.
Ooze back try worsen blanks.
Those then when nohow on. Unsay
then all gone. All not gone. Only nohow
on. All not gone and nohow on. All
there as now when somehow on. The
dim. The void. The shades. Only words
gone. Ooze gone. Till ooze again and
on. Somehow ooze on.
Preying since last worse the stare.
Something there still far so far from
wrong. So far far far from wrong. Try
better worse another stare when with
words than when not. When somehow
than when nohow. While all seen the
same. No not all seen the same. Seen
other. By the same other stare seen
other. When with words than when
not. When somehow than when
nohow. How fail say how other seen?
SAMUEL BECKE'IT
Less. Less seen. Less seeing. Less
seen and seeing when with words than
when not. Wben somehow than when
nohow. Stare by words dimmed. Shades
dimmed. Void dimmed. Dim dimmed.
All there as when no words. As when
nohow. Only all dimmed. Till blank
again. No words again. Nohow again.
Then all undimmed. Stare undimmed.
That words had dimmed.
Back unsay shades can go. Go and
come again. No. Shades cannot go.
Much less come again. Nor bowed old
woman's back. Nor old man and child.
Nor foreskull and stare. Blur yes. Shades
can blur. Wben stare clamped to one
alone. Or somehow words again. Go no
nor come again. Till dim if ever go.
Never to come again.
41
HO
Blanks for when words gone.
When nohow on. Then all seen as only
then. Undimmed. All undimmed that
words dim. All so seen unsaid. No ooze
then. No trace on soft when from it
ooze again. In it ooze again. Ooze alone
for seen as seen with ooze. Dimmed. No
ooze for seen undimmed. For when
nohow on. No ooze for when ooze
gone.
Back try worsen twain preying
since last worse. Since atwain. Two
once so one. From now rift a vast. Vast
of void atween. With equal plod still
unreceding on. That little better worse.
Till words for worser still. Worse words
for worser still.
SAMUEL BECKE'IT
Preying but what not preying?
When not preying? Nohow over words
again say what then when not preying.
Each better worse for naught. No stilling preying. The shades. The dim. The void. All always faintly preying. Worse
for naught. Worser for naught. No less
than when but bad all always faintly
preying. Gnawing.
Gnawing to be gone. Less no
good. Worse no good. Only one good.
Gone. Gone for good. Till then gnaw
on. All gnaw on. To be gone.
All save void. No. Void too.
Unworsenable void. Never less. Never
more. Never since first said never
unsaid never worse said never not
gnawing to be gone.
43
WORSTWARD HO
Say child gone. As good as gone.
From the void. From the stare. Void
then not that much more? Say old man
gone. Old woman gone. As good as
gone. Void then not that much more
again? No. Void most when almost.
Worst when almost. Less then? All
shades as good as gone. If then not that
much more then that much less then?
Less worse then? Enough. A pox on
void. Unmoreable unlessable unworseable evermost almost void.
Back to once so-said two as one.
Preying ever since not long since last
failed worse. Ever since vast a tween. Say
better worse now all gone save trunks
from now. Nothing from pelves down.
From napes up. Topless baseless hindtrunks. Legless plodding on. Left right unreceding on.
SAMUEL BECKETI'
Stare clamped to stare. Bowed
backs blurs in stare clamped to stare.
Two black holes. Dim black. In through
skull to soft. Out from soft through
skull. Agape in unseen face. That the
flaw? The want of flaw? Try better
worse set in skull. Two black holes in
fore skull. Or one. Try better still worse
one. One dim black hole mid-foreskull.
Into the hell of all. Out from the hell of
all. So better than nothing worse say
stare from now.
Stare outstared away to old man
hindtrunk unreceding on. Try better
worse kneeling. Legs gone say better
worse kneeling. No more if ever on. Say
never. Say never on. Ever kneeling. Legs
gone from stare say better worse ever
kneeling. Stare away to child and
4;
WORSTWARD HO
worsen same. Vast void apart old man
and child dim shades on unseen knees.
One blur. One clear. Dim clear. Now
the one. Now the other.
Nothing to show a child and yet a
child. A man and yet a man. Old and yet
old. Nothing but ooze how nothing and
yet. One bowed back yet an old man's.
The other yet a child's. A small child's.
Somehow again and all in stare
again. All at once as once. Better worse
all. The three bowed down. The stare.
The whole narrow void. No blurs. All
clear. Dim clear. Black hole agape on
all. Inletting all. Outletting all.
SAMUEL BECKETI'
Nothing and yet a woman. Old
and yet old. On unseen knees. Stooped
as loving memory some old gravestones
stoop. In that old graveyard. Names
gone and when to when. Stoop mute
over the graves of none.
Same stoop for all. Same vasts
apart. Such last state. Latest state. Till
somehow less in vain. Worse in vain. All
gnawing to be naught. Never to be
naught.
What were skull to go? As good as
go. Into what then black hole? From out
what then? What why of all? Better
worse so? No. Skull better worse. What
left of skull. Of soft. Worst why of all of
all. So skull not go. What left of skull not
47
WORSTWARD HO
go. Into it still the hole. Into what left of
soft. From out what little left.
Enough. Sudden enough. Sudden
all far. No move and sudden all far. All
least. Three pins. One pinhole. In dimmost dim. Vasts apart. At bounds of boundless void. Whence no farther.
Best worse no farther. Nohow less.
Nohow worse. Nohow naught. Nohow
on.
Said nohow on.
Document Outline
Cover
Title Page
Copyright
Worstward Ho