Weakness and Pietas in Gianni Vattimo’s Weak Thought and Samuel Beckett’s “Dante and the Lobster”

Abstract The following article offers an analysis of Samuel Beckett’s short story “Dante and the Lobster” through the lens of Gianni Vattimo’s weak thought. It claims that Beckett’s short story provides a more practical perspective on Vattimo’s notion of weakness and on his call for an ethics based on pietas . As it focuses on the specific vulnerability of individual entities—specifically a lobster about to be boiled alive—“Dante and the Lobster” highlights the importance of considering weakness not merely as an abstract notion but as an actual condition of beings.