When I said goodbye to my son at freshman drop-off day, I was thrown into a black despair over how much I'd miss him.

WSJ: Rob LaZebnik's Message for the Class of 2013 | Saturday Essay

"Krapp" is, like all of Beckett's plays, a black comedy of the utmost horror and despair, and Mr. Hurt, who famously played the title role in Atom Egoyan's 2000 television version, is once again in perfect harmony with Krapp's agony.

WSJ: The Cherry Orchard | Krapp's Last Tape | The End of the Line | Theater Review by Terry Teachout

Many Chinese despair as, year after year, they are passed by for promotion, all because of a black mark made years earlier in the dang'an.

ECONOMIST: China