=Waiting For Godot
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godotshoes.jpg
Still from the Theatre Majestic Haymarket's 2009 production of Waiting for Godot

"Null to be done."–Estragon

"They give birth astride of a grave, the calorie-free gleams an instant, and so it'south night over again."–Pozzo

"At me likewise someone is looking, of me also someone is proverb, He is sleeping, he knows null, let him slumber on."–Vladimir

"I can't go on like this."–Estragon

"That'southward what you think."–Vladimir

Abstract

Beckett translated the text of Waiting for Godot from French to English himself. When he did this, he included the subtitle, "A tragicomedy." This portmanteau suggests that the play blends elements of tragedy and comedy together. At first, this definition seems somewhat impossible. How can something be both tragic and humorous at the same time? This newspaper analyzes specific themes throughout the play in an attempt to demonstrate just how accurate Beckett'due south clarification is. More than specifically, it asserts that this tragicomic quality appears well-nigh often in the moments where the characters feel as if they lack control over death, time, Godot (standing in for the unrealized), and the cocky.

Background Information

Waiting for Godot is the most well-known play from the Theatre of the Absurd move. It was written by Samuel Beckett and performed for the showtime time in Paris on January fifth, 1953. At its premier, the play shocked its audition as it presented a new blazon of theatre which used very anarchistic methods. In fact, it is said to have nearly caused riots across Western Europe (Esslin two). Godot's debut in the United states took place at San Quentin penitentiary in 1957. Unlike European audiences, the prisoners were able to identify with the play, primarily because they understood the concept of waiting (Esslin 19). Somewhen, Waiting for Godot received the recognition it deserved and took its place as a classic of modern theatre. This anecdote is an splendid preface to reading or seeing Waiting for Godot considering information technology prepares the audience to abandon whatever preconceptions they may take about theatre in society to ameliorate understand the piece.

Death

Near human beings adopt a passive stance and see themselves as powerless in the face of death. This is true to a sure extent–one cannot conquer death when it comes. Yet, in that location is however some amount of command one can exert over when he or she will die. This control lies in the power of human beings to commit suicide. Vladimir and Estragon occasionally express this desire to take their own lives. In Act One, they fence hanging themselves from a tree but are agape that the outset volition intermission the branch, thus leaving the other alive and on his own (Beckett 1.12-13). At first, the scene appears to be only tragic. The basic human instinct is survival, and so when one not merely lacks this instinct, but also seeks a means to directly counteract it–information technology invokes feelings of despair and regret from those witnessing it. Essentially, the act of suicide is tragic considering the act itself takes away one'southward humanity. However, when they make their conclusion to refrain information technology becomes morbidly humorous:

VLADIMIR: Well? What do we practise?
ESTRAGON: Don't let's do anything. It'south safer (Beckett 1.thirteen).

What makes this scene humorous is that at surface, Estragon'due south response seems cowardly and illogical. When a person dies, he or she no longer exists in the world. Therefore, worldly concerns, similar rubber, get irrelevant. Initially, the audition finds Estragon's inability to brand this differentiation laughable. Looking beneath the surface, withal, nosotros can come across that his response is not pure nonsense. Vladimir and Estragon feel that they must continue living because death and the separation that information technology risks are too dangerous, or rather, obscure. Fearing a loss of the familiar, life is "safer." Clearly they fear the possible separation that could occur if the tree branch breaks. Even so there is more. They realize that while committing suicide may grant them temporary control over life, the state of being expressionless will throw them into a condition of helplessness once again. Therefore, Vladimir and Estragon feel as if they lack command in life and in death. The way in which this sentiment is conveyed is tragicomic due to its power to speak to the audition on ii dissimilar levels.

Time

Whereas death can be controlled to a certain extent, fourth dimension is something which no ane can exert any control over. Our attempts to organize time and to control its speed are mere illusions–time has no schedule, and it continues on despite our regulations. This does not mean, however, that our own perception of time cannot be altered. If one is busy, time appears to become by quickly; if one is idle, it goes by slowly. In Waiting for Godot, the tragic element (in regards to time) is that Vladimir and Estragon are idle. They spend the entire play waiting effectually for another human. Anyone who has spent a long amount of fourth dimension waiting on some other person knows how torturous it tin can exist. The comedic relief is in their attempts to occupy themselves:

VLADIMIR: What near trying them.
ESTRAGON: I've tried everything.
VLADIMIR: No, I hateful the boots.
ESTRAGON: Would that exist a good matter?
VLADIMIR: It'd pass the fourth dimension (Beckett 2.78).

These lines are humorous considering their attempts to "laissez passer the time," or to modify their ain perception of time, are not very successful. Trying on a pair of boots can take no more than than a few minutes, and is therefore, not going to occupy the pair for very long. They will soon have to detect yet another way to entertain themselves. Essentially, Vladimir and Estragon are slaves to time in their constant state of waiting. Information technology is tragic considering they are no longer complimentary to alive their lives on their ain terms. The pair recognize their own enslavement and rather than attempting to fight it (by walking away), they choose to operate within its frame by filling up the space with meaningless, yet humorous, activity.

Godot (The Unrealized)

Without diving as well deeply into the debate over but what "Godot" stands for

Reference - double click to edit
Reference – double click to edit

, one can safely assert that despite his ambiguous identity, he functions as "the unrealized." Substantially, he is that matter for which we are all waiting, merely take not still received. By presenting this notion as a graphic symbol, Beckett directly confronts Vladimir and Estragon with their own "unrealized." And furthermore, by never allowing Godot to appear onstage, Beckett brings nevertheless some other tragic chemical element to the play. Neither Vladimir nor Estragon has whatsoever control over when Godot volition appear; they are waiting helplessly at the mercy of another. All the same Godot's continual absence in the play suggests that he will never actually come and confronts the audience with the possibility that our pair is waiting in vain. Even if one does not treat the characters, he or she can sense their own similar condition in life and lament for themselves.

Nevertheless, Beckett seems to be aware how heavy such an acknowledgement is, then, he infuses their waiting with bits of subtle comedy:

ESTRAGON: Let's become.
VLADIMIR: We can't.
ESTRAGON: Why not?
VLADIMIR: Nosotros're waiting for Godot (Beckett 1.8).

If nigh people were to spend entire days waiting for someone else, they would about likely retrieve that they were doing so. Moreover, they would probably be infuriated that the person had not yet come. Therefore, it is slightly amusing that Estragon ofttimes forgets that they are waiting for Godot. He appears to be undaunted by their hard position, which gives the audience a lighter, more than carefree, perspective in terms of "the unrealized." Substantially, it is almost as if Beckett is poking fun at the human being status. He is maxim that we are powerless by way that we must wait, only if we practice not focus on this fact, life is livable (shown past Estragon'due south suggestion that they cease waiting.)

The Cocky

Whereas death, time, and the unrealized, are all external forces that act without i's consent, the self is an internal affair that typically acts under i'south consent. Vladimir and Estragon, however, ofttimes feel that they lack control over themselves. While self-control ofttimes refers to restraining oneself, it tin can also refer to one's ability to motivate him/herself. It is in the latter sense, that these characters lack self- control. They frequently limited the desire to do a detail thing, only are unable to make themselves do it. These instances are almost always tragicomic.

Relationships

In the relationship between Vladimir and Estragon, this inability of the two to command themselves is specially obvious. Each frequently expresses a want to leave the other:

ESTRAGON: I'1000 going. (He does not motion) (Beckett 1.6).

Ironically, Estragon says one thing and does another. It is the contradiction betwixt the spoken give-and-take and the stage directions that provides the humour. (He expresses the desire to leave but lacks the command over himself to really do and so.) At that place seems to be a disconnect here between listen and body which is further emphasized when they try to discern why they never exit each other:

ESTRAGON: You run into, you experience worse when I'm with you. I feel amend alone too.
VLADIMIR: (vexed) So why do y'all e'er come crawling back?
ESTRAGON: I don't know (Beckett two.115).

The tragedy of their relationship is that they would exist improve off without each other. They are happier lone, merely continue their relationship without knowing why. Most can relate to this sentiment, and furthermore, to how painful it is to run into the better selection and to choose the worst. Vladimir and Estragon state that they exercise not know why they exercise non control themselves; even so, it seems to exist a matter of familiarity. As human beings, nosotros typically flock towards things that we know because our instinct is to be afraid of unfamiliar things. This is why Vladimir and Estragon remain together and precisely why they are not able to exert control over themselves.

Habit

The word "habit" suggests a forgetfulness of the self. When the mind is not witting of itself, the body defaults to a series of routines that are familiar and practise not require mental concentration. Essentially, habits are indicative of a loss of self-command. Vladimir and Estragon's established habits, which propel a large portion of the play in terms of action, are tragic and comedic at the same fourth dimension. Vladimir frequently fiddles with his hat and Estragon with his boots:

VLADIMIR: (He takes off his hat, peers inside it, feels about within it, shakes it, puts it on again.)….(He takes off his hat again, peers inside it.) Funny. (He knocks on the crown every bit though to dislodge a foreign trunk, peers into it again, puts information technology on again.) Goose egg to exist done. (Estragon with a supreme endeavor succeeds in pulling off his kick. He peers inside information technology, feels well-nigh inside information technology, turns it upside downwards, shakes information technology, looks on the ground to see if anything has fallen out, finds nothing, feels inside it once again, staring sightlessly earlier him) (Beckett 1.4).

The routine is reminiscent of Charlie Chaplin'south silent films, in which the humor comes solely from the actions of the actors and non from the dialogue (Esslin 335). Information technology is humorous that they keep checking within their hats and boots every bit if something might be inside of them. The fact that they never actually observe anything within these garments, is the tragic aspect of the scene. They are, in a sense, slaves to their own fruitless habits. Essentially, their lack of self-control sentences them to an being which produces zilch valuable.

All of these moments where Vladimir and Estragon lack cocky-control are comedic because one should exist able to make himself or herself practise something, especially when the tasks are as unproblematic as those which the characters propose. At the same time, they are tragic solely because the characters honestly experience that they have no control over themselves:

VLADIMIR: Nothing you can practice almost it.
ESTRAGON: No use struggling.
VLADIMIR: Ane is what i is.
ESTRAGON: No use wriggling.
VLADIMIR: The essential doesn't change (Beckett one.17).

They talk almost as if they operate exterior of themselves–that they are not present in their own bodies–and therefore, accept no command. Furthermore, with these lines, they admit that they are resigned to this lack of control because they feel it is useless to endeavour–things will non change.

Decision

Substantially, Vladimir and Estragon cannot command neither themselves nor the outside forces that act upon them. This fact is tragic because one wonders why he/she should continue living in a world which renders him/her equally completely and utterly powerless. This question is at the heart of absurdist theory and inspires the absurd notion that man's existence is without purpose. When one cannot command annihilation, it seems every bit if goose egg 1 says or does tin have any effect on the world. Substantially, the earth becomes an isolated entity and our presence in it meaningless. (Run across the Theatre of the Absurd folio for a more in-depth word of these theories.) Vladimir and Estragon'southward attempts to continue living despite this truth are the doorways for humor inside Waiting for Godot. They give movement to the heavy, hard-hitting themes of the play. Thus, Vladimir and Estragon's powerless existence is simultaneously tragic and comedic.

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References:

Beckett, Samuel. Waiting for Godot: A tragicomedy in ii Acts. New York: Grove, 1982. Print.
Bloom, Harold. Samuel Beckett's Waiting for Godot. New York: Bloom'south Literary Criticism, 2008. Print.
Esslin, Martin. The Theatre of the Cool. New York: Vintage, 2004. Print.
Gussow, Mel. "Samuel Beckett is Dead at 83." The New York Times. 27 Dec. 1989. Web. 8 Oct. 2010.
Image from Waiting for Godot courtesy of Wikimedia Eatables.

Contributor: Delanie Laws