Hello friends, I'm a student of the Department of English,M.K.B.U. This blog is a part of Thinking Activity which is given by Dr. Dilip Barad Sir. In this blog I'm going to write about Samuel Beckett's one famous play 'Waiting For Godot' and also give the answers of the questions which are given by Dilip Barad Sir.
Waiting For Godot
Samuel Beckett
Points to Ponder :-
Introduction
About Samuel Beckett
About The Play 'Waiting For Godot '
'Waiting For Godot' as a Theatre of Absurd :-
Answers of the Questions
Conclusion
Introduction :-
Waiting for Godot is a play by Samuel Beckett in which two characters, Vladimir (Didi) and Estragon (Gogo), engage in a variety of discussions and encounters while awaiting the titular Godot, who never arrives.
About Samuel Beckett :-
Samuel Barclay Beckett (/bɛkit/; 13 April 1906-22 December 1989) was an Irish novelist, poet , dramatist, short story writer, theatre director, poet, and literary translator. His literary and theatrical work features bleak, impersonal and tragicomic experiences of life, often coupled with black comedy and nonsense.
He studied French and Italian, completing a M.A. in French at Trinity College. After travelling in England and in Europe he settled permanently in Paris, except for a brief hiatus during World War II. Beckett‟s time in France also coincided with an active period in Existential philosophy, most of it centred in Paris. Existentialism is a philosophy focused on existence and how a person exists in the world. The philosophy holds that people do not have an inherent nature or essence, but instead define their "self" through their actions and choices. While Beckett is not an Existentialist, a generally existential view of the human condition comes through very clearly in the play.
Beckett was awarded the 1969 Nobel Prize in Literature "for his writing, which-in new forms for the novel and drama-in the destitution of modern man acquires its elevation".
About The Play 'Waiting For Godot ' :-
Waiting for Godot, tragicomedy in two acts by Irish writer Samuel Beckett, published in 1952 in French as En attendant Godot and first produced in 1953. Waiting for Godot was a true innovation in drama and the 'Theatre of the Absurd' first theatrical success.
The play consists of conversations between Vladimir and Estragon, who are waiting for the arrival of the mysterious Godot, who continually sends word that he will appear but who never does. They encounter Lucky and Pozzo, they discuss their miseries and their lots in life, they consider hanging themselves, and yet they wait. Often perceived as being tramps, Vladimir and Estragon are a pair of human beings who do not know why they were put on earth; they make the tenuous assumption that there must be some point to their existence, and they look to Godot for enlightenment. Because they hold out hope for meaning and direction, they acquire a kind of nobility that enables them to rise above their futile existence.
'Waiting For Godot' as a Theatre of Absurd :-
In 1945, World War II ended, leaving behind widespread destruction and more than 60 million casualties, including 6 million Jews and others killed in the Holocaust. For many, the world appeared chaotic and meaningless. Shortly thereafter, a new theatre genre called the “theatre of the Absurd” emerged. For playwrights of this genre, “absurd” meant “out of harmony” rather than “ridiculous.” Such theatre startled audiences by breaking from traditional stage techniques, raising questions instead of providing answers, and expressing an inability to make sense of human actions, choices, and indeed, life itself. Waiting for Godot illustrates a number of significant “Absurd” characteristics:
Instead of having a problem that is solved... Theater of the Absurd resolves nothing (Godot never arrives).
Instead of having a plot with beginning, middle, and end... Theater of the Absurd features no plot (Act II in Godot repeats the basic pattern of Act I)
Instead of having dialogue expressing the play‟s meaning... Theater of the Absurd reveals meaning from both words and deeds that sometimes conflict (Vladimir and Estragon agree to leave, but neither moves)
Instead of having either comedy or tragedy... Theater of the Absurd blends elements of unlikely comedy with painful situations (Estragon loses his trousers as he and Vladimir try to figure out how to hang themselves)
Instead of having distinctive and varied characters... Theater of the Absurd features less distinctive characters (Vladimir and Estragon have similar backgrounds and dress alike; all the characters are male)
Answers of the Questions :-
1). Why does Beckett grow a few leaves in Act II on the barren tree - The tree has four or five leaves?
The tree represents many things in the play Waiting for Godot. The tree is the only piece of the set in the play, and the entire play takes place next to it. The tree represents life and hope, especially between the first and second acts when the tree inexplicably sprouts leaves. The tree also represents Christ and crucifixion; Vladimir and Estragon suggest hanging themselves from the tree, perhaps a reference to crucifixion, except, instead of dying for humanity's sins, Estragon and Vladimir would be dying for nothing. The tree represents the juxtaposition of existentialism and Christianity that is presented throughout the play. However, many critics and scholars have competing ideas about the tree in the play Waiting for Godot, and its symbolization is highly debated.
2). Can we do any political reading of the play if we see European nations represented by the 'names' of the characters (Vladimir - Russia; Estragon - France; Pozzo - Italy and Lucky - England)? What interpretation can be inferred from the play written just after World War II? Which country stands for 'Godot'?
Estragon -France
Pozzo - Italy
Lucky – England
3). In Act I, in reply to Boy's question:
"BOY: What Am I to tell Mr. Godot, Sir?
VLADIMIR: Tell him... (he hesitates)... tell him you saw us. (Pause.) You did see us, didn't you?
How does this conversation go in Act II? What is the significance?
"BOY: What Am I to tell Mr. Godot, Sir?
VLADIMIR : Tell him . . . (he hesitates) . . . tell him you saw us. (Pause.) You did see us, didn't you?
Vladimir’s uncertainty seems to have worsened throughout the course of the play. Whereas earlier he doubted memory and knowledge, he now can’t even accept that actions are true in the moment they occur.
This is interesting; at the end of the play, Vladimir is at his most lucid. He knows he saw the Boy yesterday (and, we can extrapolate, many other days in the past) and he knows he will see him tomorrow. His moment of clarity, however, leads only to fruitless anger. What good is certainty, anyway, in a world full only of unreliability and doubt?
4). In both Acts, evening falls into night and moon rises. How would you interpret this 'coming of night and moon' when actually they are waiting for Godot?
Beckett wants to highlight the indifferent nature. As Nature never waits for anyone, it doesn't matter whether a person is sad or happy, nature never cares for them. The natural process of the environment never stops for anyone. Similarly in this play Vladimir and Estragon are waiting for Godot, and in this process of waiting they do various things to pass their time, sometimes they feel totally disappointed. But these all things make no change in nature, the day begins as it used to be and night comes as it is, without any change. Beckett very cleverly highlights the indifference nature of human beings through this tree, as in real society also, when someone is suffering, then the other will be happy or celebrating their happy days, no one cares about the suffering. Humans always remain indifferent towards the suffering of others.
In the other interpretation we can say that 'coming of night and moon' is also signifying the time ,time doesn't stop for us. It is going on if we use it or we waste it.
5). What is the meaning of the terms 'Apathia, Aphasia and Athambia' in Lucky's speech? "... divine apathia divine athambia divine aphasia loves us dearly with some exceptions for reasons unknown …".
Those who are exceptions from his care experience life on earth as hell, and this sensation is so strong that it eventually overrides any mote of hope or belief in a paradise beyond their earthly sufferings. Lucky's cynical feelings are innately clear. God is an absent projection entrenched in paradox and if not, then he is defined by "divine apathia" or apathy, a lack of interest, "divine aphasia" the inability to understand or express speech, and "divine athambia" means "imperturbability". He is unfeeling, unseeing, and inattentive.
6). 'A better solution to the tramp's predicament than to wait is, suicide". Is it really so? Why they fail to commit suicide?
In the play "Waiting for Godot," the tramps Vladimir and Estragon are in a state of existential crisis and are waiting for the arrival of a person named Godot. They are unable to act or change their situation and are stuck in a cycle of waiting and boredom.
While suicide may seem like a solution to their problems, it may not necessarily solve anything. It could simply lead to a permanent end to their existence and remove the possibility of finding meaning or purpose in life. Moreover, the act of suicide could be seen as a lack of courage to face the reality of their existence and to take control of their lives.
In addition, it is possible that the tramps may have hope that Godot will eventually arrive and bring a change to their lives. This hope keeps them from considering suicide as an option.
Ultimately, the tramps' failure to commit suicide could be seen as a manifestation of their own desire to live, despite the difficulties they face. It could also be seen as a desire to hold on to hope and the possibility of a better future.
7). Explain: "Godot might become an image of what Sartre calls "Bad Faith"". (Pg 39 in the article)
In Jean-Paul Sartre's philosophy of existentialism, "Bad Faith" refers to the act of denying one's own freedom and responsibility by hiding behind false or inauthentic values and beliefs. It is a way of avoiding the reality of one's own existence.
In the play "Waiting for Godot" by Samuel Beckett, the two main characters, Vladimir and Estragon, wait endlessly for the arrival of a person named Godot. They pass their time with idle talk and repetitive actions, but there is a sense of hopelessness and emptiness in their waiting. They are in a state of existential limbo, unable to act or change their situation.
In this sense, the character of Godot might represent the concept of "Bad Faith." The waiting for Godot becomes a way for the characters to avoid facing the reality of their own existence and the choices they have to make. By waiting for Godot, they can escape their own responsibilities and freedoms, and avoid having to make any real decisions about their lives.
In this way, the waiting for Godot can be seen as an example of "Bad Faith," where the characters are using the image of Godot as a way to hide from their own existence and the choices they have to make.
8). Explain:
"One hardly feels the absurdity of some things, on the one hand, and the necessity of those other things, on the other, (for it is rare that feeling of absurdity is not followed by the feeling of necessity), when one feels the absurdity of those things of which one had just felt the necessity(for it is rare that the feeling of necessity is not followed by the feeling of absurdity)"
This statement suggests that there is a constant flip-flop of feelings between the absurdity and necessity of things. The absurdity of something can quickly become necessary, and vice versa. The feeling of one is often followed by the feeling of the other, making it difficult to determine what is truly absurd or necessary. This highlights the subjective nature of our perceptions and how quickly they can change.
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