No Exit

Summary:

Three damned souls, Garcin, Inez, and Estelle are brought to the same room in hell by a mysterious
Valet. They had all expected medieval torture devices to punish them for eternity, but instead find a
plain room furnished in Second Empire style. None of them will admit the reason for their damnation:
Garcin says that he was executed for being a pacifist, while Estelle insists that a mistake has been
made.

Inez however, demands that they all stop lying to themselves and confess to their crimes. She
refuses to believe that they all ended up in the room by accident and soon realizes that they have
been placed together to make each other miserable. Garcin suggests that they try to leave each
other alone, but Inez starts to sing about an execution and Estelle wants to find a mirror. Inez tries to
seduce Estelle by offering to be her "mirror" and tell her everything she sees, but ends up frightening
her instead.

After arguing they decide to confess to their crimes so they know what to expect from each other.
Garcin cheated and mistreated his wife; Inez seduced her cousin's wife while living with them; and
Estelle cheated on her husband and drowned her illegitimate baby. Despite their revelations they
continue to get on each other's nerves. Garcin finally gives in to Estelle's attempts to seduce him,
driving Inez crazy. He begs Estelle to tell him he is not a coward for attempting to flee his country
during wartime. When Inez tells him that Estelle is just agreeing with him so she can be with a man,
Garcin tries to escape. The door suddenly opens, but he is unable to leave. He says that he will not
be saved until Inez has faith in him. She refuses, promising to make him miserable forever.
Forgetting that they are all dead, Estelle unsuccessfully tries to kill Inez, stabbing her repeatedly.
Shocked at the absurdity of his fate, Garcin concludes, "hell is other people."

Characters:

Garcin -  He is a journalist from Rio and the first to arrive in the room. He was shot by a firing squad
for attempting to desert during a war. He is also the best of the three prisoners at dealing with
damnation. He recognizes that the three of them have been grouped together to make each other
miserable and thinks that each of them should remain silent in their respective corners. He
continually tries to make peace with himself and the people he hurt during his lifetime. He does not
question his damnation, easily recalling how awful he had been to his wife. When given a chance to
leave, he chooses to stay, hoping to convince Inez that he is not a coward.

Inez -  A self-described "damned bitch," she is the second prisoner and also the most hostile. She
had been a postal clerk and thinks that she is in hell for seducing a friend's wife. Her lover killed
them both by leaving the gas on while Inez was asleep. She says that she does not like men and
instantly detests everything about Garcin. However, she finds Estelle very attractive and tries to
seduce her. She offers to be Estelle's "mirror," by describing her physical appearance, but ends up
frightening her instead. After laughing off Estelle's attempt to kill her with a paper-knife, she agrees
to let Garcin try and convince her that he is not a coward.
Estelle -  The third and final prisoner, she is also the most frightened. She desperately wants to see
her reflection in a mirror and swears that she does not belong in hell, having just died of pneumonia.
Inez tries to seduce her, but she says that she needs to be with a man. She eventually confesses to
not only having an affair, but also drowning the baby of her lover. Garcin is momentarily drawn to her
but chooses instead to focus all his energy on Inez. She tries to kill Inez, forgetting that they are all
already dead.

Valet -  A taciturn representative of the devil. He shows each prisoner to their room, answers their
questions, and promptly leaves. There is a call bell in the room but he doesn't always answer it.

Setting:

After death – a room in hell furnished in second empire style

Existentialism is primarily a reaction against the traditional philosophical idea to objective and
abstract understandings of human behavior. instead, existentialists choose to study individual
human beings who exist away of cultures, traditions, and laws. The setting of No Exit is thus the
perfect existentialist "laboratory" to study three separate individuals who are away from the world
and people they knew. Left in an empty room/cell their actions and feelings will thus define exactly
who they really are. The lack of mirrors amplifies this situation. Each person is given a choice: will
they define who they are on their own or rely on the each other to decide who they are? 

Themes:

Self deception:

Sartre brought the characters away from their world to define themselves truly, but the lie to each
other. He didn’t put any mirror to deceive, yet they deceived themselves. The three characters
refuse to admit their mistakes at the beginning of the play, yet Inez is the only one who later sees the
truth and asks them to face their mistakes and admit them.

Relation between existence and essence:

Related to Decartes concept “I think then I exist”, Sartre made his characters in a place away from
the world to question the idea of existentialism that’s why Estelle wants to see herself in a mirror to
make sure that she exists. Later Inez offers to be her mirror to define her essence. Estelle refuses
Inez’s description and she becomes frightened and tries to kill.

Bad faith:

Sartre’s characters refuse to admit their mistakes because they have bad faith in themselves. He
puts them in the same room, so everyone can define the other without providing a mirror. Estelle
refuses to admit that she really exists and asks for a mirror. Inez acts like a mirror to Estelle and
starts to define her, yet Estelle rejects Inez’s description because she has bad faith in herself. Even
Garcin wants Inez to confess that he isn’t coward but she refuses making him suffer. They can’t
stand gazing at each other because it steals their freedom.