Notes

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Waiting for Godot 2020 - Notes
grade 12 drama (Princeton High School)
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Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett
CONTENTS
1. Samuel Beckett
2. Genre & Style
3. Structure & Form
4. Plot
5. Themes
6. Language
7. Characters
8. Acting Style
9. Staging
Name: __________________________
10. Relevance
St Stithians Girls’ College Grade 11 Dramatic Arts 2019

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IRELAND DEPARTMENT OF ABSURD THEATRE

PLAYWRIGHT DETAIL INFORMATION
SAMUEL BECKETT
Life Span 1906 - 1989
Birth Place Ireland
Family Protestant Irish middle class
Attended the Anglo-Irish boarding school Portora Royal
School.
Studied French & Italian at Trinity College in Dublin.
Schooling Wrote poetry & essays after graduating.

Began lecturing at Trinity College at the age of 24. The
daily grind of university life got to him and he left after four
terms.
Completed his Master of Arts degree.
Travelled to London, France & Germany.
After WWII moved to Paris and began writing.
Was stabbed in a Paris street by an underworld character who had accosted him for
Experience
money, perforating his lung. When healed, he went to the perpetrator in prison and
asked him why, to which he responded <I do not know, Sir=.
1952: Wrote Waiting for Godot
Common Themes in his Writing
Questioning of existence: who am I? Questioning identity of the self.
An exploration of time. The futility of life.
The attempt to communicate where no
The illusion of friendship.
communication is possible.
Intentions
Because there were no absolute ethical or moral laws, man is helplessly adrift in a world that has
no apparent meaning or purpose; and is hence, absurd. Beckett sought to point out the emptiness
of daily life and the futility of existence.
Beckett intends to convey the chaos inherent in the universe but does not advance / offer any
solution for the dilemma other than to encourage each character to seek their own freedom.
The spectator of an absurdist play should not hope to glimpse any profound or 8meaningful9 truth at
first glance. Absurdism invites misinterpretation and distortion of the play scripts so that the
spectator is prompted to discover the identifiable or even recognisable only after long periods of
quiet reflection or introspective thought.
The Theatre of the Absurd has renounced arguing about the absurdity of the human condition; it
merely presents it in being – that is, in terms of concrete stage images. (Martin Esslin)
Characteristics of his Work
His characters are mainly tramps and wanderers. They are lonely/isolated and lack
motivation; emphasising the purposelessness.
His Style of
His use of silences as a metaphor for the void.
Writing
No logical plot which emphasises the monotony / repetitiveness of time.
Dialogue is merely inconsequential cliches.

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Farce and laughter are the tools used to convey serious issues.
Wrote his plays in French, and they were later translated. He did this to ensure
utmost clarity and economy of expression. <Writing remains a constant struggle=.
CLOWNING: The circus and Commedia dell9 Arte stock characters.
SILENT FILM: His characters usually appear in contrasting / paradoxical pairs 3 they
cross-talk, tumble and perform lazzi - all antics used by clowns and comics.
SURREAL LOGIC: We laugh as a stock response at the farcical nature of the
humour. But there is a question and a silence below the amusement. If the characters
Techniques
are not embarrassed, what is there to laugh at?
GALLOWS HUMOUR: His real interest is in the endless ways we devise to stave off
despair, the perverse energy we bring to the task of keeping going.
PHYSICAL HUMOUR: Usually crude (such as when a character drops his pants).
Vaudeville comedy is common.
If stage properties are used, they are usually symbolic.
Open staging; simple and empty. Inexpensive sets and props.
Staging Representative sets which reflects the irrationality of the world.
Specific stage directions.
Sound effects and intricate lighting used.
His Contribution to the Theatre
Tragic These works of theatre, in which nothing happens, are one of the greatest successes
Farces of post-war theatre in the 20th century.
Refusal to His refusal to conform to any accepted ideas of dramatic construction by creating his
Conform own style has influenced the work of many theatre practitioners e.g. Athol Fugard.
Quotes on Beckett
<…[Beckett] felt that habit and routine was the cancer of the time, social intercourse
a mere illusion, and the artist9s life, a life of solitude=.
<Beckett9s plays lack plot even more completely than other works of Theatre of the
Absurd. Instead of linear development, they present their author9s intuition of the
human condition by a method that is essentially polyphonic; they confront their
Martin
audience with an organised structure of statements and images that interpenetrate
Esslin
each other and that must be apprehended in their totality, rather like the different
themes of a symphony, which gain meaning by their simultaneous interaction.=
To exam his work as such is important and should <make it easier to follow the
author9s intention and to see, if not the answers to his questions, at least what the
questions are that he is asking.=
Beckett is an agnostic. "Even if God were to exist", says Beckett, "he would make
no difference: he would be as lonely and as enslaved, and as isolated as man is, in
a cold, silent, indifferent universe".
Beckett
Waiting For Godot is a play/poem about a world without any divinity, a world in
which man waits and hopes for something to give a meaning to his life and relieve
him of the absurdity of a death that will terminate all. But he waits in vain, and so our
life is as meaningless as our deaths=.

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<Beckett is the man who wrote a play which changed the whole of contemporary
Al Alvarez theatre. It was about two tramps waiting nowhere in particular for someone who
never shows up=.
GENRE & STYLE

PPT Slides 1 - 5
GENRE
"If a good play must have a cleverly constructed story, these have no story or plot to speak of; if a
good play is judged by subtlety of characterisation and motivation, these are often without
recognisable characters and present the audience with almost mechanical puppets; if a good play has
to have a fully explained theme, which is neatly exposed and finally solved, these often have neither
a beginning nor an end; if a good play is to hold a mirror up to nature and portray the manners and
mannerisms of the age in finely observed sketches, these seem often to be reflections of dreams and
nightmares; if a good play relies on witty repartee and pointed dialogue, these often consist in
incoherent babblings". Martin Esslin
<This is a play that is striving to avoid definition=. Peter Hall
Absurd plays cannot be grouped into a genre (like tragedy, comedy etc.) Theatre of the Absurd is
better understood in terms of its rejection of mainstream theatrical practices (as seen in Realism
for example); offering rather a form of theatre that exposes us to our existential dilemma. With no
accepted values, all mankind9s experience is equally serious and equally ludicrous; it is a tragic-
comedy. [ALSO SEE BLACK HUMOUR]
GENRE: A TRAGI-COMEDY IN TWO ACTS

Perhaps the easiest and the most difficult thing to experience clearly in WFG
is its sense of humour or the value of the comedy. It9s the easiest thing to
experience because once one accepts the play on its own terms; WFG is wildly funny.
But the play9s humour is also the hardest thing to experience because the reputation of Beckett9s play
has created another set of expectations 4 that its dark vision must be taken with utmost
seriousness. Beckett shows the disillusionment and meaninglessness of our lives as laughable and
absurd. Even our best attempts to pass the time are ridiculous. The only way to give meaning to our
8waiting9 is creating purpose but as soon as we9ve done it, it has lost meaning and has spiraled into
meaninglessness. Through comic games, the characters establish each other9s identity and pass the
time.
A quick look at the subtitle of the play reveals that Beckett called it <a tragi-comedy in two acts,= and
this delicate balance between tragedy and comedy is probably the most essential ingredient in the
play. Beckett was influenced by the work of music hall, vaudeville and silent film. The comic pathos
of Charlie Chaplin is an excellent visual to aid understanding of Beckett9s style.

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STYLE
Theatre of the Absurd is a term that refers both to the content - a
bleak vision of the human condition - and to the style that expresses
that vision. The idea that the human condition, which is one of
suffering that lacks meaning and purpose and that humans live in an
indifferent or hostile universe, is frequently associated with
existentialist writers (like the philosophers Camus and Sartre).
But when these two writers developed their ideas into novels and
plays, they generally used traditional literary techniques - that is, life-
like characters; clear, linear plots; and conventional dialogue. But with
writers like Beckett and Ionesco, the style is not an arbitrary choice
but rather a necessary complement to the vision itself.
Beckett, and those who adopted his style, insisted that to effectively
express the vision of absurdity one had to make the expression
itself seem absurd. In other words, the audience had to experience
what it felt like to live in an absurd world. Thus, the familiar and
comforting qualities of a clear plot, realistic characters, plausible
situations, and comprehensible dialogue had to be abandoned.
In their place, Beckett created a play where bizarre characters speak

in what sometimes appears to be illogical, banal, chit chat and where
events sometimes appear to change with no apparent logic. In WFG,
for example, this quality is embodied in its most extreme form in
Lucky9s monologue in Act One, where he demonstrates his <thinking.=
For two full pages of text, Lucky goes on like this: <I resume alas alas
on on in short in fine on on abode of stones who can doubt it I resume
but not so fast I resume the skull to shrink= (pg. 37).
Many of the play9s original audience members and critics probably

came to WFG expecting something more traditional than Lucky9s
speech and were not able to adjust to what they were confronted with.
Even today9s reader may need a gentle reminder about the
expectations when reading this play. Martin Esslin explains in The
Theatre of the Absurd, <Waiting for Godot does not tell a story; it
explores a static situation. 8Nothing happens, nobody comes,
nobody goes, it9s awful9 (pg. 41).=

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STYLE: COMIC MOMENTS
Numerous critics have pointed out that WFG is full of comic moments:
• Pratfalls, such as when Lucky falls with all of Pozzo9s bags.
• Music hall tricks, such as when Estragon loses his trousers.
• Classic vaudeville <bits=, like the wild swapping of hats in Act 2 or when Estragon
struggles to pull his boots off or put them on.
• Crude physical humour, such as when Estragon tells Pozzo to <Kick him (Lucky) in the
crotch= (pg. 75).
• Farce, such as Vladimir's way of walking, with stiff, short strides due to his bladder infection or
Estragon's limping due to his sore feet. Estragon's gestures of encouraging Vladimir to urinate
off-stage are also farcical. The most farcical situation in the play is the one where the tramps
are testing the strength of the cord with which they wish to hang themselves. The cord breaks
under the strain.
• Contradictions between what is said and done, such as the inaction at the end of Act 1 and
Act 2.
• Rapid speech of comedians such as this extract from Act 1:
ESTRAGON: [Anxious.] And we?

VLADIMIR: I beg your pardon?
ESTRAGON: I said, And we?
VLADIMIR: I don9t understand.
ESTRAGON: Where do we come in?
VLADIMIR: Come in?
ESTRAGON: Take your time.
VLADIMIR: Come in? On our hands and knees.
ESTRAGON: As bad as that?

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STYLE: BLACK COMEDY

Black Comedy is laughter that is generated by something truly painful. When we laugh at tragedy
or real suffering like death or the genuinely horrific, we are in the world of Black Comedy. In Endgame
Nell says, <Nothing is funnier than un-happiness.= Beckett leads us to laugh because it may be the
only viable response to extreme anxiety.
It is unlikely that an audience would laugh at this play the way we do with <classic= comedy. Often our
laughter at a comedy involves a feeling of release in response to the transgression of some rule of
social conduct acted out by the performer. This is not the kind of response Beckett tries to elicit. One
cannot have an uninhibited laugh at the absurd situation, for there is also something deeply
uncomfortable about it. Vladimir states: <I would laugh, if it wasn9t prohibited= (pg. **), referring to
his bladder infection, but it is an excellent example of black comedy.
Clowns are commonly associated with black comedy. Vladimir and Estragon have much in common
with clowns. Like clowns, they seem more 'performers' than characters, and their actions have more
the quality of a ritual than a real relationship between two people. Some of their behaviour is
distinctly clownish, such as the struggle with hats and boots, the falling over in Act 2, and the trousers
falling down, as well as the overall failure to achieve any aim, epitomised by, "Let's go (they do not
move)."
In this way Beckett has borrowed the 'tragicomic' pathos embodied in the circus clown to represent
the predicament of humans as he sees it. In the context of a circus, in which amazing feats are
performed, the clown represents the ordinary person who cannot do things such as walking a
tightrope, juggling, and lion-taming. Vladimir and Estragon can be seen as filling a parallel role in
relation to traditional humanist views of humans, as well as in relation to traditional views of what the
theatre, and characters in a play, ought to be. By using such characters Beckett borrows the
immediate simplicity and physicality of clowns, with the subsequent immediacy of
identification felt by the audience. This provides the core of the dramatic quality of WFG, which
holds our attention in spite of the fact that very little happens.

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Concept Existentialism Waiting for Godot

For a brief moment, Vladimir is aware of
We live a life of anguish because
the full horror of the human condition:
nothingness slips in between
<The air is full of our cries… But habit is a
ourselves, our past and our future,
great deadener=. He looks at Estragon,
which nullifies existence and purpose.
who is asleep, and reflects <At me too
Considering the influence of
someone who is looking, of me to
Nihilism, because there are no
someone who is saying, he is sleeping,
certainties, the individual must
he knows nothing, let him sleep on… I
fashion his/her own existence and
can9t go on!= The routine of waiting for
Futility and create his/her own meaning 3 but
Godot stands for habit, which prevents
with the knowledge that this meaning
Loss of us from ever reaching the painful but
is flexible, uncertain, changeable and
Belief fruitful awareness of the full reality of
in the end, meaningless.
being. Estragon, far less convinced of
God and morality are the chains
Godot9s promises than Vladimir, is
that cause most of the suffering in our
anxious to reassure himself that they are
existence. By throwing off these
not tied to Godot.
<chains=, people can see the beauty
E: I am asking you if we are tied.
in existence and this will make life
V: Tied?
more bearable. Each person is free
E: Tied. … (a few lines left out)
(because God is dead) and
V: But to whom? By whom?
responsible only to themselves.
E: To our man.
Human beings are subjects in a Godot himself is unpredictable in
heartless, cruel, often confusing, bestowing kindness and punishment.
and 8absurd9 universe in which The boy who is his messenger minds the
Pain and meaning is not provided by the goats, and Godot treats him well.
Death is natural order. All activities, either However, the boy9s brother, who looks
inevitable pleasurable or agonised, are after the sheep, is beaten by Godot.
designed to distract us from the one Pozzo: They give birth astride a grave,
reality which we know with absolute the light gleams an instant, then it9s night
certainty – our mortality. once more.
An important feature of the play is the
constant stress on the uncertainty of the
appointment with Godot, Godot9s
We are condemned because: our unreliability and irrationality, and the
freedom is a curse; we have not repeated demonstration of the futility of
created ourselves; we did not ask to the hopes pinned on him. Suicide is even
be born; we are responsible for considered by Vladimir and Estragon as a
Hope everything we do; we have to make possible other solution to waiting for
choices of action throughout our lives. Godot. However, Vladimir and Estragon
live in hope: They wait for Godot, whose
Camus9 essay on suicide as a coming will bring the flow of time to a
confession that life is too much. stop. <Tonight perhaps we shall sleep in
his place, in the warmth, dry, our bellies
full, on the straw. It is worth waiting for
that is it not?=

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People have a mutual dependence

they wish they could reject; they do The characters (Vladimir and Estragon;
not quite work together, but cannot Pozzo and Lucky) have a mutual
Mutual live apart. Presence is always, dependence they wish they could reject.
Dependence however, dependent on absence; They threaten to leave one another, but
the latter verifies the existence of the they <do not move=. See <CHARACTERS=
former because it is the very element for an in-depth look at this relationship.
which constitutes consciousness.
We keep ourselves busy to deny and
Brainless discussions about unimportant
avoid facing the meaninglessness
matters, nonsense phrases, repetitions,
of life, and we use diversions to
clichés, onomatopoeia, surrealist
Language escape boredom. People cannot
proverbs, nonsense use of foreign
communicate with words and so they
language, meaningless association of
are left isolated and helpless in a
words. See <LANGUAGE=.
chaotic universe.
Camus9 concept of nostalgia is evident in Waiting for Godot. The setting Beckett creates is simple
and desolate and could be seen as man9s struggle to find an existence full of meaning and sense. The
characters are far from discovering this and are therefore stuck waiting amidst nothing.
Vladimir: It9s indescribable. It9s like nothing. There9s nothing. There9s a tree.
STRUCTURE & FORM PPT Slides 6 - 9
INTRODUCTION
Perhaps more than any other dramatist, Beckett9s plays embody the absurdist vision and methods
in the dramatic and presentation elements. Beckett himself has pointed out that the form, structure
and mood of an artistic statement cannot be separated from its meaning. This is simply because
the work of art as a whole IS its meaning; what is said is linked to the manner in which it is said, and
cannot be said in other way.
REJECTION OF THE WELL-MADE PLAY

Beckett9s dramatic method is totally unlike that of 8traditional9 theatre, which, according to Aristotle,
had to have a beginning, middle and an end, in that order. Rather, Beckett gives only minimal
character and plot information, and what action there is comes to nothing. The play relies not on
forward movement but on the return of motifs that weave in and out of the work e.g. in WFG, the
phrase <we9re waiting for Godot= is repeated many times and even Vladimir states: <I begin to weary
of this motif= (pg. 76).
Thus, the play does not build to a climax in the traditional way 3 Beckett has replaced this
development with a repeated sequence of events containing their own logic and order. Its
fundamental mode is repetition. The identical sequence of events in each act reveals a pattern which
takes on a ritualistic quality. Nearly everything in Act 1 can be seen to have an echo or parallel in Act
2. There is no central conflict and no definite conclusion.

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PRACTICAL EXERCISE
<Fortunately / Unfortunately=
To explore the concept of circular form; let9s play the game <fortunately / unfortunately=. This
game deconstructs the 8absolutes9 that we expect and therefore, we laugh!
Fortunately (statement) ______________________________________________________

Unfortunately (counter-statement) ______________________________________________
Attempt four other statements and counter-statements with a partner.
STRUCTURE = FRAMEWORK Act 1: longer

• The play is divided into two acts of unequal length.
• There is no logical construction of a plot. The play dismisses all dramatic
convention and linear plot.
• There is no logical beginning or end. The play begins at an arbitrary in media
res and ends at an arbitrary point. There is no climax either; it is 8postponed9.
• The play ends where it begins 3 with Estragon trying to take off his boot.
Act 2: shorter
Each act also ends the same way. The play thus has an inconclusive ending.
FORM = ACTION WITHIN THE FRAMEWORK

• The action in the play is cyclical 3 the events of Act 2 repeat and parallel those of Act 1.
• Action in the play shows no logical pattern or progression expected in Aristotle9s unity of action.
• The central action in the play focuses on Vladimir and Estragon9s waiting; Vladimir: <waiting
for Godot, waiting for…waiting= (pg. 69). The secondary action concerns Pozzo and Lucky.
• Dramatic action moves forward by means of questions 3 everyone asks, Lucky answers.
• Instead of using linear progression to tell the story, the action builds spirally out of a set of
motifs/dominant ideas, which are grounded in actions or dialogue used to pass the time.
• In the construction of the dialogue, there is a structure of repetitions, similarities and parallels.
• The lack of motivation for the action forces the audience to come to the desired conclusions by
thinking beyond what they see on stage and to supply the meaning of the play from their
own subconscious. Why 8subconscious9? 3 Because you cannot use logic to grasp the meaning.
• The two acts consist of a series of incidents which are duplicated. As one critic remarked,
<Nothing happens, twice=. There are, however, important DIFFERENCES between the acts 3
differences which give the play meaning and resonance. Often the <repetition with a difference= is
a DEVICE for pointing out a contrast. The contrasts all demonstrate that the situation has
diminished / worsened between Act 1 and 2. For example:
1. At the end of each act, they are informed that Godot cannot come and see them. However,
the boy9s message in Act 1 is delivered in a rush but has to be dragged out of him in Act 2.
2. Both acts end with the same lines of dialogue, but spoken with reversed characters and the
punctuation is changed to slow down the final delivery.
3. The most dramatic difference is that Pozzo, confident and brash in Act 1, is changed into a
sightless decrepit in Act 2.

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PLOT PPT Slide 10 - 23
INTRODUCTION
All impression of logical construction, the rational linking of idea with idea within a reasonable
framework is abandoned, and instead the irrationality of experience is transferred onto the stage.
Thus, absurdist plays have no logical plot in any conventional sense.
The traditional beginning, middle and end suggests an ordered universe… this is of course rejected
by absurdists. The absence of plot also serves to reinforce the monotony and repetitiveness of
time and human affairs. There is free attitude towards time, which can expand and contract
according to the requirements of the playwright (see THEMES).
Action is minimal, circular and obeys no logical pattern. A plot or story-line is not developed 3
theme is 8embroidered9 and 8shown9 as different facets. The play does not tell a story; it merely
EXPLORES A STATIC SITUATION.
ACT 1 ACT 2
On a lonely country road, near a bare tree, two The next day, or perhaps not, the scene is
men are waiting for someone called Godot. The identical, except for the fact that the tree
two, Vladimir (Didi) and Estragon (Gogo), has sprouted a few leaves. Much the same
occupy the time as best they can. thing happens, except that when Pozzo and
Distraction arrives in the form of Pozzo and Lucky appear, Pozzo has gone blind and Lucky
his slave Lucky. A little later, a boy arrives, dumb. They also arrive later and leave earlier.
with the news that <Mr. Godot won’t come this The boy comes a second time, and reluctantly
evening, but surely tomorrow=. The boy delivers the same message as before. The sun
departs, night falls abruptly, and after briefly sets, the two men contemplate suicide, but
contemplating suicide by hanging themselves, without much determination. Despite their
the two men decide to leave, but do not move. agreement to leave, they make no movement.

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THEMES PPT Slides 24 - 31
INTRODUCTION
All the themes are concerned with human existence and the hostile universe humans find
themselves in. The themes are inter-related and are embedded in the content and structure.
1. THE HOSTILE CONDITION OF THE UNIVERSE

ACCENTUATES THE UNCERTAINTY OF MANKIND9S
EXISTENCE AND HIS <THE HABIT OF HOPING=
• The world is cold, silent and indifferent to man9s suffering. It is a
world of chaos, which is illogical, uncertain, cruel, and arbitrary.
There is, <Nothing to be done= (pg. 1). <One knows what to expect=
(pg. 31).
• The human condition is one of mystery, bewilderment, anxiety, and
despair and not being able to find meaning in existence. <I get used
to the muck as I go along= (pg. 13). <What are we doing here, that is
the question= (pg. 72).
• Man is trapped in his own human situation <Nothing happens,
nobody comes, nobody goes, it9s awful= (pg. 34).
• Man is shown to construct whatever fiction he needs to survive → the
<habit of hoping= (Esslin, M) keeps the tramps from <facing the
human condition and themselves in the harsh light of fully conscious
awareness=.
• Near the end of the play, Vladimir is about to realise that he has been
dreaming and must wake up and face the world as it is. For this
moment, <he is aware of the full horror of the human condition: 8The
air is full of our cries… but habit is a great deadener… I can9t go on!9
(pg. 83). The routine of waiting for Godot stands for habit, which
prevents us from reaching the painful but fruitful awareness of the full
reality of being=. <The act of waiting is an essential and characteristic
aspect of the human condition=.
• But the habit continues, as the boy arrives and rekindles their hopes
and <plunges them back into the passivity of illusion=. <We always
find something… to give us the impression we exist= (pg. 61).
• The hope of salvation is merely an evasion of the suffering and
anguish that comes from facing the reality of the human condition.
<Tomorrow everything will be better= (pg. 46).
• The discussion of the two thieves is a significant indicator of the
uncertainty of the hope of salvation. Beckett drew on this phrase:
<Do not despair: one of the thieves was saved. Do not presume: one
of the thieves was damned= (St Augustine).

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2. AWARENESS OF MAN9S MORTALITY AND WAITING
FOR DEATH.
• Man has lost all sense of value in this irrational, cruel, pointless
universe. <One daren9t laugh anymore= (pg. 3).
• Man seems to be simply waiting for the release from life, which
is what death brings.
• All the activities the characters participate in, whether pleasurable
or agonised, are designed to distract them from the one reality
which we know with absolute certainty - our mortality.
o None of the characters in Waiting for Godot shy away from
the fact that death is inevitable. In fact, death becomes at
times a solution for the inanity of daily life. The main
characters contemplate suicide as though it were as harmless
as a walk to the grocery store, probably because there's
nothing in their life worth sticking around for anyway.
o They ultimately do not commit suicide because they claim not
to have the means, but also because they are uncertain of
the result of their attempt (it may work, it may fail). Because
they can't be sure of what their action will bring, they decide
on no action at all. The appeal of hanging isn't that it would
bring death, but rather that it's something to do during the
eternal wait. The men are unable to comprehend the
consequence of such an action.
o In the meantime, the individual may find certain
circumstances in which he may do something helpful, such
as when Vladimir and Estragon help Pozzo off the ground, or
he may conclude that there is nothing to be done as is often
repeated after action.
o The individual may protest when he sees instances of
cruelty, such as Pozzo9s treatment of Lucky, or he may get
rid of his rights, as Estragon claims they have done.
o The individual may wait in hope of salvation (see previous
theme) or they may plan to commit suicide, such as the plan
to hang themselves. <No, nothing is certain= (pg. 47).
• The existentialists do not accept the idea of an after-life 3 so
this mortality takes on an even greater meaning.
• Pozzo states this theme most clearly in his speech in Act 2; <They
give birth astride a grave, the light gleams an instant and then its
night once more= (pg. 82).
• The mound, some people argue, is a symbol of a grave.

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3. TIME IS A MAN-MADE CONVENIENCE THAT IS BOTH ETERNAL AND
AIMLESS IN ITS CONTINUITY, BUT IT ALSO PASSES BY SUDDENLY.
• Man needs to feel a connection between today and yesterday to feel a sense of certainty. Time
gives us the structure we need to feel this connection and make meaning. Vladimir repeats the
line; <Will night never come= (pg. 26 and 29) 3 the consistency of time passing is most evident in
the coming of night.
• But, in the play WFG, time is like a prison; keeping the characters bound within a place; <Time
has stopped= (pg. 29).
• One day is the same as another, and when we die, we might never have existed. The myth of
Sisyphus is evident here.
o This is evident in the cyclical structure of the play.
o Everyone is caught in a cyclical prison of birth, life and death. At the beginning of Act 2,
Vladimir9s reaction to their reunion conveys this reduction: <[Joyous] There you are again…
[Indifferent] There we are again… [Gloomy] There I am again= (pg. 50).
• After Pozzo and Lucky9s exit in Act 1, Vladimir comments that their interaction <passed the time=
to which Estragon replies <it would have passed in any case= (pg. 41):
o In the act of waiting, we experience the flow of time in its most obvious form. In other
words, we are confronted with the action of time itself, which is constant change. And yet, as
nothing significant ever happens, that change is also an illusion. The more things change, the
more they are the same. Thus, the continual activity of time is self-defeating and purposeless.
Pozzo states; <For each one who begins to weep, somewhere else stops. The same is true of
the laugh.= (pg. 25)
o However, if we are active, we tend to forget the passage of time. Hence, the two tramps
choose to engage in various activities and dialogue to do just that. The characters9 <pastimes=
are designed to stop them from thinking: Vladimir; <We9re in no danger of thinking anymore…
thinking is not the worst… what is terrible is to have thought= (pg. 55). Thus, they talk
incessantly to avoid hearing <the voices that explore the mysteries of being and the self=
(Esslin, M), the voices that explore man9s limits of anguish and suffering. The lyrical musical
hall, cross-talk dialogue on page 54 reflects this avoidance and reference. It concludes with
Vladimir9s cry in anguish to <Say anything at all!=. This leads to comic pathos.
• Pozzo9s final outburst summarises this theme quite succinctly: <Have you not done tormenting
me with your accursed time? … One day, is that not enough for you, one day like any other day
he went dumb, one day I went blind, one day we9ll go deaf, one day we were born, one day we9ll
die, the same day, the same second… They give birth astride of a grave, the light gleams an
instant, then it9s night once more= (pg. 82).
• Still, the characters live in hope that Godot9s arrival will bring an end to their waiting and the
flow of time to a stop. <They are hoping to be saved from the evanescence and instability of the
illusion of time= (Esslin, M), and that is why 8They do not move9 (pg. 87). But the act of waiting for
Godot is shown as essentially absurd because of the uncertainty of the appointment with Godot,
and Godot9s unreliability, irrationality and even cruelty, such as his treatment of the boy who
minds the sheep.

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LANGUAGE
PPT Slides 32 - 37
INTRODUCTION
<Beckett says that he began to write in French because he wanted to get away from his mother
tongue; writing in English somehow made it come too easy. The French language offered greater
clarity and forced him to think more fundamentally, to write with greater economy=.
Herbert Mitgang 1981, Interview with Beckett
En attendant Godot / Waiting for Godot: A tragi-comedy in two acts by Samuel Beckett was first
written in French between 1948 and 1949. Esslin believes that Beckett wrote in French to ensure
<his writing remained a constant struggle, a painful wrestling with the spirit of language itself=.
GENERAL APPROACH TO LANGUAGE IN THEATRE OF THE ABSURD

Language is traditionally seen as a tool for communication. The philosophy of absurdist drama stems
from the belief that human beings cannot communicate. This led to the abandonment of the dramatic
form and coherent dialogue; the futility of existence often being conveyed by illogical and meaningless
speeches, and ultimately by complete silence. Non-verbal language is also seen as a form of
communication on stage.
Even though we will dissect Becket9s use of language, it is important to remember that Beckett is
<interested in the shape of ideas even if I do not believe in them… that sentence has a wonderful
shape. It is the shape that matters=. In other words, we need to look at the play as <polyphonic;
the statements and images that interpenetrate each other must be apprehended in their totality, rather
like the different themes of a symphony which gain meaning by their simultaneous interaction= (Esslin,
M). WFG has a number of stylistic features which reinforce Beckett9s ideas.
STYLISTIC FEATURE 1: LANGUAGE IS MEANINGLESS

• The approach to language in the play shows that language is not equipped to express
knowledge or define meaning.
• The dialogue seems to be an onslaught of language, showing language to be an insufficient
tool of communication. Dialogue is shown to be pointless, incongruous and futile. This is most
evident in the use of non sequiturs, where one line of dialogue does not follow what went before.
Pozzo: I9ve lost my Kapp and Peterson.
Estragon: [Convulsed with merriment] He9ll be the death of me! (Pg. 28)
• This illogical thought offers intoxicating freedom; it brings one into contact with the essence
of life and is a source of marvellous comedy. Thus, Beckett uses comedy to show how ridiculous
and foolish our daily behaviour is when we are attempting to find meaning in a world that has
none. We can only laugh at our own ridiculous attempts to feel important.
• In some of the arrangements of words and sentences there is no apparent grammatical order,
tenses are often not in agreement and there is <a radical devaluation of language= (Esslin).
•

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STYLISTIC FEATURE 1: LANGUAGE IS MEANINGLESS

• Lucky9s speech, for example, is a jumble of words that are
grammatically incoherent. From this torrent of words, one could draw
one, central sentence:
<Given the existence… of a personal God… who… loves us dearly… and
suffers… with those who… are plunged in torment plunged in fire… (while
at the same time having neither sensitivity to human suffering nor power to
relieve that suffering and sometimes even causing torment) and who can
doubt… which even though intermittent1 is better than nothing… and… that
man is seen to waste and pine… for reasons unknown= (despite supposed
intellectual and physical progress, humankind wastes and pines).
• The characters also create words in a vain attempt to communicate,
such as the words in Lucky9s speech. The text is enriched with made-up
terms as <waggerrim= (pg. 24) and <tray bong= (pg. 31), and the word
<Crritic (pg. 67) used as an expletive.
• Biblical references are used throughout the play 3 but verses are often
misquoted or inappropriately used to highlight the fact that man is out of
harmony with religion in this chaotic world.
•
STYLISTIC FEATURE 2: LANGUAGE IS POETIC
• Beckett uses language9s melodic, rhythmical and associative potential 3 as well as silence 3 to
produce poetic dialogue whose meaning lies not in its content as much as its shape. The play
juxtaposes sequences of extremely brief and simple exchanges consisting of puns, clichés, and
slang with moments of highly elaborate or poetic language to pass the time or torment other
characters. The sudden change in language style also breaks the mood of the moment.
Immediately after a touching moment of intimacy between the tramps the mood is broken by a
coarse reference such as <You stink of garlic= (pg. 9).
• Absurd dramatists pride themselves in the precision of language construction in their plays;
achieving their own unique poetry and rhythm. Beckett uses language masterfully but devalues it
by saying it no longer serves the purpose of communication. The meaningless conversations
between characters are a form of escape from the tedium of life.
• The question and answer technique used in the passage below is used often throughout the
play. Nearly every line echoes or contradicts the previous line. The shape and melody of the
dialogue is poetic.
VLADIMIR: (hurt, coldly). May one enquire where His Highness spent the night?
ESTRAGON: In a ditch.
VLADIMIR: (admiringly). A ditch! Where?
ESTRAGON: (without gesture). Over there.
VLADIMIR: And they didn9t beat you?
ESTRAGON: Beat me? Certainly they beat me.
VLADIMIR: The same lot as usual?
ESTRAGON: The same? I don9t know.

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STYLISTIC FEATURE 3: RITUALISTIC QUALITY OF
LANGUAGE
• The use of repetitions, greetings and pleasantries lends a ritualistic
quality to the play. This reinforces the sense of aimless continuity;
the situation seems to have been going on forever without
changing.
• This illusion of progress without any forward movement is carried
further using word games and cross-talk; they pass the time
without gaining on it. The cross-talk of music halls is even explicitly
stated:
V: Charming evening we9re having.
E: Unforgettable.
V: And it9s not over.
E: Apparently not.
V: It9s only the beginning.
E: It9s awful.
V: It9s worse than being at the theatre.
E: The circus.
V: The music hall.
E: The circus.
• The use of circular and repetitious form reinforces the existential
attitudes of the characters. Just as Estragon repeats 8rustle9 and
8leaves9 in the passage below, other statements such as <Nothing
to be done= (pgs. 1, 4, 14) and <We9re waiting for Godot= (pgs. 6,
59, 77) are continually echoed word for word, or in variations,
throughout the play. The repetitive style of the dialogue, the stage
directions and the cyclical action, are an integral part of the play9s
<structure of repetitions=. As the play progresses, so is the
dialogue reduced and simplified (see next point).
VLADIMIR: Rather they whisper.
ESTRAGON: They rustle.
VLADIMIR: They murmur.
ESTRAGON: They rustle.
[Silence].
• The stage directions also reinforce such existential attitudes with
Estragon speaking 8despairingly9 (pg. 8) and 8violently9 (pg. 12);
Pozzo 8sobbing9 (pg. 35).
• The main exceptions to the <structure of repetitions= are the
occasional speeches about the reality of man9s condition.
These speeches are unusually forceful. The style of all three is very
different to the 8habitual9 superficial comments of the characters.
(a) Lucky9s tirade (pgs. 36 - 38)
(b) Pozzo9s outbursts about the brevity of life (pgs. 30 3 31 & 82)
(c) Vladimir9s final speech (pgs. 83)

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STYLISTIC FEATURE 4: SILENCE AND
SIMPLICITY AS PART OF THE LANGUAGE
• The economical use of language means that any word
that is not essential to communicate the playwright9s
intentions is eliminated.
• The frequent use of pauses and silences isolates words;
just as space isolates the characters. Silence makes the
audience aware of infinity and points to where language
is useless in expressing ultimate feeling.
• Speech often occurs because silence is unbearable. To
say anything (which is to say nothing) is better than the
embarrassment of silence. V: Say anything at all!
• Simplicity of the line underlines the starkness of the
situation.
• The questions in the play make up 24% of the utterances
and the replies only 12%. Many of the questions end in a
full stop which implies that no answer is expected.
STYLISTIC FEATURE 5: COMIC STICHOMYTHIA

• Stichomythia is a technique in drama or poetry, in which alternating lines are given to
alternating characters. Stichomythia is particularly well suited to sections of dramatic dialogue
where two characters are in violent dispute.
• The rhythmic intensity of the alternating lines combined with quick, biting ripostes (a quick /
witty response) in the dialogue can be powerful. The cross-talk is simple, rapid and direct.
• Characters follow their own train of thought, and what seems to be a conversation is a set of
parallels or monologues. As an audience member, we don9t have time to contemplate or digest
what is being said but are hit with the punch-line while trying to keep up with the two speakers. It
does not matter which character says what and it is interchangeable because it is the total
impression that affects the audience.
E: What am I to say?
V: Say, I am happy.
E: I am happy.
V: So am I.
E: So am I.
V: We are happy.
E: We are happy. [Silence]. What do we do know, now that we are happy?
V: Wait for Godot, if only you knew it.
SO WHY SPEAK AT ALL?

The characters are waiting for hope. To pass the time until it arrives (or doesn9t considering the hostile
world they find themselves in) they engage in menial conversation and arbitrary action (pg. 41).

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CHARACTERS PPT Slide 38 - 43
INTRODUCTION
<Beckett seemed to wonder why everyone tried to make it so complicated. Godot is not God otherwise
he would have said as much and there is no more to know about the characters in the play than
Beckett has written 3 if there was more, he would have put it in the play=.
The Life of Samuel Beckett: Damned to Fame – the authorised biography by James Knowlson
STOCK CHARACTERS / ARCHETYPES

• They are stock characters / archetypes - they represent
abstractions of human attitudes and do not represent any
person as much as Everyman in general. They are exaggerated
to intensify their futile situation. For example: Vladimir and
Estragon are the wandering tramps with nowhere to go. Lucky
and Pozzo reflect the master / slave universal duality
• They are non-specific and universal characters. Vladimir:
<all mankind is us= (pg.72)
• The TYPE of characters Beckett uses come from:
o Vaudeville (comic play with songs and dances),
o Music Hall (plays that consisted of a variety of singing,
dancing and comic acts),
o Silent Film (mutual dependence of Laurel and Hardy and
the comic pathos)
EXISTENTIAL HEROES
• <The existential (absurdist) hero is one who is persistent and perseveres in carrying on in a
meaningless and hostile world <(Camus). The characters of absurd drama are existential 3 they
have no personal history. In fact, they are often unrecognisable 3 almost like mechanical puppets.
For this reason, the characters are at a distance from the audience as their motives are hidden;
therefore, we cannot understand their actions.
• These characters lack the motivation found in realistic drama which emphasises their
purposelessness.
• None of the characters are given personal histories and do not confront their past. They live
from moment to moment in hope of the 8help9 Godot represents.
• Waiting for Godot contains seven characters: Godot, Vladimir, Estragon, Pozzo, Lucky, a boy and
his brother. Except for Godot and the brother of the boy who keeps the goats, each character
appears in both acts of the play, at the same place, at the same time, on two days.
• The difference between these two days is extremely significant. The characters in WFG are not
simply characters that react to one another. They react to the influence of time; be this in their
inability to distinguish one day from another (pg. 52), their habitual means of passing the time (pg.
41), or the way in which they may be transformed from one day to the next by <chance= (pg. 51).

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PARADOXICAL PAIRS
• The characters in WFG come in contrasting / paradoxical
pairs: each half of the pair needs the other person to exist;
the characters complement each other because individually
they are a fragmented mass of human traits, but together
they make a complete whole. The characters cannot live
together and often say they want to leave each other but
cannot be separated either as they are dependent on each
other.
• There is always a double act in Beckett9s plays: this
technique is taken from Vaudeville. The complimentary pairs
(ying-yang) create a comic duo; where humour is created
because of the uneven and contrasting relationship. The two
personalities play off each other and this interchange results
in comic moments. In WFG, the cross-talk and physical gags
between Vladimir and Estragon create a comic rhythm, as if
they were an old married couple.
• The relationships between Beckett9s pairs of characters are
based on habit. The characters are imprisoned in the
situation; their freedom is restricted by the choices they make
3 or lack of choices they make! The characters represent
man, waiting for Godot (whatever it is that will save them from
this situation) without knowing who he is. This creates
uncertainty 3 they are living out a universal experience.
Vladimir (Didi: 8to do9) Estragon (Gogo: 8to go9)

Wandering Tramps who have known each other for 50 years
Physical Attributes:
Has stinking breath (garlic) Has stinking feet (shoes)
Straight and tall Bent over and shorter
Has a bladder infection Has sore feet
The intellect (rational): The body (intuitive & quick-tempered):
• [He reflects] & [deep in thought] (pg. 3) • Was a poet, as he describes the maps of the
• <What are we doing here, that is the Holy Land to Vladimir (pg. 4).
question= (pg. 72). • He often experiences great difficulty in
• He remembers what Estragon forgets <He expressing himself in words, using gestures
said by the tree= (pg. 6). instead of words, referring to himself with a
• Hates dreams 3 does not want to hear about <gesture towards his rags= (pg. 4).
Estragon9s dreams (he calls them • Towards the end of the play, Estragon finds
nightmares). <Don9t tell me= (pg. 8). he cannot communicate his feelings either in
• Likes things as he gets used to them. <I get words or gestures, and simply offers <wild
used to the muck as I go along= (pg. 13). gestures, incoherent words= (pg. 82).
• Neurotic, such as his panic when he thinks • Loves to dream, but Vladimir keeps waking
he hears Godot arriving on pg. 12. him. <Why will you never let me sleep= (pg. 8)

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Hopes that Godot will come – relatively Doubts that Godot will come - pessimistic
optimistic: • Although he tries to find peace by falling
• He is consoled by the fact that one of the asleep, he is constantly [Restored to the
thieves crucified with Christ was saved, horror of his situation] (stage direction on pg.
finding this <a reasonable percentage= (pg. 3) 8) - to a state of mental anguish.
• Assures Estragon that <Tomorrow everything • As a result, he finds that life gets increasingly
will be better= (pg. 46) and if Godot arrives, worse. <Funny, the more you eat the worse it
<We9ll be saved= (pg. 87). gets= (pg. 13).
Is vulnerable and gets beaten up (by a
Protector (protects Estragon):
gang):
• It seems that Vladimir once saved Estragon9s
• <Beat me? Certainly they beat me (pg. 1).
life, fishing him out of the river Rhone (pg. 47).
• Relies on Vladimir to remember for him (has
• Sympathises with Estragon9s habitual
no memory beyond what is immediately said
physical discomforts. He [tenderly] offers to
to him) (pg. 7).
carry Estragon when his leg hurts. (pg. 25)
• Considers if it would be better if they parted,
and displays great consideration for the
but after considering it believes <It9s not
sleeping Estragon when he sings him a lullaby
worthwhile now= (pg. 47). But as Vladimir
and [gets up softly, takes his coat and lays it
states; <You always say that, and you always
across Estragon9s shoulders] (pg. 62).
come crawling back= (pg. 53).
The tragedy of their relationship is that they may be better off without each other. They are
happier alone, but continue their relationship without knowing why. Most people can relate to this
sentiment, and furthermore, to how painful it is to see the better option and to choose the worst.
Vladimir and Estragon state that they do not know why they do not control themselves; however,
it seems to be a matter of familiarity. As human beings, we 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.

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Pozzo Lucky
Master / slave duality who have known each other for 60 years
The master (oppressor):
The slave (oppressed):
• Beckett saw Pozzo <as an English country
• Beckett envisioned Lucky as a porter, with
gentleman farmer, carrying a case of wine
the short grey jacket and black cap worn by
bottles, wearing… a beautiful necktie,
workers in Paris railway stations.
bowler hat and gleaming leather riding
• Beckett is reported to have explained
boots= & <as a kind of mass of flesh=, with a
Lucky9s name with the comment, <I suppose
<fat voice=.
he is Lucky to have no more expectations=,
• A landowner, more than likely the land
which seems true that Lucky expects very
Vladimir and Estragon are on; <Here? On my
little. At most, he simply awaits Pozzo9s
land= (pg. 16) and likely a capitalist.
orders and kicks strangers, such as when he
• He owns Lucky and intends to sell him at the
[kicks Estragon violently in the shins] (pg.
fair <where (he) hopes to get a good price for
25).
him. The truth is you can9t drive such
• He is tied to Pozzo: literally by the rope
creatures away. The best thing would be to
around his neck, and figuratively in that
kill them= (pgs. 24 - 25).
Pozzo provides Lucky with a clear station in
• He doesn9t though, which is probably
life.
because Pozzo needs Lucky to carry his
• He is the suppressed and the poor and is
baggage and to carry out his orders.
treated by Pozzo as an animal; <pig=, who
• Arrogant, wise, self-indulged; using his
must think and dance for his entertainment.
vaporizer overtime he needs to <speak=.
Represents the mind:
• Is capable of thinking once his hat is on his
Represents the body:
head. Lucky9s incoherent <tirade= (pgs. 36-
• In the first act, he is a very commanding 37) exemplifies the difficulties that the
figure, both in terms of his social position and characters experience when attempting to
in terms of his physical stature (see above). express themselves verbally.
• Represents the idea that the appetites of the • Taught Pozzo all the higher values of life:
body are superior to the intellect. <beauty, grace, truth of the first water= (pg.
26)
Is dominated:
Needs to dominate to feel powerful:
• Lucky9s first utterance is a [terrible cry] (pg.
• His commanding nature is exemplified by his
14). Once on stage, Lucky assumes the
first utterances: the orders <On!=, <Back!= and
attitude of 8one sleeping on his feet9. The
<Be careful!= (pg. 14)
stage directions specify: [Lucky sags slowly,
• Spoken in a [terrifying voice], his first
until bag and basket touch the ground, then
communication to Vladimir and Estragon is
straightens up with a start and begins to sag
the proud assertion, <I am Pozzo!= (pg. 14)
again] (pg. 18)
• He represents man in all his superficial and
• Lucky is characterised by a cyclical routine
shortsighted optimism and illusory feeling of
in which he is forever 8sagging9 then
power and permanence.
8straightening up9.
Change in Act 2
Becomes blind: Becomes dumb:

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• One of Pozzo9s characteristics is to illustrate • He has finally been silenced (like the attempt
the general principle that man9s condition, of the other characters in the first Act).
and changes in man9s condition, are to a • He is mute to protest against his ill-treatment.
large extent the consequence of chance
rather than of man9s decisions and actions.
• His becoming blind cannot be explained and
does not need to be.
• One could insinuate Pozzo is 8blind9 to what
is happening around him.
Although in stark contrast to each other, Pozzo and Lucky have one thing in common: they are
both driven by a desperate attempt to evade the panic which would grip them if they lose each
other. Lucky deserves his name because he has a master who, however cruelly, organises his
life for him. His thinking has deteriorated into the endless repetition of meaningless words.
Pozzo is a gruesome product of the modern age. He expresses subjective feelings and responses
and sometimes indulges in self-pity but represses his fears with narcissistic pomposity: <Do I look
like a man who can be made to suffer?= But deeply hidden under the mask of hardness there lies
an unconscious nostalgia for lost values. In Lucky, on the other hand, we can see the
destroyed contact with the creative sources of the psyche. It becomes evident in the course
of the play that Lucky takes it for granted that only within the pattern of a mutual sadomasochistic
relationship between himself and Pozzo can there be any safety for him.

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Godot The Boy & his Brother

• This central character remains off-stage
• Very little is known about Godot: The Boy thinks that he has a white
beard (pg. 85); reports that he <does nothing= for a living (pg. 84);
and reveals that he does not beat him, although he does beat his
brother who <minds the sheep= (pg. 44)
• Vladimir hopes to be saved by Godot (pg. 87); and while claiming • Almost nothing is
that he and Estragon are not <tied= to Godot <for the moment= (pg. known of these two
13), realises that if they ignored Godot <He9d punish us= (pg. 86). characters.
• He also tells Estragon that Godot <didn9t say for sure he9d come= • All we know is that
(pg. 6) Godot beats the
• Since Godot never arrives, and very little else is discovered about shepherd but not his
him, he remains an extremely vague character. brother who keeps the
• Godot is the character that the tramps focus on to get through the goats.
waiting; he is the 8something9 which they wait for because they • The Boy has a bad
believe his arrival will make a difference to their lives. He has the memory, and cannot
power to make a difference to the waiting 3 it gives them meaning remember meeting
in a meaningless world. Vladimir (pg. 84)
• NB: it is pointless to search for the 8identity9 of Godot; there is no
hidden allegory. He is the person the tramps wait for to give
meaning to their lives. The ebb and flow of the uncertainty 3 from
the hope of discovering his identity to its repeated disappointment
3 are themselves the essence of the play.

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ACTING STYLE PPT Slides 44 - 48
INTRODUCTION
The actor preparing for a role in an Absurd play should consider the theoretical foundation upon
which such a performance is created; that man is utterly alone in this temporal world and that he
must, as a consequence of this isolation, create his own world and his own set of values. The ideal
world that the characters search for, but never attain, is one where each person may exist as his
own sanctuary, his own peaceful retreat from the universe of 8others9 that represents disarray and
disorder.
Vladimir and Estragon want to be alone <There are times when I wonder if it wouldn9t be better for us
to part= (pg. 8) and to be independent from one another. But they cannot leave one another because
they need each other to feel real (to exist); this is because of the hostile environment these characters
find themselves in.
PLAYING THE STYLE

In playing a character from an Absurdist play, one must
remember that the playwright does not provide much
background information or history for the character. An
actor should rather attempt to visualise the images
suggested in the selected scene. An example of such an
image could be the physical / mental / emotional distance
between the characters which conveys the sense of alienation
man experiences between himself and the world.
The theatrical tricks of circus clowns and the slapstick

comedian should be considered by the actor in preparing for
a role. However, he/she must look beyond the obvious broad
humour of such physical performance antics in order to see
the perplexing ambiguity of the character i.e. the seriousness
behind the humour to achieve a sense of comic pathos.
The following theatrical techniques can be considered

for an Absurdist performance:
• The concept of puppets, masks and robots: these
visually demonstrate the dehumanisation and
automation of mankind.
• The use of sound effects, foreign languages and
inventive vocabularly: to demonstrate that language
has lost its ability to communicate effectively.
• The use of music and fragmented set pieces: to
clearly objectify the separation of man from his
environment.

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PERFORMANCE PRINCIPLES
The creative demands of absurdism on an actor can be achieved through the following principles of
performance:
1. Acting is a series of actions/activities
- Movements are circular, executed with urgency as if the characters might achieve something.
- Movements are performed with a sense of heightened energy and with great precision.
- When the action is completed, it is followed by stillness and bursts of activity are often
followed by complete collapse.
- The business consists of children9s games performed with innocent enthusiasm.
- Actions are performed with hyper-concentration.
2. Acting has a ritulistic quality
- The performance has a ritualistic quality because of the repetitive and rhythmic quality of the
acting.
- Actors perform gags and comic routines with ritualistic seriosness as if it has universal
significance like primitive rituals.
3. Verbal rythms
- Movement needs to support the verbal rhythms (because dialogue is repetitive and
meaningless).
- Language should not be approached as if it were naturalistic speech, but rather as a poetic
structure.
4. Physical Comedy
- Vladimir has a comic walk and a comic disability that makes him rush off to pee in the wings
each time he is made to laugh.
- Lucky has elaborate comic business with all the things he has to carry, dropping them, picking
them up and putting them down.
- Estragon9s pained feet force him to hobble about the stage.

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PLAYING THE PERFORMANCE
These practical exercises are taken from the Externally Set Integrated Task: Part A 2009
1. Build a Body – Stock Characters

• Spread out to fill the floor space. Follow the instructions below (your teacher will call them out):
(a) Walk in curved lines
(b) Walk in straight lines and turn with sharp corners
(c) Walk as if the ceiling is very low
(d) Walk as if there is a rope attached to the top of your head pulling you upwards
• Do all these exercises (a - d) at different speeds.
• Walk randomely again, and imagine a piece of rope is attached to the following body parts (your
teacher will call them out):
(i) Nose, (ii) Chin, (iii) Chest, (iv) Stomach, (v) Knees
• Break into groups of two. Each learner must try different body parts which lead their whole body
into the space, whilst the other learner suggests possible characters who might move like that.
Swap roles.
• Adapt more body parts and your posture to enlarge the physicality of the suggested character
type you have been working with. Ensure that the character types for you and your partner are
different.
• Exchange the following lines of dialogue with your partner as the characters you have created.
Find a voice to suit your character.
A Have you seen the landing of the yellow earthworm?
B My grandmother felt it in her bones.
A It was a bad, bad landing.
B Sticks and stones might break her bones but worms will never harm her.
2. A Double Act
• Get into a new pair. Face each other and count aloud (1, 2, 3 etc) alternating with each other:
A One
B Two
A Three
B Four
A One
B Two etc.
• When you have accomplished this, add a problem. Instead of saying <two=, replace the word
with a sound. Then try insert a physical gesture instead of saying <three=. Add as many
8problems9 as you can up until 4 and then repeat.
A One
B (whistle)
A (star jump)
B (anything)
A One
B (whistle)
A (star jump)
B (anything)

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STAGING PPT Slides 49 - 72
SPACE
Before one looks at the staging of WFG, one should consider the symbolism of space in an
Absurdist play. For Absurd theatre, the term space has more than the usual significance. The absurd
is occupied with a sense of nothingness, emptiness, and void - space itself becomes a concrete fact:
no matter what is put in it, an all-embracing sense of vacuum is the true environment of the play.
The staging emphasises the importance of objects and the overall visual experience; the role of
language is relatively secondary. The Theatre of the Absurd is aiming to create ritual-like, symbolic
vision, closely related to the world of dreams. One of the essential qualities of the absurd is a double
sense of space as both infinite (an overpowering sense of nothingness) and totally confining (we
feel as prisoners in our existence).
SET
Beckett keeps the set simple: a road; a single tree (which at the start of the play is bare but by the
second act has leaves) and a mound. The scene is timeless and can exist anywhere. The incredible
irony is that the characters are stagnating on a road instead of traveling on it. Beckett9s set projects
mental conditions in the form of visual metaphors. His setting may also be seen as symbolic of a
modern wasteland.

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LIGHTING
The lighting should be used to indicate mood and atmosphere and not
the 8time of day9 (i.e. realistic). Subtle changes in colour reflect the
changing moods (represented in the dialogue).
COSTUME
The costumes used are non-specific; the concept of 8tramp9 is interpreted
by each director. Generally, however, this incorporates baggy, torn
clothing. The bowler hats are used as symbolic props.
SET / PROP SYMBOLISM

• Relates to Myth of Sisyphus 3 the continuous struggle we go through daily; a habit
that is draining but ultimately meaningless.
The Mound
• The mound could also represent a grave (from cradle to grave) and constantly
reminds us of death and man9s mortality.
• Suggests the possibility of movement 3 to or from some place.
• The characters could be at a 8crossroads9; which suggests they need to make
The Road decisions.
• There is no beginning or end to the road; as if we have found the characters
midstream in their lives (suspended in reality).
• The moon is a symbol of time 3 time is a man-made convenience that measures
our movement through life and it provides us with a sense of security. But time
The Moon
can pass by in a flash or drag by slowly 3 it cannot be measured 8accurately9.
• Cyclical nature of the world.
• The tree grows leaves from Act 1 to Act 2, representing the passing of time. The
leaves could also be a message of hope (time has passed and tomorrow may be
more successful than today).
• It is also seen as a way out for Vladimir and Estragon 3 to hang themselves from.
• It could be the only symbol of life in the barren wasteland but doesn9t provide
any 8fruit9 for the characters.
• The tree has also been described as having existential significance 3 that of a
vertical axis (a solitary human) on a horizontal plane (a flat wasteland).
• Vladimir and Estragon are trapped in a kind of philosophical wasteland, and
they are rooted to the site of the tree. It is the spot where they were told to meet
The Tree
Godot, and it therefore represents their salvation in an oblique way. Yet their first
reference to the tree immediately calls its symbolism into question. They argue
about what kind of tree it is, why it has no leaves, and finally whether or not it is
even a tree to begin with:
Estragon: Looks to me more like a bush.
Vladimir: A shrub.
Estragon: A bush.
Vladimir: A -. What are you insinuating? That we've come to the wrong place?
• Not only do the characters question whether the tree represents the site of their
salvation; they also question its very existence as a tree.

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• Worn by Vladimir, Estragon and Pozzo. When Lucky wears the hat, he is free to
The Bowler 8speak his mind9 (even though it is gibberish).
Hats • The hats are costumes inspired by Vaudeville and Silent Film, and when Estragon
and Vladimir swop them around, it creates a comic act that passes the time.
• The rope is tied around Lucky9s neck (like an animal) and held by Pozzo
symbolising enslavement.
The Rope
• Estragon and Vladimir also want to use the rope to hang themselves, thus
representing a way out from their suffering.
• Vladimir has both in his pockets, which he teases Estragon with.
The Carrot
• They need food to survive, but by the end of their 8game9 they are left drained and
and Turnip
disappointed.
• The whip is a symbol of cruel oppression.
• Can also relate to the circus master; controlling his performers but it is still
Pozzo9s
entertaining.
Watch & Whip
• The watch indicates man9s obsession with time 3 he loses his watch and he
feels lost and out of control.
RELEVANCE
In the words of Martin Esslin:

<The Theatre of the Absurd bravely faces up to the fact that for those to whom the world has lost its
central explanation and meaning, it is no longer possible to accept art forms still based on the
continuation of standards and concepts that have lost their validity.
In expressing the tragic sense of loss at the disappearance of ultimate certainties the Theatre of the
Absurd, by a strange paradox, is also a symptom of what probably comes nearest to being a genuine
religious quest in our age… at least in search of a dimension of the ineffable; an effort to make man
aware of the ultimate realities of his condition, to instill in him again the lost sense of cosmic wonder
and primeval anguish, to shock him out of an existence that has become trite, mechanical,
complacent, and deprived of the dignity that comes of awareness.
… To the masses who live from day to day and have lost all contact with the basic facts 3 the
mysteries 3 of the human condition with which, in former times, they were kept in touch through the
living ritual of their religion, which made them parts of a real community and not just atoms in an
atomised society.
The Theatre of the Absurd…breaches this dead wall of complacency and automatism to re-establish
an awareness of man9s situation when confronted with the ultimate reality of his condition. Theatre of
the Absurd speaks to a deeper level of the audience9s mind. It activates psychological forces, releases
and liberates hidden fears and repressed aggressions and, above all, by confronting the audience
with a picture of disintegration, it sets in motion an active process of integrative forces in the mind of
each individual spectator=.

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In the words of Eva Mettman:
The work of Beckett <forces the audience out of its familiar orientation. It creates a vacuum between
the play and the audience so that the latter is compelled to experience something itself...= This
vacuum <has become so unbearable that the audience has no alternative but either to reject and turn
away or to be drawn into the enigma of the plays in which nothing reminds him of any of his purposes
in and reactions to the world around him.=
Martin Esslin continues this thought: <Once drawn into the mystery of the play, the spectator is
compelled to come to terms with his experience. The stage supplies him with a number of disjointed
clues that he has to fit into a meaningful pattern. In this manner, he is forced to make a creative effort
of his own, an effort of interpretation and integration.
The challenge to make sense out of what appears as senseless and fragmented action… is more
than a mere intellectual exercise; it has a therapeutic effect. In the Theatre of the Absurd, the
spectator is confronted with the madness of the human condition and is enabled to see his situation
in all its grimness and despair. Stripped of illusions and vaguely felt fears and anxieties, he can face
his situation consciously, rather than feeling it below the surface of euphemisms and optimistic
illusions. By seeing his anxieties formulated he can liberate himself from them… This is the nature of
gallows humour.=
The success of the San Quentin prison performance of WFG, is because the prisoners were relieved
to be able to <recognise in the tragicomic situation of the tramps, the hopelessness of their own waiting
for a miracle. They were enabled to laugh at the tramps 3 and at themselves=.
<…nothing is funnier than unhappiness… It9s the most comical thing in the world. And we laugh, we
laugh, with a will in the beginning. But it9s always the same thing. Yes, it9s like the funny story we have
heard too often, we still find it funny but we don9t laugh any more=.
Endgame by Samuel Beckett

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SUMMARY TABLE
WAITING FOR GODOT
GENRE & STYLE

Evidence (examples) in
Comment Description
Waiting for Godot
Cannot be
grouped as a
single genre
Complimentary
to the vision
itself
Comedy -
Black Humour
& Comic
Moments

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STRUCTURE & FORM

Structure Summary Form Summary
Comment Description
Waiting for Godot
Not well-made
plays
Circular &
Repetitious
Filled with
meaningless
activities

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THEMES
Theme Description
Waiting for Godot
Hostile Universe =
Habit of Hoping
Death = Man9s
Mortality
Time

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LANGUAGE
Language is
Meaningless
Language is
Poetic
Ritualistic Quality
of Language
Silence and
Simplicity
Comic
Stichomythia
CHARACTERS (IN GENERAL)

1. See table on the specific characters on pages 18 - 21
Comment Description
Waiting for Godot
Stock
Characters
Existential
Heroes

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Characters are
interchangeable
Double Act
ACTING STYLE
Comment Description
Action is a series of
actions / activities
Acting has a
ritualistic quality
Verbal Rhythms
Physical Comedy
STAGING
SYMBOLISM OF SPACE
Comment Description
Waiting for Godot
Space is a
metaphor for the
world
Space shows
absurdity

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Double sense of
space
THEATRICAL ELEMENTS
Element Description
Set
Lighting
Costume
2. See table on the set and props on pages 27 - 28
Bibliography
Brockett, O & Ball, R. 2004. The Essential Theatre [Eighth Ed]. United States of America:
Wadsworth
Ciro, J; Guhrs, T; Hardie, Y; Sesiu, S; Singh, L & Watson, W. 2007. OBE for FET Dramatic Arts
Grade 12. Cape Town: Nasou
Esslin, M. 2001. Theatre of the Absurd [Third Ed]. United States of America: Pelican Books
Camus, A. 1942. Le Mythe d e Sisyphe. Paris: Gallimard

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Waiting for Godot 2020 - Notes

grade 12 drama (Princeton High School)

Studocu is not sponsored or endorsed by any college or university

Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett

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IRELAND DEPARTMENT OF ABSURD THEATRE

Schooling Wrote poetry & essays after graduating.

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GENRE & STYLE

<This is a play that is striving to avoid definition=. Peter Hall

GENRE: A TRAGI-COMEDY IN TWO ACTS

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In their place, Beckett created a play where bizarre characters speak

Many of the play9s original audience members and critics probably

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ESTRAGON: [Anxious.] And we?

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STYLE: BLACK COMEDY

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Concept Existentialism Waiting for Godot

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People have a mutual dependence

STRUCTURE & FORM PPT Slides 6 - 9

REJECTION OF THE WELL-MADE PLAY

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Fortunately (statement) ______________________________________________________

Attempt four other statements and counter-statements with a partner.

STRUCTURE = FRAMEWORK Act 1: longer

FORM = ACTION WITHIN THE FRAMEWORK

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PLOT PPT Slide 10 - 23

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THEMES PPT Slides 24 - 31

1. THE HOSTILE CONDITION OF THE UNIVERSE

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GENERAL APPROACH TO LANGUAGE IN THEATRE OF THE ABSURD

STYLISTIC FEATURE 1: LANGUAGE IS MEANINGLESS

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STYLISTIC FEATURE 1: LANGUAGE IS MEANINGLESS

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STYLISTIC FEATURE 5: COMIC STICHOMYTHIA