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Waiting for Godot

BRIEF BIOGRAPHY OF SAMUEL BECKETT

Samuel Beckett grew up in Dublin and attended Trinity College,Dublin, where he studied French, English, and Italian. Aftergraduating, he taught in Paris, where he met fellow modernistIrish writer James Joyce and worked on both critical andcreative writings. He moved back to Ireland in 1930, when hetook up a job as a lecturer at Trinity College. He soon quit thejob, though, in 1931, and traveled around Europe, continuing towrite. He moved to Paris in 1937, stayed there when WorldWar II began in 1939, and joined French Resistance forceswhen the Nazis occupied the country. Meanwhile, he continuedto write, including a trilogy of well-known novels (Molloy,Malone Dies, and The Unnamable). But it was for hisexperimental plays that he would become best known,especially Waiting for Godot, which premiered in Paris (in itsoriginal French) in 1953. This was followed by more plays,including the equally experimental Endgame. Beckett's literaryreputation and acclaim steadily improved in the 1960s, and hewas awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1969 (he gaveaway the prize money.) Beckett died in 1989 and was buried inParis along with his wife.

HISTORICAL CONTEXT

The play is set in a strange, unspecified time, and does not takeplace in the context of any historical events, but many haveseen the widespread suffering and disillusionment caused byWorld War II in the background of the play's pessimistic,nihilistic conception of the world.

RELATED LITERARY WORKS

While the play generally does not allude to other pieces ofliterature, Beckett was likely influenced by Bérénice, a 17th-century play by the French playwright Jean Racine (whomBeckett studied), in which Racine stressed the importance ofmaking an interesting play out of little action. Beckett was alsoprobably influenced by Sartre's play No Exit, in whichcharacters are trapped in one location. Waiting for Godot hasalso been seen as being an influence for Tom Stoppard's playRosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead.

KEY FACTS

Full Title: Waiting for Godot: A Tragicomedy in Two Acts

When Written: 1948-1949

Where Written: Paris

When Published: 1954

Literary Period: Modernism, Postmodernism

Genre: Drama, Tragicomedy (a mixture of tragedy andcomedy), Theater of the Absurd

Setting: The side of an unidentified road, near a tree, at anunspecified time.

Climax: Beckett's play essentially lacks a climax. Vladimir andEstragon spend both acts waiting for the arrival of Godot, butGodot never comes.

Antagonist: While Vladimir and Estragon speak of ananonymous "they" who threaten to beat them and from whomthey must hide, there is no real antagonist in the play. Part ofthe characters' predicament is that there is no precise cause ororigin of the suffering and alienation they feel.

EXTRA CREDIT

En Attendant Godot. Beckett originally wrote Waiting for Godotin French (under the equivalent title, En Attendant Godot). Hesaid that writing in French made it easier to write in the blank,plain style for which the play is famous. Beckett later personallytranslated the play into English.

Waiting for Whom? While Godot is such an important part ofthe play, there is widespread disagreement over the correctpronunciation of his name. Some opt for stressing the firstsyllable ("GOD-oh"), which emphasizes the name's link to God,while others choose to stress the second ("god-OH").

Vladimir and Estragon wait at the side of a road, near a tree,agreeing that there is "nothing to be done." Estragon strugglesto take off one of his boots. Vladimir asks if Estragon has everread the Bible. Estragon says all he remembers are somecolored maps of the holy land. Vladimir tells Estragon about thetwo thieves crucified along with Jesus. One of the gospels saysthat one of the thieves was saved, but Vladimir wonders if thisis true. Estragon wants to leave, but Vladimir reminds him thatthey have to wait here for Godot. Estragon and Vladimir debatewhether they are in the right place and whether it is the rightday for Godot to come. Estragon falls asleep and Vladimirimmediately wakes him, saying he was lonely without him.Estragon starts to describe his dream, but Vladimir angrilystops him and tells him to keep his nightmares to himself.

Vladimir wonders what he and Estragon should do, andEstragon says they should continue to wait. While waiting,Estragon suggests they hang themselves on the tree. The twodisagree over who should hang himself first, though, andVladimir concludes that they should just wait for Godot.Estragon asks what Vladimir asked Godot for and Vladimir saysthat he made a vague sort of prayer. Estragon is hungry, and

INTRINTROO

PLPLOOT SUMMARYT SUMMARY

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Vladimir offers him a carrot. All he can find in his pockets,though, are turnips. Finally, he finds a carrot and gives it toEstragon. Estragon asks if they are "tied" to Godot and Vladimirsays that they are. The two are interrupted by a loud screamoff-stage.

Pozzo and Lucky enter. Pozzo drives Lucky forward with a whiplike a pack animal, with a rope tied around his neck. Lucky isforced to carry Pozzo's things. Estragon asks if this is Godot,but then Pozzo introduces himself. He jerks the rope that isaround Lucky's neck and calls him "pig." Lucky brings him hisstool and some food. Pozzo eats some chicken and Estragonbegs him for the leftover bones. Pozzo gives him the bones.Vladimir is outraged at Pozzo's horrible treatment of Lucky andwants to leave. Pozzo tells him to stay, though, in case Godotshould show up. Estragon asks why Lucky doesn't put down hisbags. Pozzo says that Lucky has the right to put them down andbe comfortable, so he must be carrying them because he wantsto. He says that Lucky is trying to impress Pozzo so he won't getrid of him, because Pozzo has plenty of slaves. Pozzo says heplans to sell Lucky at a fair. Lucky begins to cry and Pozzo givesEstragon a handkerchief to bring to him. Estragon approachesLucky and Lucky kicks him violently in the shin.

Pozzo then begins to cry, saying that he "can't bear it." Vladimirscolds Lucky for making his master cry. Pozzo collects himselfand looks for his pipe, which he has misplaced. He makes aspeech about night and twilight, then asks if there's anything hecan do for Estragon and Vladimir, since they have been nice tohim. He offers to make Lucky dance, recite, sing, or think fortheir entertainment. Lucky dances and his hat falls off. Pozzosays that Lucky needs his hat to think, so Vladimir places it backon Lucky's head and Lucky launches into a long, ramblingmonologue. Pozzo prepares to leave and says goodbye toVladimir and Estragon, but doesn't move.

Pozzo and Lucky eventually leave, and Estragon wants to leaveas well, but Vladimir tells him they need to stay and wait forGodot. A boy comes onstage, bearing a message from Godot.He says Godot will not come today, but will come the next day.He tells Vladimir that he works for Godot, minding his goats,and says that Godot is a good master. The boy leaves andEstragon and Vladimir are ready to leave for the night. They saythey are going to leave, but stay still. The first act ends.

The second act begins the next day, in the same location and atthe same time. Vladimir enters and sings. Estragon enters andtells Vladimir that he was beaten the previous night for noreason. Vladimir and Estragon embrace, happy to see eachother again, and Estragon asks what they should do. Vladimirtells him they should wait for Godot. Vladimir mentions Pozzoand Lucky, and Estragon doesn't remember who these peopleare. He also doesn't recognize the place where they are waitingfrom the day before. Vladimir says that he and Estragon picked

grapes for the same man a long time ago in "the Maconcountry," but Estragon doesn't remember this, either.

After a long silence, Vladimir asks Estragon to talk aboutanything to fill the silence, but the two struggle to findsomething to talk about. Vladimir asks if Estragon really doesn'tremember Lucky and Pozzo. Estragon remembers someonekicking him and remembers the chicken bones he got fromPozzo. Vladimir offers Estragon a radish or turnip, because hehas no carrots. Estragon falls asleep but then wakes up startled.He begins to tell Vladimir about his dream but Vladimirinterrupts him and tells him not to describe the dream.Estragon wants to leave, but Vladimir reminds him that theyhave to stay and wait for Godot. Vladimir notices Lucky's hatlying on the ground and tries it on. He and Estragon trade theirhats and Lucky's hat back and forth, trying different ones on.Vladimir wants to "play at Pozzo and Lucky," and he andEstragon pretend to be the two characters.

Estragon leaves the stage for a moment and then returns andsays that "they" are coming. He and Vladimir hold lookouts ateither end of the stage. After insulting each other, they make upand embrace. Pozzo and Lucky enter. Pozzo is now blind,following closely behind Lucky. Lucky stops when he seesVladimir and Estragon, and Pozzo bumps into him. They bothfall to the ground and Pozzo cannot get up. Vladimir andEstragon consider trying to get something out of Pozzo forhelping him up. Pozzo cries out for help and offers money inreturn for any assistance. Vladimir decides to help Pozzo up butfalls over himself in the process. Estragon tries to help Vladimirup, but falls down in the process. None of the characters areable to get up for a while, but Estragon suddenly suggests thathe and Vladimir try to stand up and they are able to get upeasily.

Estragon again wants to leave, but Vladimir tells him to keepwaiting. He suggests they help Pozzo to get up in the meantime.They stand Pozzo up, and he asks who they are, notremembering either of them from the previous day. Pozzo askswhat time it is and Estragon thinks it's morning, while Vladimiris sure that it's evening. Vladimir asks when Pozzo went blind,and Pozzo says that "the blind have no notion of time." He asksEstragon to check on Lucky. Estragon goes over to Lucky andkicks him repeatedly. Pozzo shouts, "Up pig!" and yanks onLucky's rope. The two leave the stage, as Estragon falls asleep.Vladimir wakes Estragon, saying he was lonely.

Just like the day before, a boy enters with a message fromGodot, that he will not come this day but will certainly come thenext. Vladimir asks the boy what Godot does and the boy saysGodot does nothing. Vladimir asks the boy to tell Godot that hesaw Vladimir. The boy leaves. Estragon wants to go far away,but Vladimir says they can't go far, as they have to come backhere tomorrow and wait for Godot. Estragon suggests theyhang themselves on the tree using his belt, but when they test



the belt's strength by pulling on either end, it breaks. Vladimirand Estragon prepare to leave for the night. They say they aregoing to leave, but neither moves.

EstrEstragonagon – One of the two main characters of the play, alongwith Vladimir, Estragon is rather helpless on his own. In thebeginning of the play, he struggles just to take off his boots, forexample. Unlike Vladimir, he has no grasp of time, and isconfused as to whether it is evening or morning in act two.Along similar lines, he has a poor grasp of people's identities. Hedoesn't recognize Lucky and Pozzo in act two, and at one pointthinks Pozzo's name is Abel. He cannot even remember his ownpast, and tells Pozzo his name is Adam. Estragon repeatedlywants to leave, but each time Vladimir reminds him that theymust stay and wait for Godot. While he often forms the dull-minded counterpoint to the more cerebral Vladimir, Estragon isstill able to match Vladimir's verbal wit and once claims that heused to be a poet.

VladimirVladimir – Perhaps the real protagonist of the play, Vladimiroften seems to be more rational than his more nonsensicalcompanion, Estragon. Unlike the other characters in the play,he has a sense of linear time and realizes that the events of acttwo essentially repeat those of act one. He is also able toremember people's identities, unlike Estragon and Pozzo, whoforget each other in act two. He seems to be the only one whois really outraged at Pozzo's horrible treatment of Lucky in actone, but he doesn't actually do anything to help him. Vladimiroften tries to explain what is going on in the world—where theyare, when they are—and to show evidence to support histheories. But such rational or "scientific" efforts never yield anysolid insight, and by the end of the play Vladimir seems lesssure than he did at the beginning. Vladimir relies uponEstragon's company as much as Estragon relies upon Vladimir:whenever Estragon leaves the stage for a brief moment,Vladimir panics out of his intense fear of loneliness andabandonment.

GodotGodot – While Godot never appears on stage or has any lines,he is such a significant absence in the play that he may berightly recognized as one of the play's characters. What littlewe can gather about Mr. Godot comes from the dialogue ofEstragon, Vladimir, and the boy he sends to deliver hismessage. The boy says that he watches over Godot's goats, anddescribes Godot as a relatively kind master. Whoever Godot is,Vladimir and Estragon are convinced that he alone will savethem, so they wait endlessly for his arrival, which never comes.Because of his name's resemblance to God, Godot is often readas Beckett's pessimistic version of God, an absent savior whonever comes to the aid of those suffering on earth.

PPozzoozzo – Pozzo runs into Vladimir and Estragon whilejourneying along the road in both acts. He abuses Lucky andtreats him as a slave, pulling him around with a rope tied aroundhis neck and having him carry all his things. While he exercisessome relative power and authority over Lucky and actssuperior to the other characters, he is nonetheless far frompowerful himself. He panics when he loses things like his watchand is doomed to repeat his wandering every day, just asVladimir and Estragon repeat their waiting for Godot. He isparticularly helpless in act two, when he is inexplicably struckblind and is unable to get up after falling to the ground.

LuckyLucky – Lucky is Pozzo's slave, whom Pozzo treats horribly andcontinually insults, addressing him only as "pig." He is mostlysilent in the play, but gives a lengthy, mostly nonsensicalmonologue in act one, when Pozzo asks him to think out loud.While all the characters on-stage suffer in different waysthroughout the play, Lucky is the play's most obvious figure ofphysical suffering and exploitation as he is whipped, beaten,and kicked by other characters.

BoBoyy – The unnamed boy who brings a message from Godot inboth acts. Both times, he tells Vladimir and Estragon thatGodot is not coming, but will come the next day. It is unclearwhether the same boy comes in both acts, or whether these aretwo different characters. In act two, the boy claims to bedifferent from the boy of act one, but then again Pozzo claimsin act two that he did not meet Vladimir and Estragon in actone. The boy describes working under Godot as if on a farm orplantation, where he watches over Godot's animals. When theboy asks Vladimir if he would like to send a message to Godot,Vladimir asks him to tell Godot simply that he saw Vladimir.

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1 HUMOR AND THE ABSURD

Waiting for Godot is a prime example of what has come to beknown as the theater of the absurd. The play is filled withnonsensical lines, wordplay, meaningless dialogue, andcharacters who abruptly shift emotions and forget everything,ranging from their own identities to what happened yesterday.All of this contributes to an absurdist humor throughout theplay. However, this humor is often uncomfortably mixedtogether with tragic or serious content to make a darker kind ofcomedy. Estragon refers to "billions of others," who have beenkilled, and describes being beaten by an anonymous "they."Lucky (whose ill-fitting name is itself darkly comic) is treated

CHARACHARACTERSCTERS

THEMESTHEMES



horribly and physically abused on-stage. And Vladimir andEstragon talk nonchalantly and pleasantly about suicide. All thishas a discomforting effect on the audience, who is not sure howto react to this absurd mixture of comedy and tragedy,seriousness and playfulness. In act one, Vladimir says, "onedaren't even laugh any more," and his comment could apply wellto the audience of Beckett's play, who don't know whether tolaugh or to cringe at the events on-stage. The absurdity causedby the seeming mismatch between characters' tones and thecontent of their speech can be seen as a reaction to a worldemptied of meaning and significance. If the world ismeaningless, it makes no sense to see it as comic or tragic, goodor bad. Beckett thus presents an eerie play that sits uneasily onthe border between tragedy and comedy, in territory one canonly call the absurd.

2 WAITING, BOREDOM, AND NIHILISM

As Beckett's title indicates, the central act of the play is waiting,and one of the most salient aspects of the play is that nothingreally seems to happen. Vladimir and Estragon spend theentire play waiting for Godot, who never comes. Estragonrepeatedly wants to leave, but Vladimir insists that they stay, incase Godot actually shows up. As a result of this endlesswaiting, both Vladimir and Estragon are "bored to death," asVladimir himself puts it. Both Vladimir and Estragon repeatthroughout the play that there is "nothing to be done" and"nothing to do." They struggle to find ways to pass the time, sothey end up conversing back and forth about nothing atall—including talking about how they don't know what to talkabout—simply to occupy themselves while waiting. Theboredom of the characters on-stage mirrors the boredom ofthe audience. Beckett has deliberately constructed a playwhere not only his characters, but also his audience wait forsomething that never happens. Just like Estragon and Vladimir,the audience waits during the play for some major event orclimax that never occurs. Audience members might at timesfeel uncomfortable and want, like Estragon, to leave, but arebound to stay, in case Godot should actually arrive later in theplay.

All of this waiting for nothing, talking about nothing, and doingnothing contributes to a pervasive atmosphere of nihilism inthe play. Broadly defined, nihilism is a denial of any significanceor meaning in the world. Deriving from the Latin word for"nothing" (nihil), it is a worldview centered around negation,claiming that there is no truth, morality, value, or—in anextreme form—even reality. This seems to describe the worldof the play, largely emptied out of meaning, emotion, andsubstance, leading to characters who blather on endlessly ininsignificant conversation. Given the play's deep exploration ofthe absurd humor and feelings of alienation that arise from this

nihilistic understanding of the world, one could say thatWaiting for Godot is, at its core, about nothing.

3 MODERNISM AND POSTMODERNISM

Written in 1953, Waiting for Godot was a somewhat latesuccessor to the vibrant experimentation in art and literatureof the late 19th and early 20th centuries known as Modernism.Modernist writers saw themselves as dramatically breakingwith the past and innovating in all aspects of art, literature, andculture. Beckett's play shares with Modernist works afascination with pushing the boundaries of literary genre,representation, and etiquette, as well as an interest in languageand thought prioritized above action and plot. However, theplay can also be seen as somewhat Postmodern, belonging tothe literary and artistic period following Modernism. BothModernism and Postmodernism are rather vague terms, oftenused differently by different critics. Moreover, it is also debatedwhether Postmodernism continues the aspirations ofModernism, or is a more radical break with it. In any case,Beckett's play sits on the fence between these two movements.

While Postmodernism is difficult to define exactly, Waiting forGodot displays a number of the defining features of aPostmodern conception of the world. One of these is analienation from tradition and a questioning of the grandnarratives that were previously seen to have some kind ofauthority. This includes grand narratives of historicalprogress—that history is the story of human life continuallygetting better—as well as religious narratives like the Bible.There are some biblical and classical references in the play, butthey are only used ironically. Estragon compares himself toChrist in act one, for example, but the comparison is ratherridiculous. And Pozzo invokes "Atlas, son of Jupiter!" butdoesn't actually believe in the force of this classical reference(what's more, he gets his mythological family tree wrong). Thereligious and cultural traditions of the past have lost theirauthority and centrality in the world of the play. AnotherPostmodern feature of the play is a pervasive sense ofentrapment or enslavement, but a lack of any central authority.Characters are often unable to move or get up from the groundfor no apparent reason. Vladimir and Estragon are, in a sense,trapped in their place of waiting, even though no one is forcingthem to stay. Pozzo is Lucky's master, but he is far from free orpowerful. Everyone in the play seems to be trapped or enslavedin some way, but no one seems to be the master. The charactersof Waiting for Godot are also profoundly disoriented: they don'tknow where, or when, they are. At times, the characters don'teven know who they are, as Estragon cannot remember hisown past, for example. Finally, some of Beckett's characters feela separation from reality. Both Vladimir and Pozzo question, inact two, whether they are actually awake or are simply



dreaming. This confusion of reality with a dream or a falserepresentation is a central, common feature of Postmodernism.

Seeing Beckett's play as Postmodernist is more than justlabeling it as part of a particular literary movement; it gets tothe heart of the world Beckett represents, one defined byalienation, entrapment, disorientation, and a questioning ofreality. With the play's lack of specifics regarding its place ortime, the circumstances of its events, or the particular backstories of its characters, Waiting for Godot can even be seen as akind of allegory for the Postmodern condition. Beckett wrotehis play before Postmodernism really coalesced or was writtenabout as a distinct period or movement. Nonetheless, while insome ways still belonging to Modernism, the play prescientlydepicts many of the defining aspects of a Postmodern world. Inrepresenting these negative features, the play can be seen aseither a pessimistic indictment of the present or as a chillingwarning of what the future might look like: as how Beckett sawthe world to be or as he feared it might become.

4 TIME

Closely related to the Modernist and Postmodernist aspects ofBeckett's play is its conception of time, an issue of fascinationto Modernists and Postmodernists alike. Perhaps the mostimportant thing about time in the play is that it is uncertain. Allof the characters (and thus the audience, as well) are unsure ofexactly when the play is taking place. The time period of theplay is unclear, as is the relative chronology of the play's events.Vladimir is rather sure that act two is one day after act one, butall the other characters disagree. Moreover, everyone exceptfor Vladimir seems to have forgotten the events of act one bythe time act two begins. In act two, Vladimir and Estragon evendisagree over what time of day it is.

Amid all this uncertainty, the one thing that seems certain isthat time is recursive in Waiting for Godot. That is, the sameevents occur again and again, while characters also repeatthemselves. As Pozzo and Estragon forget their immediatepast, they end up repeating much of act one in act two. Vladimirand Estragon wait in the same place, where the same twopeople (Lucky and Pozzo) encounter them, and where a boydelivers the same message from Godot. Vladimir himselfwonders to what degree the events of act two are an exactrepetition of those in act one, as he asks whether Lucky andPozzo are the same characters from the previous day, andwhether it is the same young boy, or a different one. The boyclaims to be a different boy from that of act one, and Pozzodoes not remember Vladimir or Estragon, but given all of theforgetfulness in the play, Vladimir's questions remainunanswered.

With this strangely repetitive temporal structure, thecharacters of Waiting for Godot are trapped within an infinitepresent time. "Time has stopped," says Vladimir in act one.

Indeed, the ending of the play seems somewhat arbitrary. Itcould have continued on for however many acts, endlesslyrepeating, as Vladimir and Estragon endlessly await the arrivalof the mysterious Mr. Godot. Moreover, it is not clear that thebeginning of the play was really the beginning of this story.How many days did Estragon and Vladimir come to the samepart of the road and have essentially the same conversationbefore the day of act one?

5 HUMANITY, COMPANIONSHIP, SUFFERING,AND DIGNITY

Beckett's play is filled with a great deal of physical, mental, andemotional suffering. Vladimir and Estragon (especiallyEstragon) are starved for food, in physical pain, and "bored todeath." Both fear an anonymous "they" who threaten to beatthem at night, and are frequently unable to move of their ownaccord. Estragon mentions "billions of others," who have beenkilled, but does not elaborate. Lucky, meanwhile, is treatedhorribly, pulled about by a rope tied around his neck, beaten byPozzo, and kicked repeatedly by Estragon. All of this sufferinghas a dehumanizing effect, and robs characters of their dignity.Lucky, for example, is addressed by Pozzo as "pig," and treatedlike a pack animal. Estragon is reduced to sucking on Pozzo'sleftover chicken bones pathetically. And even Pozzo, whoimposes suffering on Lucky, is unable to get up from the groundwhen he falls in act two.

Amid all this, Vladimir and Estragon desperately seek twothings throughout the play: some recognition of their humanity,and companionship. When the boy asks Vladimir what messagehe would like to send to Godot, he simply asks the boy to tellGodot that he saw Vladimir. In other words, Vladimir wants tobe acknowledged as a person. This is particularly important tohim because the other characters in the play forget and mix uptheir identities. Pozzo and Lucky don't recognize Estragon andVladimir in act two, whereas Estragon forgets about Lucky andPozzo. In this environment where people are so easilyforgotten, Vladimir wants some confirmation of his ownidentity and humanity. Beyond this, Vladimir and Estragon alsodesire companionship. Although Estragon repeatedly suggeststhat they go their separate ways, the two stay together out of amutual fear of loneliness. When Estragon momentarily leavesthe stage, Vladimir panics and becomes immediately lonely.And Estragon needs Vladimir as well—whether to havesomeone to talk to and ask questions of, or to help him put onhis boots.

Nonetheless, even as Vladimir and Estragon seek some kind ofdignity and companionship in the face of suffering, they areremarkably indifferent to the suffering of others. Vladimir is atfirst outraged at Pozzo's treatment of Lucky, but soon gets usedto it and even encourages Estragon to kick him. Vladimir andEstragon converse nonchalantly while Pozzo is stuck on the



ground and crying for help in act two, and they first schemehow they might take advantage of him rather than help him.Vladimir and Estragon value their own relationship, butgenerally fail to sympathize with Pozzo and Lucky as otherpotential companions. Beckett suggests that this kind ofindifference to the pain of others is what allows the viciouscycle of suffering to continue on indefinitely, as it does in theplay.

Symbols appear in red text throughout the Summary & Analysissections of this LitChart.

HATSBecause the play has so few props, the props that do appearonstage take on an exaggerated significance. As one example,Vladimir, Estragon, Lucky, and Pozzo all wear hats and at timesseem oddly preoccupied with them. Lucky, for instance, needshis hat to think, and stops his long monologue once his hat isknocked off. In act two Estragon and Vladimir exchange theirhats and Lucky's hat back and forth, trying different ones on.Given the importance of these hats to their individual owners,this scene can be seen as representing the fluidity andinstability of individual identities in the play. As Pozzo andLucky don't remember having already seen Vladimir andEstragon in act two, Vladimir begins to wonder whether thePozzo and Lucky of act two are the same as those of act one.Estragon, for one, does not recognize them, and calls PozzoAbel. Estragon can't even remember his own past, and at onepoint tells Pozzo that his name is Adam. Moreover, it is notclear whether the young boy in each act is one boy or twodifferent ones. The boy also calls Vladimir Mr. Albert, whichmay or may not actually be Vladimir's name. With all of thisambiguity and instability regarding people's identities, thescene of the hat exchange playfully represents an exchange ofidentities, as Vladimir and Estragon wear differentcombinations of hats. They ultimately return to wearing theirown hats, but it is uncertain whether they (or other characters)are being themselves throughout the play, or if they even havestable selves they can be.

NAMESMany of the names in Beckett's play can be seen has havinghidden meanings. The most important example is Godot, whosename evokes similarity to God for many readers. Along thisreading, Godot symbolizes the salvation that religion promises,but which never comes (just as Godot never actually comes toVladimir and Estragon). But the similarity between "Godot"and "God" could also be a game Beckett is playing with his

audience and readers, a kind of red herring that actuallyimparts no important information. This would be in line withother character names: Estragon means "tarragon" in French,for example, while Pozzo is Italian for a water well, but thesemeanings hold little to no significance for those characters. AndLucky's name is anything but fitting, as he is the character whounluckily suffers the most onstage. In the end, Beckett'scharacter names suggest the possibility of meaning but fail todeliver on this promise, just as Godot promises to save Vladimirand Estragon but never shows up. As further examples of thenihilist worldview that pervades Waiting for Godot, the play'scharacter names may be significant precisely for beinginsignificant, meaningful in that they mean nothing.

The color-coded boxes under each quote below make it easy totrack the themes related to each quote. Each color correspondsto one of the themes explained in the Themes section of thisLitChart.

ACT 1Nothing to be done.

•Speak•Speakerer: Estragon

•Related themes•Related themes: Waiting, Boredom, and Nihilism

••Theme TTheme Trrackacker codeer code:

22

I'm glad to see you back. I thought you were gone forever.

•Speak•Speakerer: Vladimir

•Mentioned or related char•Mentioned or related charactersacters: Estragon

•Related themes•Related themes: Time, Humanity, Companionship, Suffering,and Dignity


44 55

When I think of it... all these years... but for me... where wouldyou be... (Decisively.) You'd be nothing more than a little heap ofbones at the present minute, no doubt about it.



•Related themes•Related themes: Humanity, Companionship, Suffering, andDignity

SYMBOLSSYMBOLS

QUOQUOTESTES




55

One daren't even laugh any more.Dreadful privation.Merely smile. (He smiles suddenly from ear to ear, keeps smiling,ceases as suddenly.) It's not the same thing. Nothing to be done.

•Speak•Speakerer: Estragon, Vladimir

•Related themes•Related themes: Humor and the Absurd, Waiting, Boredom,and Nihilism


11 22

You're sure it was this evening?What?That we were to wait.He said Saturday. (Pause.) I think


•Mentioned or related char•Mentioned or related charactersacters: Godot

•Related themes•Related themes: Waiting, Boredom, and Nihilism, Time


22 44

But what Saturday? And is it Saturday? Is it not rather Sunday?(Pause.) Or Monday? (Pause.) Or Friday?


•Related themes•Related themes: Modernism and Postmodernism, Time


33 44

I was asleep! (Despairingly.) Why will you never let me sleep?I felt lonely.




55

What do we do now?Wait.Yes, but while waiting.What about hanging ourselves?Hmm. It'd give us an erection.




11 22

We're not tied?


•Related themes•Related themes: Modernism and Postmodernism


33

To Godot? Tied to Godot! What an idea! No question of it.(Pause.) For the moment.



•Related themes•Related themes: Humor and the Absurd, Modernism andPostmodernism


11 33

You are human beings none the less. (He puts on his glasses.) Asfar as one can see. (He takes off his glasses.) of the same speciesas myself. (He bursts into an enormous laugh.) Of the samespecies as Pozzo! Made in God's image!

•Speak•Speakerer: Pozzo

•Mentioned or related char•Mentioned or related charactersacters: Estragon, Vladimir

•Related themes•Related themes: Humor and the Absurd, Modernism andPostmodernism, Humanity, Companionship, Suffering, andDignity


11 33 55

Er... you've finished with the... er... you don't need the... er...bones, Sir?




•Mentioned or related char•Mentioned or related charactersacters: Pozzo



55

To treat a man... (gesture towards Lucky)... like that... I thinkthat... no... a human being... no... it's a scandal!


•Mentioned or related char•Mentioned or related charactersacters: Pozzo, Lucky



55

Why he doesn't make himself comfortable? Let's try and getthis clear. Has he not the right to? Certainly he has. It followsthat he doesn't want to. There's reasoning for you.


•Mentioned or related char•Mentioned or related charactersacters: Lucky



11 33 55

He's crying!Old dogs have more dignity.

•Speak•Speakerer: Estragon, Pozzo




55

The tears of the world are a constant quantity. For each onewho begins to weep, somewhere else another stops. The sameis true of the laugh. (He laughs.) Let us not then speak ill of ourgeneration, it is not unhappier than its predecessors. (Pause.)

Let us not speak well of it either. (Pause.) Let us not speak of it atall.





11 33 55

After having sucked all the good out of him you chuck him awaylike a... like a banana skin. Really...





55

(to Lucky.) How dare you! It's abominable! Such a good master!Crucify him like that! After so many years! Really!



•Related themes•Related themes: Humor and the Absurd, Humanity,Companionship, Suffering, and Dignity


11 55

Do I look like a man that can be made to suffer?




55

So that I ask myself is there anything I can do in my turn forthese honest fellows who are having such a dull, dull time.Even ten francs would be a help.We are not beggars!



•Speak•Speakerer: Estragon, Vladimir, Pozzo

•Related themes•Related themes: Waiting, Boredom, and Nihilism, Humanity,Companionship, Suffering, and Dignity


22 55

He thinks?Certainly. Aloud. He even used to think very prettily once, Icould listen to him for hours. Now... (he shudders).

•Speak•Speakerer: Vladimir, Pozzo

•Related themes•Related themes: Humor and the Absurd


11

He used to dance the farandole, the fling, the brawl, the jig, thefandango, and even the hornpipe. He capered. For joy. Nowthat's the best he can do. Do you know what he calls it?The Scapegoat's Agony.The Hard Stool.The Net. He thinks he's entangled in a net.





11 33

Nothing happens, nobody comes, nobody goes, it's awful!




22

Then adieu.Adieu.Adieu.Adieu.Silence. No one moves.Adieu.Adieu.

Adieu.Silence.




11 33

Let's go.We can't.Why not?We're waiting for Godot.





11 22

We know them, I tell you. You forget everything. (Pause. Tohimself.) Unless they're not the same...Why didn't they recognize us then?That means nothing. I too pretended not to recognize them.And then nobody every recognizes us.





55

You don't know me?No Sir.It wasn't you came yesterday?No Sir.This is your first time?Yes Sir.

•Speak•Speakerer: Vladimir, Boy





55

Mr. Godot told me to tell you he won't come this evening butsurely tomorrow.

•Speak•Speakerer: Boy


•Related themes•Related themes: Humor and the Absurd, Waiting, Boredom,and Nihilism, Time


11 22 44

Tell him... (he hesitates)... tell him you saw us. (Pause.) You did seeus, didn't you?


•Mentioned or related char•Mentioned or related charactersacters: Godot, Boy



11 55

Christ! What has Christ got to do with it. You're not going tocompare yourself to Christ!





33

Well, shall we go?Yes, let's go.They do not move.




11 33

ACT 2Say, I am happy.I am happy.So am I.So am I.We are happy.We are happy. (Silence.) What do we do now, now that we arehappy?Wait for Godot.




11 22

I was saying that things have changed here since yesterday.Everything oozes.Look at the tree.It's never the same pus from one second to the next.


•Related themes•Related themes: Time


44

The best thing would be to kill me, like the other.What other? (Pause.) What other?Like billions of others.




11 55

Say anything at all!What do we do now?Wait for Godot.Ah!




22



What is terrible is to have thought.But did that ever happen to us?




11

It must be the Spring.But in a single night!I tell you we weren't here yesterday. Another of yournightmares.


•Related themes•Related themes: Modernism and Postmodernism, Time


33 44

Yes, now I remember, yesterday evening we spent blatheringabout nothing in particular. That's been going on now for half acentury.




22 44

Let's go.We can't.Why not?We're waiting for Godot.





22

We came too soon.It's always at nightfall.But night doesn't fall.It'll fall all of a sudden, like yesterday.Then it'll be night.

And we can go.Then it'll be day again.




22 44

How time flies when one has fun!Silence.What do we do now?While waiting.While waiting.We could do our exercises.


•Related themes•Related themes: Humor and the Absurd, Waiting, Boredom,and Nihilism, Time


11 22 44

No, the best would be to take advantage of Pozzo's calling forhelp.


•Mentioned or related char•Mentioned or related charactersacters: Pozzo



55

No, don't protest, we are bored to death, there's no denying it.




22

Suppose we got up to begin with?No harm trying.They get up.Child's play.Simple question of will-power.






11 33

Don't question me! The blind have no notion of time. The thingsof time are hidden from them too.




44

Where are we?I couldn't tell you.




33

What is there in the bag?Sand.




11

Have you not done tormenting me with your accursed time! It'sabominable! When! When! One day, is that not enough for you,one day he went dumb, one day I went blind, one day we'll godeaf, one day we were born, one day we shall die, the same day,the same second, is that not enough for you?


•Mentioned or related char•Mentioned or related charactersacters: Estragon, Vladimir, Lucky



44

Was I sleeping, while the others suffered? Am I sleeping now?




33

Do you not recognize me?No Sir.It wasn't you came yesterday.No Sir.This is your first time.Yes Sir.

•Speak•Speakerer: Vladimir, Boy



44 55

Tell him... (he hesitates)... tell him you saw me and that... (hehesitates)... that you saw me. (Pause. Vladimir advances, theBoy recoils. Vladimir halts, the Boy halts. With suddenviolence.) You're sure you saw me, you won't come and tell metomorrow that you never saw me!


•Mentioned or related char•Mentioned or related charactersacters: Pozzo, Boy



44 55

Oh yes, let's go far away from here.We can't.Why not?We have to come back tomorrow.What for?To wait for Godot.





22



Well? Shall we go?Yes, let's go.They do not move.




11 33

The color-coded boxes under "Analysis & Themes" below makeit easy to track the themes throughout the work. Each colorcorresponds to one of the themes explained in the Themessection of this LitChart.

ACT 1Sitting on the side of a countryroad by a tree, Estragon triesrepeatedly to pull off one of hisboots. Vladimir enters andEstragon exasperatedly tellshim there's "nothing to bedone." Vladimir agrees andasks Estragon where he spentthe last night. Estragon says heslept in a ditch.

The general statement, "nothingto be done," can refer toEstragon's inability to pull off hisboot, waiting for Godot, or thecharacters' lives in general—eventhe human condition itself.

22

Vladimir asks if "they" beatEstragon while he wassleeping there and he says thatthey did. Vladimir says, "It'stoo much for one man," butthen reasons that there's nopoint in giving up now.Estragon tells Vladimir to stoptalking and help him get hisboot off. Vladimir asks if theboot hurts, and Estragon balksat the question. Vladimirreminds him that he's not theonly one who suffers, andpoints out to Estragon that hisfly is unbuttoned.

The beginning of the playintroduces the audience to thecharacters' bleak world, which isfilled with all kinds of suffering,from the more trivial (a boot thatis stuck on) to the more serious(an anonymous "they" who beatEstragon mercilessly). Beckettmixes this suffering with abrupthumor, here in the form ofEstragon's unbuttoned fly.

11 55

Estragon again asks for help,but Vladimir ignores him,taking off his hat, looking in it,and shaking it upside down, asif hoping for something to fallout. Nothing does, and he says,"nothing to be done." Estragonfinally gets his boot off andthen looks inside it and shakesit upside down, apparently alsohoping to find somethinginside it. Vladimir says, "showme," but Estragon tells himthere's nothing to see.

The characters' absurd behavior(looking inside their hats andboots) is never explained.Vladimir ignores Estragon's pain,and repeats Estragon's assertionthat there is nothing to be done:they are not only bored, butcrippled by their inability to doanything at all.

11 22 55

Vladimir wonders what wouldhappen if he and Estragonrepented. Estragon asks whatthey would be repenting forand Vladimir doesn't say.Estragon suggests repentingbeing born, which makesVladimir laugh. Estragon tellshim not to laugh, and insteadonly to smile.

The Christian idea of repentanceno longer has any real value forVladimir and Estragon.Estragon's comment underscoresthe uneasy quality of the play'shumor. Should the audience heedhis warning too, or is it okay forus to laugh?

11 33

Vladimir asks if Estragon hasever read the Bible and if heremembers the Gospels.Estragon remembers onlycolored maps of the holy land.As Estragon describes thecolorful maps, Vladimir jokesthat he should have been apoet. Estragon says he wasone. Vladimir asks howEstragon's foot is doing. It'sswollen.

In somewhat typical Postmodernfashion, Estragon's stancetoward Biblical tradition isdevoid of any reverence orspecialness. It is unclear whetherEstragon's absurdly abruptstatement that he was a poet isto be taken seriously or not.

11 33

Vladimir tells Estragon aboutthe two thieves crucifiedalongside Jesus in the Bible.One of the two thieves wasdamned to hell, while the otherwas saved. "Saved from what?"asks Estragon. Vladimir saysfrom hell. Vladimir wonderswhy only one of the fourEvangelists writes of the onethief being saved. Estragon isbored by the conversation.

The Biblical story introduces theidea of salvation into the play.But in the Modern-Postmodernworld of the play there is no Godby whom the characters hope tobe saved—only Godot. Estragon,meanwhile, is bored even by hisfriend's conversation.

22 33

SUMMARY & ANALSUMMARY & ANALYSISYSIS



Vladimir continues to wonderabout the two thieves, andwhether one was saved or not.Estragon doesn't followVladimir's thinking and isconfused. Vladimir asks whythey should believe the oneEvangelist who says a thiefwas saved, when the otherthree disagree. Estragon askswho believes that one of thethieves was saved and Vladimirsays that everybody does.Estragon says people are"bloody ignorant apes."

Vladimir is skeptical of the Bibleand points out its self-contradictions. Estragon'scomment shows the bleak statusof humanity in the play. While henonchalantly compares humansto apes, Vladimir will be greatlypained throughout the play byhis lack of dignity.

33 55

While Estragon gets up andlooks around, Vladimir looks inEstragon's boot but doesn'tfind anything. Estragonsuggests they go somewhere,but Vladimir tells him theycan't, because they are waitingfor someone named Godot.Estragon asks if Vladimir issure that they are in the rightplace, and Vladimir says that itmust be, because of the tree atthe side of the road.

Estragon will ask this questionrepeatedly over the course of theplay, due to his absurd lack ofmemory. The promise of somekind of help from Godot isactually an insidious form ofcontrol and entrapment, as itforces Vladimir and Estragon tostay put, waiting indefinitely.

11 22 33

Estragon asks where the tree'sleaves are and Vladimir says itmust be dead, or else it's notthe right season for leaves. Thetwo agree that the tree is morelike a bush or shrub. Vladimirdoubts whether Godot willreally come. Estragon askswhat they will do if he doesn'tcome, and Vladimir says they'llcome back to the same placethe next day, and the next day,and so on, until Godot arrives.

Vladimir and Estragon absurdlydeny that the tree on-stage isreally a tree. Vladimir's plan towait for Godot indefinitely showshow he and Estragon are trappedhere in a kind of prison of theirown making: they are free toleave but kept here by their hopefor Godot's arrival.

11 22 33

Estragon says they came tothis place yesterday, butVladimir disagrees. Estragonasks if Vladimir is sure thatthey are at this spot on theright day. Vladimir thinks so (itis Saturday), but looks throughhis pockets to see if he wrotedown somewhere on whichday they were supposed tocome. Estragon doubts whatday it is and worries thatmaybe Godot came yesterdayand they weren't there to meethim.

Unlike Vladimir, who has asomewhat stable sense of time,Estragon is completelytemporally disoriented, and hasno idea what day it is, let alone asense of what he and Vladimirdid yesterday.

33 44

The two take a break fromtalking and Estragon fallsasleep. Vladimir wakes himand Estragon asks why hewon't let him sleep. Vladimirsays he was lonely. Estragonsays he had a dream andbegins to tell Vladimir about it,but Vladimir angrily shouts athim not to describe the dream.He tells Estragon to keep hisnightmares private.

Vladimir has an intense fear ofloneliness. He feels painfullyalone even when Estragon simplystops talking to him and fallsasleep.

55

Estragon wonders if it wouldbe better for he and Vladimirto go their separate ways. Heis reminded of a joke about anEnglishman at a brothel thathe tells to Vladimir, who stopshim in the middle of the jokeand leaves the stage. Vladimirreturns and Estragon asks if hehas something to tell him.Vladimir says he has nothing tosay.

Estragon's unfinished joke andVladimir's having nothing to sayto Estragon lend an absurd toneto the scene. Vladimir says hehas nothing to say, but justsaying this proves that he did, infact, have something to say.

11

Estragon apologizes and thetwo embrace. Estragon jumpsback, though, becauseVladimir reeks of garlic.Vladimir asks what they shoulddo now. Estragon suggeststhey wait. Vladimir asks whatthey will do while they waitand Estragon suggests theyhang themselves. They go overto the tree, but neither wantsto be hanged first.

Estragon's jumping back from thegarlic smell of Vladimirundercuts their tender embracewith abrupt humor. Estragon'snonchalant suggestion of suicideis uneasily absurd anduncomfortable for the audience,as it is both comical and deeplytroubling.

11



Estragon says Vladimir shouldhang himself first because he isheavier. If Estragon hangedhimself first, and then Vladimirtried but the branch brokeunder his weight, Vladimirwould be all alone. Vladimirasks if he is really heavier thanEstragon and then asks, "Well?What do we do?" Estragonsays it's safer to do nothing atall. Vladimir suggests they waitand see what Godot says.

The characters' calmconsideration of the details ofhow they might hang themselvescontinues the eerily absurdquality of the play. In the end,though, they decide simply tokeep on waiting, doing nothing atall.

11 22

Vladimir says he is interestedto hear what Godot will offerthem. Estragon asks what theyasked Godot for and Vladimirsays nothing very specific; itwas just a vague sort of prayer.Estragon asks what Godot'sreply to the prayer was andVladimir reminds him thatGodot said he would wait andsee. Estragon remembers andadds that Godot said hecouldn't promise anything.

The promise of some kind ofsalvation through Godot isanything but certain. Not onlyare Vladimir and Estragon notsure that Godot will come, butthey don't even know if he wouldreally help them if he did.Nonetheless, they keep waitingfor him.

22

Estragon asks, "Where do wecome in?" and Vladimir isconfused at first, thenresponds, "on our hands andknees." Estragon asks if theydon't have rights any longerand Vladimir tells him they gotrid of them. Suddenly, Vladimirtells Estragon to listen, as if hehears something. The twolisten, but neither actuallyhears anything. They sigh inrelief.

Vladimir's comment that theywould approach Godot on theirhands and knees might suggest aparallel between Godot and God.However, this subservientposture might also suggest thatGodot is not some kind of savior,but merely a new, oppressivemaster.

33

Vladimir says he thought hehad heard Godot. Estragonsays he's hungry and Vladimiroffers him a carrot, but then allhe can find in his pockets areturnips. At last, he finds acarrot and gives it to Estragon,who excitedly eats it.

Estragon is desperate for food.Vladimir's confusion overwhether he has a carrot or notadds some humorous levity tothe characters' suffering.

11 55

Estragon asks Vladimir if theyare "tied." Vladimir asks whathe means and Estragon asks ifthey are tied to Godot.Vladimir says they are, at leastfor the moment. Estragon asksif they are sure that thisperson is named Godot, andVladimir says he thinks so.Estragon finishes his carrotand says again, "nothing to bedone."

Waiting for Godot has becomesuch an obligation that Vladimirand Estragon are "tied" to him,trapped though apparently freeto leave. Estragon repeats hisearlier assertion of boredom andnihilism: there is nothing forthem to do, and perhaps there isreally nothing ever to be done.

22 33

The two are interrupted by ahorrible scream off-stage.They run to the edge of thestage. Estragon stops and runsback to get his boot, then runsback to Vladimir. They huddletogether, frightened by thenoise.

In the face of their fear andsuffering, Vladimir and Estragonhuddle together. They are eachother's only companions.

55

Pozzo and Lucky enter. Pozzodrives lucky like an animal witha rope around his neck. Hecarries a whip to drive himalong, while Lucky carries afolding stool, a bag, a picnicbasket, and a coat. Pozzowhips Lucky as they passacross the stage and just asthey are leaving the stage, hestops Lucky suddenly, causinghim to drop all his things.Vladimir goes to help Lucky,but Estragon stops him. Pozzotells the two of them to becareful, as Lucky is dangerous.

Pozzo's horrible treatment ofLucky and Lucky's physicalsuffering are, at the same time,tragic and (with Lucky's slapstickclumsiness) somewhat comical.The audience or reader is unsurewhether to laugh or cringe.

11 55

Estragon asks Vladimir if thisis Godot, but then Pozzointroduces himself by nameand asks if they are not familiarwith him. Estragon mishearshim and ponders out loud if heknows a Bozzo. Pozzo angrilycorrects him. Estragonapologizes, saying they are notfrom here, but Pozzo says,"you are human beings nonethe less," and ironically saysthey are all made in God'simage.

Pozzo's ironic reference to theBible emphasizes the undignifiedposition of suffering humans inthis environment. The mix-upswith Pozzo's identity and namefurther the sense of unstableidentities in the play.

33 55



Pozzo asks who Godot is.Vladimir says he's anacquaintance, but Estragonsays they hardly know him.Pozzo asks if they were waitingfor Godot here, on his land, butthen he admits that the road isfree land. He changes theconversation and jerks therope that is tied aroundLucky's neck, calling him "pig."He continues to pull Luckyaround by the rope around hisneck, then asks Lucky for hiscoat.

Pozzo's treatment of Lucky,whom he simply calls "pig," is themost blunt and obvious form ofdehumanizing suffering thatBeckett displays on-stage. AndEstragon and Vladimir, for nowat least, seem not at allinterested in trying to help Lucky.

55

Pozzo asks Lucky for his stool,which Lucky places on theground for Pozzo to sit on. Heorders Lucky around somemore, ordering him to bring hisbasket, from which he takesout a piece of chicken and abottle of wine. He eats anddrinks, as Vladimir andEstragon inspect Lucky, who isexhaustedly falling asleep ashe stands.

Pozzo continues to maltreatLucky as his slave. Vladimir andEstragon inspect Lucky, but moreout of curiosity than empathy orpity for his suffering.

55

Vladimir and Estragoncontinue to examine Lucky,noticing how the rope chafeshis neck and how tired helooks. They examine Lucky'sappearance, with eyes"goggling out of his head."Vladimir suggests they askLucky a question and Estragonbegins to speak to him, whenPozzo stops them, telling themto leave Lucky alone. He callsfor his basket again and whenLucky doesn't move, Pozzoyanks the rope again. Luckytakes the bottle of wine andputs it back in the basket.

Again, Vladimir and Estragonobserve Lucky's suffering, butdon't seem to sympathize withhis pain. Their indifference to hissuffering allows Pozzo tocontinue to treat him so horribly.

55

Estragon looks at the chickenbones that Pozzo has thrownon the ground and tentativelyasks if he can have them. Pozzosays he doesn't need thebones, but that they should goto Lucky, so Estragon shouldask Lucky if he can have them.Estragon asks and Luckydoesn't reply. Pozzo yells atLucky to answer, but when hesays nothing Pozzo tellsEstragon the bones are his.

Estragon stoops so low as to begfor the leftover bones of Pozzo'smeal, displaying both how hissuffering has robbed him of hisdignity and how insensitivePozzo is to the suffering ofothers. He could have offeredsome actual food to the nearlystarving Estragon, after all.

55

Vladimir suddenly shouts out,"It's a scandal!" Pozzo askswhat he is talking about, andVladimir says that it is ascandal to treat Lucky in sucha way. Pozzo asks how oldVladimir is (he does notrespond) and then says hemust be leaving. He thanksVladimir and Estragon fortheir company. But then hedebates smoking some morefrom his pipe before he leaves.

Vladimir finally protests againstPozzo's treatment of Lucky, butdoesn't actually do anythingabout it. The ease with whichPozzo moves on in theconversation after Vladimir'saccusatory outburst isuncomfortably absurd.

11 55

Vladimir tells Estragon theyshould leave, but Pozzo stopsthem. He yanks Lucky's ropeagain and has him move thestool. He sits back down andrefills his pipe. Vladimir wantsto leave, but Pozzo tells him,"wait a little longer, you'llnever regret it," and Estragonadmits they are "in no hurry."

Estragon's humorous commentthat he and Vladimir are "in nohurry," encapsulates theirpredicament. They will keepwaiting "a little longer," for quite along time.

11 22

Vladimir still wants to go, andPozzo tells him to thinkcarefully, asking what wouldhappen if Vladimir missed his"appointment" with Godot.Pozzo says he would like tomeet Godot as well, since, ashe says, "the more people Imeet the happier I become."Estragon asks Pozzo whyLucky doesn't put down hisbags and Vladimir encouragesEstragon to ask Lucky himself.Lucky doesn't reply, but Pozzosays he will tell them.

Pozzo is perhaps also lonely,eager to encounter new people.Vladimir wants to leave, but feelsobligated to stay and wait forGodot (though no one is forcinghim to).

22 55



Pozzo prepares to speak andmakes sure everyone islistening (jerking the ropearound Lucky's neck to makehim pay attention). He pausesto think and then asks whatthe question was. Estragonand Vladimir remind him.Pozzo says that Lucky has theright to "make himselfcomfortable," so the onlyreason why he doesn't must bethat he doesn't want to. Hesays Lucky doesn't want to,because he wants to impressPozzo, so that Pozzo will "keephim."

Pozzo makes everyone payattention but then comicallyforgets what he was going to say.Pozzo's explanation for whyLucky endures such horribletreatment is absurd, yet it isreminiscent of arguments madeby other slaveholders. Forinstance, Southern slave ownersoften argued that their slaveswere better off for being slaves,or pointed to slave songs asindications of their slaves beinghappy as slaves.

11 33 55

Vladimir and Estragon areconfused, wondering whyPozzo would get rid of Lucky.Pozzo repeats that Luckywants to show how well hecarries things so that Pozzowill keep him. But, Pozzo says,Lucky actually carries things"like a pig." He says that he hasplenty of slaves and cries out,"Atlas, son of Jupiter!"

Pozzo inverts the entire logic ofslavery, asserting that Lucky actslike a slave because he wants tobe Pozzo's slave, which seemsludicrous. Atlas is not the son ofJupiter, suggesting that theknowledge and authority Pozzoprojects are based on falsepremises.

33 55

Vladimir again asks if Pozzowants to get rid of Lucky.Pozzo says he is on his way tothe fair to sell Lucky, but that itwould be better just to kill him.Lucky begins to weep, andPozzo says, "old dogs havemore dignity." Pozzo gives hishandkerchief to Estragon andtells him to wipe away Lucky'stears. Estragon hesitates, soVladimir says he'll do it. Thetwo fight over thehandkerchief.

Pozzo cruelly comments onLucky's lack of dignity, caused byhis suffering at Pozzo's ownhands. Vladimir and Estragonabsurdly fight over the right towipe away Lucky's tears—it isnever explained why either ofthem should care who does this.

11 55

Estragon walks up to Luckywith the handkerchief, butLucky kicks him in the shins.Pozzo shouts for thehandkerchief, which Luckypicks up and returns to him.Meanwhile, Estragon's leg isbleeding, and he cries out thathe can hardly walk. Vladimirsays he'll carry Estragon, "ifnecessary." Pozzo notes thatLucky has stopped crying andjokes that Estragon hasreplaced Lucky. "The tears ofthe world are a constantquantity," he says.

Should we see Lucky's kickingEstragon as some light slapstickcomedy or as a continuation ofthe haunting world of sufferingthat pervades the play? As istypical of Beckett's dark humor,the answer is a mix of both.Pozzo sees the suffering of theworld as a constant, unavoidablefact (though this may also justjustify his own role in inflictingabuse on others that mightcreate tears).

11 55

Pozzo says that "ourgeneration" is no unhappierthan any previous one and saysthat Lucky taught him that. Hesays that he took Lucky as aslave 60 years ago andVladimir is astonished that hewould turn away "such an oldand faithful servant." Vladimirsays that Pozzo is throwingLucky away "like a bananaskin."

Pozzo characterizes theunspecified time of the play as nounhappier than any other time.This can be taken optimistically(the present time is just as happyas any other) or morepessimistically (all other timeshave been as bleak as this one).Vladimir is again upset byLucky's suffering.

33 44 55

Pozzo mumbles that he "can'tbear it" with Lucky and that heis going crazy. Vladimir andEstragon repeat his words,and then Vladimir turns toLucky accusingly, telling himhis behavior is "abominable"toward "such a good master."Pozzo begins to cry, saying thatLucky "used to be so kind...sohelpful...and entertaining."Vladimir and Estragon wonderwhether Lucky wants a newslave to take his place or not.

Pozzo imposes suffering onLucky but presents himself as thevictim of his own slave's changein behavior. Vladimir abruptlyshifts from scolding Pozzo tochastising Lucky, suggesting thatVladimir dislikes abuse butdoesn't actually have the abilityto separate real abuse from false.This is not to say that Pozzo isfaking his sadness, but ratherthat his sadness is, on somefundamental level, illegitimate.

11 33 55



Pozzo collects himself andsays there wasn't "a word oftruth" in what he just said. "DoI look like a man that can bemade to suffer?" he asks.Vladimir and Estragoncomment on how "charming"and "unforgettable" theirevening has been. Pozzo triesto find his pipe, which he hasmisplaced, while Vladimirleaves the stage momentarily.

Pozzo shifts emotions with comicabruptness. His rhetoricalquestion is meant to imply thathe cannot be made to suffer, butclearly (as we have just seen) hecan.

11 55

Pozzo is distraught at havinglost his pipe and begins to askVladimir if he has seen it,before he notices that Vladimirhas left without sayinggoodbye. Estragon tells Pozzoto get up and look atsomething. He points off in thedistance and says, "it's all over."Vladimir returns, angry, andkicks over Pozzo's stool. Hecalms down and asks, "willnight never come?"

Estragon's vague comment ofdespair ("it's all over,") is all themore bleak for how vague it is: itcould apply to anything, fromEstragon's hopes for a better lifeto all of human history. Vladimiris beginning to get angry fromwaiting all day for Godot.

22 33

Pozzo says he understandsand that he wouldn't want toleave before nightfall either ifhe were waiting for Godot. Hesays he'd like to sit down on hisstool again, but doesn't knowhow. Estragon offers to helpand Pozzo tells him to ask himto sit down. Estragon asksPozzo to sit down and he does.

Pozzo's inability to sit downunless asked to is absurd andhumorous, but is also anotherexample of charactersconstrained by seeminglynothing, but constrainednonetheless.

11 33

Pozzo says he must be going,because of his schedule,though Vladimir says, "timehas stopped." Pozzo disagrees,then says he will tell Vladimirand Estragon about twilight.He prepares to speak and asksfor everyone's attention. Hecracks his whip to get Lucky'sattention then throws downthe whip, saying it is worn out.Pozzo forgets what he wasgoing to talk about.

Vladimir's comment that timehas stopped characterizes therepetitive, recursive way timefunctions in the play. Pozzo againcalls for everyone's attention andthen comically forgets what hewanted to say.

11 44

Vladimir again suggests heand Estragon leave. Pozzoasks Estragon what his nameis, and Estragon says it isAdam. Pozzo remembers thathe wanted to talk about thenight. He tells everyone to lookup at the sky and describes itsshifting colors lyrically. Then,he describes how night"burst[s] upon us," saying,"that's how it is on this bitch ofan earth."

Whether Estragon is playing withPozzo or actually thinks his nameis Adam, his reply to Pozzosuggests the instability ofindividuals' identities in the play.Adam, of course, is also the nameof the Biblical first man in Eden,a condition that is almost theopposite of Estragon's.

11 55

Vladimir says that he andEstragon can simply bide theirtime and wait. He says they areused to it. Pozzo asks themwhat they thought of hisspeech: "Good? Middling?Poor? Positively bad?" Theycompliment his speaking.Estragon and Vladimirdescribe their boredom,waiting while "nothinghappens."

Pozzo's asking for feedback onhis speech is somewhat silly andhumorous. After the momentarydistraction of some conversation,Vladimir and Estragon are againbored, returning again to theconclusion that "nothinghappens."

11 22

Pozzo says that since Vladimirand Estragon have been civilto him, he wonders if there isanything he can do to helpthem, since they are "havingsuch a dull, dull time." Estragonasks for money, thoughVladimir is offended and saysthey are not beggars. Pozzoconcludes that he has doneenough just by talking toVladimir and Estragon forsome time.

Estragon has no shame in askingfor money, whereas Vladimir seesthis as beneath their dignity.Pozzo's self-satisfied conclusionthat he has given them the gift ofhis speaking is absurd, but tosome degree true—he hasdistracted them from their "dull,dull" waiting.

11 22 55

Pozzo pulls on Lucky's rope,picks up the whip, and askswhether Estragon andVladimir want Lucky to dance,sing, recite, or think. He saysthat Lucky can think out loudfor hours. Estragon says he'drather see Lucky dance, butVladimir wants to hear Luckythink. Estragon suggests theyhave Lucky dance first, andthen think. Pozzo says Luckyonly refused to dance once.

Vladimir is apparently no longertroubled by Lucky's suffering, ashe is eager to be entertained byhis dancing and thinking. Theidea of Lucky thinking oncommand for entertainment isparticularly odd and absurd,though Estragon and Vladimirtreat it as perfectly ordinary.



Lucky dances. Pozzo saysLucky used to be able to dancebetter. He asks if Estragon andVladimir know what Lucky'sdance is called. Estragonguesses "The Scapegoat'sAgony," while Vladimir guesses"The Hard Stool." Pozzo saysthe dance is called "The Net,"because Lucky thinks he'sentangled in a net.

Estragon's guess at the dance'sname points to Lucky's status asa scapegoat, the person onwhom Pozzo takes out his ownunhappiness. Vladimir's guess isa crude pun. Pozzo's suggests thepervasive sense of entrapmentthat all the characters feel.

11 33 55

Estragon asks about the timeLucky refused to dance. Pozzoprepares to speak, thenforgets what he was going tosay. Estragon and Vladimir tryto remember, as well. Estragonthinks maybe he was going tosay why Lucky doesn't putdown his bags. Vladimir saysPozzo already answered thatquestion. In any case, Vladimirnotes that Lucky has put hisbags down in order to dance.

All three characters are comicallyunable to remember what theywere just talking about. It is thiskind of forgetfulness that allowsfor the play's repetitive sense oftime.

11 44

Estragon laments the fact that"nothing happens, nobodycomes, nobody goes." Vladimirasks Pozzo to tell Lucky tothink. Pozzo says Lucky needshis hat first, which has fallenoff during the dance. Estragondoesn't want to give Lucky hishat and asks Pozzo to orderLucky to fetch it, but Pozzowants someone to give it tohim. Vladimir picks up Lucky'shat and offers it to him, butPozzo says he must place it onLucky's head.

Estragon and Vladimirperiodically return to the bluntfact that nothing happens intheir lives. Estragon's commentcould easily be spoken by one ofBeckett's audience members,watching a play in which nothinghappens. Meanwhile, Pozzo andLucky's absurd antics continue.

11 22

Vladimir puts the hat onLucky's head, but Lucky doesnothing. Pozzo jerks the ropearound his neck and ordershim to think. Lucky begins tospeak, but Pozzo stops him andorders him to back up, thenturn to face the audience. Heorders him to think again.Lucky delivers a long,nonsensical speech marked byrepeated syllables("Acacacacademy") andpseudo-academic language.

The idea of Lucky thinking oncommand is humorous, but theway in which Pozzo orders Luckyaround is cruel. The combinationof Lucky's suffering and hisridiculous speech create anuncomfortable absurdity.

11 55

As Lucky continues, he beginsdescribing repeatedlymountains, rivers, air, fire,stones, and the sea. He repeatsphrases nonsensically,including "in spite of thetennis," and the other threecharacters begin to find hisspeech annoying and painful.They throw themselves on topof Lucky to stop him fromtalking, and Vladimir finallytakes his hat away. Lucky fallssilent. Pozzo snatches the hatand stomps on it, proclaiming,"There's an end to histhinking!"

Lucky's speech is absurd andmostly unintelligible. It is neverexplained why Lucky's ability tothink out loud is bizarrelydependent on his wearing hishat.

11

Pozzo kicks Lucky and callshim a pig again. He asksVladimir and Estragon to helppick Lucky up and hold himsteady. They let go of him andhe falls, so they pick him upagain. Pozzo puts his bag andbasket back in Lucky's hands,and Lucky regains his balance,so that Vladimir and Estragoncan let go of him. Pozzo thanksthe two and prepares to leave,but realizes he has misplacedhis watch.

Lucky can only stand when heholds Pozzo's things. He isparadoxically dependent uponhis own servitude and suffering.Similarly, Vladimir and Estragonrely upon Godot, who, since henever arrives, is also the source oftheir torturous boredom.

11 33 55



Pozzo calls for silence and he,Estragon, and Vladimir listento see if they can hear theticking of the watch. Pozzoasks which of the two smells sobad and Estragon answers thathis feet stink, but Vladimir'sbreath does. Pozzo decides toleave, reasoning that he musthave left his watch "at themanor."

The missing watch couldsymbolize the absence of anormal system of time in theplay. One of the ways Beckettcreates his absurd humor is byundercutting serious momentswith physical humor like thecharacters' bad smells, whichalso highlights that just asVladimir and Estragon aretrapped on stage, people aretrapped in their bodies.

11 44

The three characters say"adieu" but no one moves.They say it again and politelybid farewell to each other oncemore. No one moves. Pozzosays that he seems to beunable to leave. Estragon says,"such is life." Pozzo backs awayfrom Lucky, and then, holdingonto the rope, cracks his whipand orders Lucky to move.Lucky begins to move, withPozzo following after.

The characters comically repeat"adieu" over and over again butare inexplicably unable to move.They seem to be somehowtrapped by their own free will."Adieu," literally means "to God,"so there may be some ironicwordplay here: is there even aGod in this world for thecharacters to go to?

11 33

As Pozzo is about to leave thestage, he calls for his stool andVladimir gets it and gives it tohim. Pozzo, Vladimir, andEstragon say "adieu" again andPozzo leaves, shouting atLucky. Vladimir says that thisencounter with Pozzo andLucky passed the time, andEstragon asks what theyshould do now. Vladimirdoesn't know, so Estragonsuggests they leave, butVladimir says they can't, sincethey are waiting for Godot.

While uneventful, the meetingwith Pozzo and Lucky at leastdistracted Vladimir and Estragonfrom their boredom. Now theyare alone and bored again.Unable to leave, the charactersare trapped here by their ownsense of hope. Ironically, if theywere to give up hope of Godot'sarrival, they might be free toleave.

11 22 33

Vladimir comments on howmuch Pozzo and Lucky hadchanged. Estragon is confused,because they did not know thispair before, but Vladimirassures him they did and saysthat Estragon forgetseverything. Estragon asks whyLucky and Pozzo didn'trecognize them, if they kneweach other, but Vladimir says,"That means nothing. I toopretended not to recognizethem."

Vladimir is able to recognizepeople from his past, whereasEstragon's constant forgetfulnessmeans he lives life in a kind ofperpetual present. In pretendingnot to recognize Lucky andPozzo, Vladimir perpetuates thecycle of characters refusing orfailing to acknowledge otherpeople's humanity and identity.

44 55

Estragon's one foot with theboot still on begins to hurt,while Vladimir ponderswhether Lucky and Pozzowere the same people he knewfrom before, or different. Aboy calls from off-stage andenters. Estragon and Vladimiryell at him to approach. Theboy says he has a messagefrom Mr. Godot. Estragon askswhy the boy is so late, and theboy says it's not his fault.

Vladimir's confusion over Luckyand Pozzo's identities is linked toa confusion over time: is this daymerely a repetition of theprevious one, or is it a new daywith different people? It is likelythe former, as act two will imply(by being very similar to act one).

44

The boy says he was afraid ofLucky and Pozzo, which is whyhe is late. Vladimir asks if theboy knows Lucky and Pozzoand whether he is from "theseparts." The boy doesn't knowthem, but is from the area.Estragon doesn't believe theboy and shakes him angrily, butVladimir tells him to calmdown.

Although the boy might beanother companion or might atleast have a useful message fromGodot, Estragon greets himangrily and violently.

55

Estragon lets go of the boyand covers his face, tellingVladimir that he has beenunhappy for longer than he canremember. Vladimir asks theboy to deliver his message andwhether he has seen the boybefore. The boy says no, andVladimir asks if it was not himwho came the day before. Theboy says it wasn't him.

Again, Vladimir is attempting toascertain to what degree his lifeis merely repeating itself, with thesame people appearing every dayand doing the same things.

44



The boy finally delivers hismessage: "Mr. Godot told meto tell you that he won't comethis evening but surelytomorrow." Vladimir asks if theboy works for Godot, and theboy says he does; he looksafter the goats. He says Godotis good and doesn't beat him,though he does beat the boy'sbrother, who minds the sheep.He says Godot feeds him well.Vladimir asks if the boy ishappy, and the boy is unsure.

Godot's arrival is the entire pointof the characters' waiting and ofBeckett's play itself. Therevelation that he will not comeis at once frustrating, funny, andsad. From the boy's description,it is unclear whether Godot isreally a way towards freedom ormerely another form ofdomination, as he seems to bethe boy's master.

11 22 33

Vladimir tells the boy he canleave, and the boy asks whatmessage he should bring backto Godot. He asks the boy totell Godot that he saw them.The boy leaves, as night comes.Estragon looks at the moon,saying that it is "pale forweariness." He leaves both hisboots on the ground, sayingthat "another will come, justas...as...as me, but with smallerfeet, and they'll make himhappy."

Vladimir's message to Godotshows what he desperatelywants: some acknowledgment ofhis identity and humanity. Hewants to be recognized, incontrast to all of the times thatcharacters like Lucky and Pozzodon't recognize him, day afterday.

55

Vladimir tells Estragon hecan't go on with bare feet, andEstragon says that Christ did.Vladimir thinks Estragon isridiculous to compare himselfto Christ. Vladimir says theyhave nothing to do here, butsays that tomorrow will bebetter, because Godot willcome tomorrow. Estragon saysthat they should wait here,then, but Vladimir says theymust take cover during thenight.

Vladimir does not escape thetrap of waiting for Godot, as heeagerly looks forward totomorrow, when he is convincedthat Godot will finally come. Inthe play's Postmodern setting,comparisons to Christ or otherBiblical characters are deemedridiculous.

11 22 33

Estragon looks at the tree andsays it's a pity they don't haveany rope. He asks Vladimir toremind him to bring ropetomorrow. He asks Vladimirhow long they've beentogether, and Vladimir guessesfifty years. Estragon wondersaloud if they would have beenbetter off alone, rather thantogether.

The characters' nonchalantconsideration of hangingthemselves is eerily absurd. ByVladimir's reckoning, he andEstragon have been repeatingthe same things over and overagain for fifty years.

11 44

Estragon says he and Vladimir"weren't made for the sameroad." Vladimir says that it isnot certain and tells Estragonthat they can still part now, ifhe'd like to. Estragon says it'snot worth it. Estragon asks ifthey should go and Vladimirsays, "Yes, let's go," but neithermove.

Vladimir and Estragon ultimatelydecide to stay together ascompanions. The act ends with afinal absurd gesture, as thecharacters are inexplicablytrapped in their places, despitetheir willingness to leave now.

11 33 55

ACT 2Act 2 begins the next day, atthe same time and in the sameplace. Estragon's boots are stillon the ground. Vladimirenters, examines one ofEstragon's boots, and thenbegins to sing. He sings anonsensical song about a dogwho steals a crust of breadfrom a kitchen and then isbeaten to death.

Act two will repeat many of theevents of act one, showing howtime operates repetitively in theplay. Vladimir's nonsensical songis humorous, but alsotragic—Lucky and Estragon arenot so different from the song'ssuffering, physically abused dog.

11 44 55

Estragon enters and Vladimirtries to embrace him, butEstragon pushes him away.Vladimir asks where Estragonspent the night and whether"they" beat him. Estragon tellsVladimir not to touch him orask him questions, butVladimir tells Estragon to lookat him. They look at each otherand then embrace.

While Estragon is at firstindignant, he soon embracesVladimir, his only companionamid all his suffering (physicaland otherwise).

55



Estragon remarks, "What aday!" and Vladimir tells himthe day isn't over yet. Estragontells him he heard his singingand Vladimir says, "one is notmaster of one's moods," andthat he has felt good today. Hetells Estragon he missed himlast night, but was happy at thesame time.

Vladimir's assertion that he isnot in control of his own moods isboth absurd and an evaluation ofthe radical lack of freedom in thebleak world he inhabits, and,again, a suggestion that peopleare in some sense controlled bytheir bodies as opposed to theother way around—that life itselfis a kind of prison.

11 33

Estragon says he too feelsbetter alone. Vladimir askshim why he keeps "crawlingback" then, and suggests it'sbecause Estragon can't defendhimself. He says he would havestopped "them" from beatingEstragon. Estragon saysVladimir couldn't have stoppedthem, because there were tenof them.

As Vladimir claims, Estragon isdependent on him. However, healso relies on Estragon. The twocompanions are codependentand lonely without each other.

55

Vladimir says that he wouldhave stopped Estragon fromdoing whatever he did toprovoke the beating, butEstragon says he wasn't doinganything, and he doesn't knowwhy he was beaten. Vladimirsays that something he wasdoing or something in the wayhe was doing it must havecaused the beating, butEstragon insists, "I wasn'tdoing anything."

Estragon was beaten for noreason, in line with the absurd,unexplained suffering of the restof the play. Such sufferinghappens for no reason at all; ithappens just because you arealive.

11 55

Vladimir says that Estragonmust be happy now that theyare together again. Estragon isnot sure but Vladimir has himrepeat the words, "I am happy."Estragon then asks, "What dowe do now, now that we arehappy?" and Vladimir suggeststhey wait for Godot. Estragonwonders what will happen ifGodot doesn't come, butVladimir says that things aredifferent today than yesterday.

Estragon suddenly and bizarrelyshifts emotions and agrees thathe is happy. Just as in act one,Estragon again asks Vladimirwhat they should do andVladimir again answers that theyshould do nothing, but simplywait.

11 22 44

Vladimir tells Estragon to lookat the nearby tree. Estragonasks if it was there yesterdayand Vladimir says it was.Estragon tells him he "dreamtit," but Vladimir says he mayhave just forgotten about it.He asks Estragon if he forgotabout Pozzo and Lucky, aswell, and Estragon asks whothey are.

Estragon's absurd forgetfulnessallows time to repeat itself in theplay, as he forgets that he hasalready been in this same place,doing the same thing (waiting),and encountering the samepeople.

11 22 44

Estragon remembers "alunatic" who kicked his shinsand a man who gave him abone. Vladimir tells him thosepeople were Lucky and Pozzo.Estragon asks if this allhappened yesterday at thisvery place and Vladimir isamazed that Estragon doesn'trecognize the place. Estragonis suddenly upset, asking,"What is there to recognize?"

Unlike Estragon, Vladimir has amemory of the past and so canrealize that they are trapped in alife that keeps repeating itself.Estragon's question implies thatthere is nothing worthrecognizing in the world, a deeplynihilistic sentiment.

22 44

Vladimir mentions "the Maconcountry," but Estragon sayshe's never been there. He sayshe's "puked my puke of a lifeaway here...in the Cackoncountry," though Vladimir sayshe thought they were togetherin the Macon country, pickinggrapes for a man whose namehe cannot remember. Estragonsays this is possible.

Again, Estragon has no memoryof the past. This means that healso lacks a sense of his ownidentity, of who he is, because hecan't remember anything abouthis life.

44 55

Estragon says that thingswould be better if he andVladimir parted. Vladimir saysthat Estragon always says this,but always comes back to him.Estragon tells him it would bebest to kill him, "like the other."Vladimir asks who he isreferring to, and Estragonanswers, "like billions ofothers." He tells Vladimir thatthey should talk in themeantime.

Estragon keeps repeating himself,saying that he will leave Vladimir,though he never does. Hisreference to billions of peoplekilled is absurd because it isnever explained or mentionedagain, but suggests that sufferingis widespread in thisworld—everyone, after all, dies.

11 33 44 55



Estragon says that they shouldtalk so they don't hear "all thedead voices," that talk abouttheir lives, making a noise thatsounds like feathers, leaves, orashes. There is a long pause,and Vladimir urges Estragonto say something, "anything atall!" Estragon asks what theyshould do, and Vladimir againanswers that they should waitfor Godot.

When Estragon and Vladimirstop talking, they must confrontthe emptiness of their lives—thefact that they have nothing to dobut wait for Godot. Thus they arecompelled to fill their time withabsurd, often nonsensicalconversation.

11 22

The two struggle to findsomething to talk about.Vladimir says "it's the startthat's difficult." He asksEstragon to help him findsomething to talk about, andEstragon tells him he's trying.The two disagree overwhether listening preventsone from thinking. Estragonsuggests they ask each otherquestions. Vladimir suddenlyasks, "Where are all thesecorpses from?"

The two characters are ironicallytalking about how they havenothing to talk about. ButBeckett quickly mixes thiscomedy with Vladimir's deeplytroubling and unexplainedreference to corpses.

11

Vladimir says that "to havethought" is the worst thing ofall, and the two ponderwhether they have everthought. Estragon commentsthat they are talking well now,but Vladimir notes that nowthey need to find somethingelse to talk about. They bothconcentrate during a longsilence.

Just like talking about not beingable to talk, thinking aboutwhether one has ever thought isironic and funny. Vladimir andEstragon desperately seeksomething to talk about torelieve their intense boredom.

11 22

Vladimir asks what they weretalking about at the beginningof the evening, and recalls theopening of act two, when theyembraced and were happy. Hetells Estragon to look at thetree and notes that it hasleaves, whereas yesterday itwas bare. He is shocked thatthe leaves appeared overnight,and Estragon sees this as proofthat they weren't actually herethe previous day.

The tree's sudden leaves furtherdisrupt Vladimir's sense of time,seemingly contradicting thenatural cycle of the seasons. Thistemporal disorientation causesEstragon to continue tomisunderstand time and notbelieve that he was here the daybefore.

44

Vladimir accepts, for themoment, that they were not inthis place the previous day, andasks Estragon what they didthe previous night, then.Estragon says they "blathered,"about "nothing in particular."He says this has been going onfor fifty years now. Vladimirasks if he remembers the sunand the moon, Lucky andPozzo. Estragon remembersthe bones Pozzo gave him andwhen Lucky kicked him.

For fifty years, apparently,Vladimir and Estragon have beendoing nothing, as well as talkingabout nothing. (But, given thestrangeness of time in the play, itis unclear whether we shouldtake this measure of timeliterally.)

22 44

Vladimir lifts up the legs ofEstragon's pants and sees thewound from Lucky's kick,which would suggest that theywere here yesterday. He asksEstragon where his boots are,and Estragon doesn't know. Hesays he threw them awaybecause they were hurting.Vladimir spots the boots andsays they are exactly wherethey were left yesterday.

Unlike Estragon, who accepts hisstrange disorientation in timeand space, Vladimir tries to pindown exactly where and whenthey are, and whether it's thesame place they were yesterday.The boots seem proof of this.

33 44

Estragon says the boots arenot his, because they are notthe right color. Vladimir sayssomeone must have takenEstragon's boots and left theseother ones. Estragon says he'stired and wants to leave, butVladimir says they can't—theyhave to wait here for Godot.Estragon asks what they willdo, and Vladimir says there'snothing they can do.

Yet Estragon's comment that theboots aren't his raises questions:does Estragon even reallyremember the color of his boots?Did someone simply replace theboots? Is it possible they are in aslightly different reality than theywere in act one? Estragon repeatshimself again, wanting to leaveand Vladimir must remind himthat they are stuck here waitingfor Godot, with nothing to do.

22 44

Vladimir asks if Estragonwould like a radish or turnip.Estragon asks if there are anycarrots; Vladimir says thereare not. He finds a radish in hispocket and gives it to Estragon.Estragon rejects the radish,and says he'll go get a carrot,but he doesn't move at all.

This scene repeats a similar onefrom act one, but with a radishinstead of a carrot. Thediscrepancy between Estragonsaying he will go find a carrot andstanding still is humorous.

11 44



Vladimir suggests thatEstragon try on the boots. Hesays it would at least pass thetime, and that he'll helpEstragon put them on. Hepicks up one of the boots andEstragon raises up his foot.They struggle to get it on, butfinally do. Estragon says theboot fits. They put the otherboot on, and Estragon says theboots don't hurt, at least "notyet." He says they are too big,but Vladimir responds that hemight get socks one day.

Vladimir is willing to helpEstragon in order to ease hisboredom. His comment aboutthe socks is silly and comical, butat the same time pathetic—themost Estragon can hope for is tofind socks some day. NowEstragon can wait for socks justlike he waits for Godot.

11 22

Estragon sits down and wisheshe could sleep. He tries tosleep, but Vladimir tells him towait and begins singing loudly,repeating the word "bye."Estragon falls asleep, thenwakes up and is startled.Vladimir comforts him.Estragon begins to describehis dream, but Vladimir stopshim. He tells Estragon to "walkit off," and the two walk aroundthe stage, until Estragon sayshe's tired. He says he'd ratherdo nothing than walk.

Vladimir and Estragon both needeach other as companions. Here,Vladimir comforts Estragon afterhis dream. After walking aroundthe stage, the characters returnto doing nothing. It is not entirelyclear why Vladimir doesn't wantto hear Estragon's dream—it maybe that such a thing is just toointimate to share in the realm ofthe play.

22 55

Estragon wants to leave, butVladimir reminds him thatthey must stay and wait forGodot. Vladimir says Godotwill come at nightfall. Estragonsays after the night, it will beday again, and asks, "What'llwe do, what'll we do!" Vladimirtells him to stop complaining.

Estragon begins to wonder whatwill happen after Godot arrives,after the thing they have beenwaiting for happens. Vladimirrefuses to engage in suchspeculation.

22 44

Estragon announces that he isgoing to leave. Vladimir seesLucky's hat from yesterdaylying on the ground. Thisconfirms for him that they arein the right place. He givesEstragon his hat and tries onLucky's. Estragon puts onVladimir's hat and gives hisown to Vladimir, who puts it oninstead of Lucky's, which hegives to Estragon. Estragonputs on Lucky's hat, andVladimir puts his own hat backon before giving Estragon hishat back. They exchange thehats back and forth.

The exchange of hats back andforth playfully encapsulates theinstability of identities in thisplay where characters fail orrefuse to recognize each otherand acknowledge othercharacters' humanity.

55

Vladimir asks Estragon howhe looks in Lucky's hat.Estragon says he looks"hideous," and Vladimir asks ifhe looks more or less hideousthan usual. Estragon says"neither more nor less," andVladimir says Estragon cankeep the hat, then. Estragonsays he is going to leave, andVladimir asks if he wants to"play at Pozzo and Lucky." Heimitates Lucky and asksEstragon to act like Pozzo.

The idea that someone inVladimir's desperate positionwould care so much about hisappearance is rather absurd andcomical. Vladimir's idea to actlike Pozzo and Lucky raises thequestion of to what degree any ofthe characters has a stableidentity aside from a similar kindof "playing." It also brings up thequestion of the power dynamicsbetween any two people, giventhat the dynamic between Pozzoand Lucky is that of master toslave.

11 55

Vladimir encourages Estragonto yell at him like Pozzo.Estragon shouts, "Think, pig!"at Vladimir, who says hecannot. He asks Estragon tocommand him to dance, butEstragon says he's leaving.Vladimir pretends to be bothPozzo and Lucky. Estragonleaves for a moment and thencomes back. They embrace andVladimir says, "There you areagain at last!"

When Estragon leaves even forjust a moment, Vladimirbecomes intensely lonely. Whilehe earlier asserted that Estragonneeded him, we now see that thetwo companions need eachother. They are "tied" to eachother.

55



Estragon says "they" arecoming but doesn't know whothey are or how many of themthere are. Vladimir excitedlysays that it must be Godot. Heshouts, "We're saved!"Vladimir pulls Estragon towardthe edge of the stage, butEstragon leaves by himself. Hereturns immediately and thetwo embrace again. Estragonsays that "they" are coming,and Vladimir says he andEstragon are surrounded.

Vladimir is again lonely whenEstragon leaves for hardly anytime. The anonymous "they"keep Estragon and Vladimir in astate of fear and paranoia,though it is not clear who theyare (or if they are even real).

33 55

Vladimir tells Estragon hisonly hope is to disappear. Hetells Estragon to hide behindthe tree. Estragon hidesbehind it, but realizes the treedoes not cover him completely.Estragon asks Vladimir what todo, and he answers, "there'snothing to do."

Estragon's lame attempt athiding behind the tree is comical.There is nothing for Vladimir andhim to do in this situation, or ingeneral.

11 22

Estragon brings Vladimir tothe right edge of the stage andtells him to be on the lookout.He does the same at the leftedge. He asks if Vladimir seesanything coming. Neither ofthem does. They try to speakat the same time and eachpolitely tell the other to speakfirst. Their back-and-forthpoliteness turns into anargument, and Estragonenthusiastically suggests thatthey pass the time insultingeach other.

The characters' exaggeratedpoliteness is absurd and funny, aswell as an abrupt change ofmood. They suddenly don't seemvery worried about the peopleEstragon thought he heardcoming. Are they really indanger? The audience doesn'tknow what to take seriously andwhat to laugh at.

11

They insult each other backand forth and then Estragondecides it's time to make up.They embrace. "How time flieswhen one has fun!" musesVladimir. Estragon asks whatthey should do now, andVladimir suggests theycontinue waiting. He says theycould do some exercises. Theyhop from one foot to the other,standing in place. Vladimirsuggests they "do the tree,"balancing on one foot.

Vladimir and Estragon bizarrelyhave fun throwing insults backand forth. But, after this briefentertainment they return totheir usual activity of waiting anddoing nothing. Their desire to bedoing anything at all leads totheir absurd activities, like "doingthe tree."

11 22

Pozzo and Lucky enter. Luckyhas the rope around his neckas before, and is carrying thesame things, but now Pozzo isblind, following closely behindLucky. Lucky stops when hesees Estragon and Vladimir,and Pozzo continue walkinguntil he bumps into Lucky.Pozzo asks who it is, and Luckyfalls down, bringing Pozzodown with him.

Pozzo and Lucky arrive, just likeyesterday, though now Pozzo isblind. While Lucky is underPozzo's control, Pozzo now relieson Lucky, since he can't see. Theircodependent relationship iscomparable to thecompanionship of Vladimir andEstragon.

44 55

Estragon asks if this is Godot.Vladimir says,"Reinforcements at last!" Hesays that now they will surelymake it through the evening.Pozzo asks for help. Vladimirsays that he and Estragon arefinally no longer alone, andthat now time "flows againalready." Estragon says heknew it was Godot, butVladimir corrects him: it'sPozzo. Pozzo, meanwhile, isstill lying on the ground, askingfor help. Estragon wants toleave, but Vladimir tells himthey are still waiting for Godot.

Vladimir sees the arrival of Pozzoand Lucky as an opportunity tobe distracted from his boredom.With them, time seems to "flowagain." Estragon does notrecognize Pozzo and ignores hisplea for help. Vladimir mustremind Estragon yet again thatthey have to stay and wait forGodot.

11 22 44 55



Vladimir says that Pozzomight have another chickenbone for Estragon, andsuggests that they help him up.Estragon asks why Pozzo can'tget up and Vladimir says hedoesn't know. Pozzo writheson the ground, unable to standup. Estragon suggests thatthey ask Pozzo for a bonebefore helping him. Vladimiragrees, but worries that Luckymight "get going," and stopthem from taking advantage ofPozzo in this way.

Pozzo's inability to get up issomewhat comic as well as tragicand pathetic. Whereas Vladimirwas sympathetic to Lucky in actone, here he and Estragon areindifferent to Pozzo's sufferingand seek to get something out ofhelping him up.

11 55

Confused, Estragon asks whoLucky is, and Vladimir remindshim of how Lucky kickedEstragon the previous day. Hepoints to Lucky, who ismotionless. Estragon asks ifthey should beat Lucky, andVladimir says that sounds like agood idea, but he isn't sure ifLucky is asleep or not. He saysit would be better "to takeadvantage of Pozzo's callingfor help."

Estragon fails to recognizeLucky's identity. Vladimir andEstragon have gone from doingnothing to stop the suffering ofLucky and Pozzo to plotting tohelp continue their suffering.

55

Pozzo continues to cry out forhelp. Vladimir says that he andEstragon should "dosomething, while we have thechance." He ponders thesituation and whether he andEstragon are needed. Hewonders aloud what they aredoing here, and then says thatthe answer is that they arewaiting for Godot, or at leastfor nightfall. He says he andEstragon have kept theirappointment. Pozzo again criesout for help.

Vladimir rightly concludes thatall he and Estragon are doing iswaiting. His absurd, ramblingthoughts take precedence overhelping a fellow suffering human.Waiting for Godot interferes withhelping a fellow in trouble.

11 22 55

Vladimir continues to talk, soPozzo shouts that he'll paysomeone to help him. Estragonasks how much. He says he'dpay one hundred francs, andEstragon says this isn'tenough. Pozzo offers twohundred francs. Vladimir saysthey are "bored to death." Hedoesn't want to let thispotential "diversion" go towaste, so he tries to helpPozzo up, but fails severaltimes and falls down. He asksEstragon to help, but Estragonsays he's leaving.

Vladimir thought taking moneyfrom Pozzo was beneath hisdignity in act one, but now he isready to take money in return forhelping Pozzo, if only so he hassomething to do while he is"bored to death." In trying tohelp, Vladimir falls down himself,a pathetic but darkly comicdevelopment.

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Vladimir begs Estragon not toleave. He and Pozzo both askEstragon for help. Vladimirpromises that he will leavewith Estragon if he will helpPozzo and him. Estragon asksif they can leave and nevercome back. Vladimir says theycan go wherever he wants, ifhe helps.

Vladimir is so desperate not tolose Estragon (and to get up fromthe ground) that he evenpromises to abandon waiting forGodot.

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Estragon again says he's goingto leave. Vladimir says he'lljust get up himself, but he isunable to. Estragon asks ifVladimir is going to stay here,and finally extends a hand tohelp him up. Vladimir pulls onEstragon's hand while trying toget up, and Estragon falls, aswell.

Vladimir's unexplained inabilityto get up is absurd, but can alsobe seen as a comment onPostmodern life, with Vladimirtrapped, but yet constrained byno one in particular. And anyeffort to help, as Estragon does,results in even more peoplegetting trapped.

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Pozzo asks who Estragon andVladimir are, and Vladimiranswers that they are men.Vladimir asks Estragon if hecan get up, and he says hedoesn't know, but he can't atthe moment. Estragonsuggests they sleep whilethey're stuck on the ground.Pozzo continues to cry out,"Pity! Pity!" and Vladimir hitshim to shut him up. Pozzobegins to crawl away, and thencollapses. Estragon asks,"What do we do now?"

Like Estragon, Pozzo does notremember yesterday and thusfails to recognize Estragon andVladimir. Pozzo's crawlingaround on the ground is astrange mix of slapstick comedyand pathetic suffering. Vladimirresponds to this sufferingviolently.

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Vladimir says he could crawlover to Pozzo, but Estragondoesn't want Vladimir to leavehim. They both call over toPozzo, but he doesn't respond.Estragon asks if Vladimir issure that Pozzo is the rightname. Vladimir says he thinksPozzo is dying. Estragon says itwould be fun to try calling outdifferent names, to see ifPozzo might respond, butVladimir says that he is surethe man's name is Pozzo.

Now it is Estragon whoirrationally fears losing Vladimir,showing that the two rely oneach other mutually. Estragon iscomically enthusiastic abouttrying different names for Pozzo,whom he still fails to recognizefrom the previous day.

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Estragon shouts, "Abel! Abel!"and Pozzo cries out for help.Estragon thinks Abel is theright name. He thinks Luckymight be called Cain, andshouts this name out loud.Pozzo shouts for help again.Estragon suggests he andVladimir find a new topic ofconversation, but neither canthink of anything to talk about.Estragon suggests they try toget up, and they both get upeasily. Pozzo shouts for helpyet again.

Estragon's name mix-up, with itsreference to Cain and Abel of theBible, is absurd and shows theironic distance between thewestern tradition of the Bibleand this Postmodern world. Theabsurdity continues withEstragon and Vladimir againtalking about having nothing totalk about and then suddenlybeing able to stand up.

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Estragon wants to leave, butVladimir reminds him yetagain that they are waitinghere for Godot. Estragon askswhat they will do in themeantime, and Vladimir saysthey could help Pozzo get up.They help Pozzo stand up, butwhen they let go, he falls downagain. They help him up againand hold him steady betweenthem.

Estragon repeats his desire toleave yet again, but he andVladimir are still kept herewaiting. Pozzo's inability to standis darkly comic—humorous, butpathetic at the same time.

11 22 44

Pozzo asks who Vladimir andEstragon are, because he isblind and cannot see them.Estragon wonders if he can seeinto the future, since he isblind. Pozzo asks if they are hisfriends, and Vladimir says theyhave proven that they are, byhelping him up. Pozzo begsthem not to leave him, andVladimir says they won't. "Forthe moment," Estragonspecifies.

Pozzo seems just as desperate forcompany as Estragon andVladimir. While he is Lucky'smaster, he seems hardly anybetter off than Lucky. Everyoneseems to suffer in the bleak worldof Beckett's play.

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Pozzo asks what time it is, andEstragon and Vladimir look atthe sky, guessing seven oreight o'clock in the evening.Estragon isn't sure whether it'sthe evening or dawn, butVladimir is sure it's evening.Pozzo again asks what time itis, and Vladimir assures him it'sevening, in spite of whatEstragon may think.

Estragon and Vladimir disagreeover the time. While Vladimirseems correct, given the strangefunctioning of time in the play,one can't be entirely sure. Theaudience is left in a state oftemporal disorientation.

33 44

Estragon asks how long he andVladimir will have to hold upPozzo for. Pozzo says he usedto have excellent sight, andthat he woke up one daycompletely blind. He says he'snot sure if he's still asleep orawake. Vladimir asks if thishappened yesterday, andPozzo angrily replies that "theblind have no notion of time."

Like Estragon, Pozzo lacks anormal sense of time. He iscontent to stay in thisdisoriented state, whereasVladimir struggles to establish astable chronology of events.Vladimir is always looking toexplain what may not beexplainable, suggesting the limitsof reason and rationality,

33 44



Estragon says he is leaving.Pozzo asks where they are,and Vladimir says he doesn'tknow. Pozzo asks if they are atthe place called the Board,which Vladimir hasn't heard of.Pozzo asks Vladimir todescribe their surroundings.Vladimir says, "It'sindescribable. It's like nothing.There's nothing. There's atree." Pozzo says that it is notthe Board, then.

Not only do the characters notknow when they are, but theyalso don't know where they are.Vladimir's attempt to describethe place is rather nihilistic:ultimately, there's nothing muchto see here.

22 33

Pozzo asks where Lucky is,and why he isn't responding tohis call. Vladimir says Luckyseems to be sleeping, butmight be dead. Pozzo asksVladimir or Estragon to gocheck on Lucky and see if he isokay. Estragon doesn't want togo, since Lucky kicked him, butPozzo asks for Estragon to go,because he stinks.

The more serious elements of theplay are counterbalanced bymoments of simple humor, likePozzo wanting Estragon to gocheck on Lucky because hesmells bad. Again, though, suchphysical disgust is a reminderthat the body is physical, andthat all life is trapped in thisphysicality.

11

Estragon doesn't move.Vladimir asks Estragon whathe is waiting for, and Estragonanswers that he is waiting forGodot. Pozzo tells Estragon topull on Lucky's rope to get hisattention. If that doesn't work,he suggests kicking him.Estragon asks what wouldhappen if Lucky were todefend himself, but Pozzo saysLucky never defends himself.Estragon approaches Lucky.

Estragon comically misinterpretsVladimir's question and thinksthat Vladimir has forgotten thatthey are waiting for Godot.Pozzo's cruel suggestion ofkicking Lucky and assurance thatLucky won't defend himself showhow Lucky has been robbed ofhis dignity.

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Estragon checks if Lucky is stillbreathing (he is) beforestarting to kick him repeatedly.He hurts his foot in theprocess and limps away. Luckybegins to move. Estragon triesto take off one of his boots, butgives up and sits down tosleep.

In causing Lucky pain, Estragonends up hurting himself. This isboth comical and anencapsulation of how causingsuffering harms both the victimand the perpetrator.

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Pozzo asks what has justhappened, and Vladimirexplains. Vladimir asks him ifhe and Lucky are the samePozzo and Lucky from the daybefore. Pozzo says he doesn'tremember meeting anyoneyesterday. But, he says, hewon't remember meetingVladimir today, so he mighthave. Vladimir reminds him ofthe previous day, and howPozzo was bringing Lucky to afair to sell him away.

Vladimir is now starting to doubthis understanding of time andrecognition of Pozzo and Lucky.

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Pozzo shouts, "Up pig!" andLucky gets up and gathers histhings. Vladimir asks wherePozzo is going, and he simplysays, "On." Lucky puts the ropethat is tied around his neck inPozzo's hand, and gives him hiswhip. Vladimir asks Pozzowhat's in the bag Lucky carries.The bag is filled with sand.Vladimir asks what Pozzo doeswhen he falls and no one isaround to help. Pozzo says hewaits until he can get up, andthen he continues walking.

Lucky's bag that he lugs aroundwith him is filled with nothing butsand. As a darkly comic touch,there is no purpose to hissuffering in carrying it around.Equally absurd is Pozzo's randomand unexplained inability andability to get up at differenttimes.

11 55

Vladimir asks Pozzo to haveLucky sing, think, or recitesomething. Pozzo says Lucky ismute, and "can't even groan."Pozzo is frustrated with all ofVladimir's questions related totime, which he insists does notmatter. He and Lucky leave thestage. Vladimir walks over toEstragon and wakes him.

Vladimir still tries to establish anormal sense of time, but Pozzowill have none of his time-relatedquestioning.

44

Estragon asks why Vladimirwon't let him sleep. Vladimirsays he was lonely. Estragonbegins to describe his dream,saying that he dreamt he washappy, but Vladimir angrilytells him not to describe hisdream. He wonders whetherPozzo was really blind.

Vladimir is again lonely whenEstragon sleeps and leaves himby himself.

55



Estragon says, "let's go," butthen remembers they can't. Heasks if Vladimir is sure thatPozzo wasn't actually Godot.Vladimir says he's certain, butthen he says, "I don't knowwhat to think any more."Estragon tries to get his bootsoff and asks Vladimir for help.

Estragon keeps on forgetting thathe and Vladimir are bound tostay and wait for Godot. Vladimirnow doubts his own knowledgeof people's identities—therationalist begins to doubt hisability to understand the world.Estragon relies on Vladimir's helpfor even minor things like takingoff a boot.

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Vladimir wonders if he himselfis sleeping at this verymoment. He ponders what hewill say of this day tomorrowand laments the fact thatEstragon will not rememberthis day and they'll have to gothrough the sameconversations all over again.He says he can't go on, butthen stops and asks, "Whathave I said?"

Vladimir's questioning of realityand confusion of reality with adream is a common feature ofPostmodernism. The constantrepetition of time in the play isbeginning to wear on Vladimir.

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The boy from yesterdayenters. Vladimir asks if the boyrecognizes him, but the boysays he doesn't and that hedidn't come yesterday.Vladimir asks if the boy has amessage from Godot, whichthe boy does: Godot will notcome this evening, but he willcome tomorrow. Vladimir asksif the boy ran into Pozzo andLucky, and the boy says hedidn't see anyone on the wayover.

The boy repeats his messagefrom yesterday, keeping Vladimirand Estragon waiting. DespiteVladimir's plea for the boy toremember seeing Vladimir, hefails to recognize him.

22 44 55

Vladimir asks the boy whatMr. Godot does. The boy saysGodot does nothing. Vladimirasks whether Godot has abeard and what color it is. Theboy says that Godot has awhite beard. The boy asks ifVladimir would like to send amessage back to Godot.Vladimir tells the boy to tellGodot that he saw Vladimir.

Vladimir repeats his messagefrom the day before, wantingsomeone to acknowledge andremember him as an individual.According to the boy, Godot doesnothing, just like Vladimir andEstragon.

22 44 55

Vladimir grabs the boy andviolently asks him, "You're surethat you saw me, you won'tcome and tell me tomorrowthat you never saw me!" Theboy runs off, as the moon risesand night comes. Estragonsays he's leaving, and Vladimirsays he'll leave as well.Estragon asks how long he wasasleep for, and Vladimirdoesn't know.

Vladimir desperately wants forsomeone else to affirm his senseof identity and time. He needssome affirmation that the worldis objectively as he sees it, andthat he has a place in that world.Instead of the constantrepetition of people forgettinghim.

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Estragon wants to go far away,but Vladimir says they can't gofar, because they have to comeback tomorrow to wait forGodot. Estragon asks if Godotcame and whether it's too latefor him to come tonight.Estragon asks what wouldhappen if they "dropped"Godot. Vladimir says Godotwould punish them. He sayseverything is dead, except forthe tree.

Despite all of the pain caused bywaiting for Godot, Vladimir stillfeels compelled to come backtomorrow and do it again. Theevents of Beckett's play couldrepeat indefinitely.

22 44

The two go up to the tree andexamine it. Estragon suggeststhey hang themselves, but theydon't have any rope. Estragonsays they could use his belt,but then there would benothing to hang Vladimir with.Vladimir asks to look atEstragon's belt. He takes offhis belt and his oversized pantsfall to the ground. Vladimirwonders whether the beltwould be strong enough tohang either of them with.

Estragon repeats hisuncomfortably casual suggestionof suicide from yesterday. Yeteven the possible dignity ofsuicide—of making a choice foroneself in the face of themeaninglessness of the world—ismocked when he makes anundignified fool of himself, takinghis belt off and his pants falldown.

11 44 55



Vladimir and Estragon pull oneither end of the belt to test itsstrength. It breaks. Estragonasks if they have to come backto this place tomorrow, andVladimir says they must.Estragon says they shouldbring some rope with themnext time. Then, he says he"can't go on like this," and saysthat it might be better if he andVladimir parted. Vladimir saysthey will hang themselvestomorrow, unless Godotarrives.

There is something humorous inthe belt breaking so easily, whichjars with the intense sadness ofthe play's ending. Doomed tokeep waiting, Vladimir andEstragon can do nothing—noteven kill themselves. They haveno control about what willhappen or where they can go, oreven over whether they will liveat all.

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Estragon asks if they can leave.Vladimir tells him to pull up hispants. Estragonmisunderstands, and asks ifVladimir wants him to pulldown his pants. Vladimirrepeats himself and Estragonpulls his pants up. Vladimirasks if Estragon is ready to go.He says, "Yes, let's go," butneither of them move.

Just as they ended the last act,Vladimir and Estragon say theyare ready to leave but don't movean inch. They end the play asthey began it, trapped in thisbleak place, with nothing to do.

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HOW THOW TO CITEO CITEIt's easy to cite LitCharts for use in academic papersand reports.

MLA CITMLA CITAATIONTIONBen Florman and Justin Kestler, LitCharts Editors."LitChart on Waiting for Godot." LitCharts.com. 11 Mar2016.

CHICACHICAGO MANUGO MANUAL CITAL CITAATIONTIONBen Florman and Justin Kestler, LitCharts Editors."LitChart on Waiting for Godot." LitCharts.com. 2016.http://www.litcharts.com/lit/waiting-for-godot.

APAPA CITA CITAATIONTIONBen Florman and Justin Kestler, LitCharts Editors2016. LitChart on Waiting for Godot. Retrieved March11, 2016 from http://www.litcharts.com/lit/waiting-for-godot.



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