Waiting for Godot

1) what connection do you see in the setting ( "A country road. A tree  Evening")

The title of the painting" longing ". The Setting of the play is inspired by two paintings of Caspar David Frederich. In this painting we can find two scenes. One is sunrise and one is sunset. The title is longing and longing means deep desire for something. And waiting is also connected with longing. And in this painting we can see two persons towards sunrise and sunset. And it stands for bright hope and despaire. We can find this similar themes in the play.

Q. 2 The tree is the only important 'thing' in the setting. What is the importance of tree in both acts? Why does Beckett grow a few leaves in Act 2 on the barren tree- The tree has four or five leaves?

The tree generally represents the cross on which Jesus Christ was crucified. In this play, tree is stands as a symbol of hope. Vladimir and  Estragon contemplate hanging themselves from the tree is likely a reference to the crucifixion, but it also parodise the religious significance. Vladimir reports that he was told to wait for Godot by the tree. And Estragon points out, they are not sure if this is the right tree. They are not sure about tree that this is tree or not. Between Act 1 and Act 2 we can find tree's random sprouting of leaves. It shows : it is hopeful,  it is growth, it is life. But we can also point out the degenerates from Act 1 to Act 2.We can see Pozzo is going blind and Lucky is mute,  as well as Estragon and   Vladimir increasing uncertainty and suffering.

3) In both acts, evening falls into night and moon rises. How would you like to interpret this 'Coming for night and moon' when actually they are Waiting For Godot?

The classical interpretation of night is dark and death. Vladimir and Estragon are also waiting for nightfall. Because they don't have to wait for Godot once the night has fallen. The man  can stop waiting for Godot when the moon appears in the sky. Once, Estragon comments that the moon is pale  for weariness ... Of climbing heaven and gazing on the likes of us. "

4) The director feels the setting with some debris. Can you read any meaning in the contours of debris in the setting of the play?

Director fills setting with debris which shows that how freckle the materialising world is. It brakes down and don't has capacity to stand again while on the other hand there is barren tree which is next act has some leaves. The reality can stand and sustain on its own, while cultural or fake things can be brake down in to the pieces.

5) The play begins with the dialogue "Nothing to be done". how does the theme of 'nothingness' recurs in the play? 

"Nothing to be done "reflects the Existentialism, Samuel Becket, who was inspired by the Existentialists philosophy of Albert Camus and Jean-Paul Sartre in his early 20s, published his trend setting play Waiting for Godot  in 1952. He also asserts in the play that nothingness is at the root of our existence, especially in the life of the modern people. In Waiting for godot everything is fuelled by the sense of nothingness. In fact, here nothing creates everything. In this play, both the form and content are structured by on encircling sense of nothingness. Apart from form and content every outer and inner components of the play serves complementary role to establish the idea of nothingness.

6) Do you agree: "The play (Waiting for Godot), we agreed, was a positive play, not negative, not pessimistic. As I saw it, with my blood and skin and eyes, the philosophy is: 'No matter what- atom bombs, hydrogen bombs, anything- life goes on. You can kill yourself, but you can't kill life."(E.G. Marshal who played Vladimir in original Broadway production 1950s)?

Yes, I agree to the point of E. G. Marshall that the play Waiting for Godot is positive play in the sense of life is goes on we can not stop or kill the time. We can say that life is meaningless though we have to live life, this lesson make us positive.

7) How are the props like hat and boots used in the play? What is the symbolical significance of these props?

In Waiting for Godot, Props, Boot,  hat these three things have one thing in common: they are all absurd objects on which the men have developed irrational dependencies. Lucky cannot think without his bowler. Pozzo needs his Vaporizer to speak. Estragon seems condemned to forever take his boots on and off, as does Vladimir with his hat. This is another great combination of the tragic and the comic ; the situation is hilarious for itsabsurdity, but uber- dismal at the same time.

8) Do you think that the obedience of Lucky is extremely irritating and Nauseatic? Even when the master Pozzo is blind, he obediently hands the whip in his hand. Do you think that such a capacity of slavishness is unbelievable?

Yes,  the obedience of Lucky is extremely irritating and nauseatic. Because he has started loving his slavishness, his chains and because of that he don't even feel like slave and even when his master is blind he don't think to free himself. We also have these kind of slaves in our society who has loving masters and they don't feel that their master is using them as slave such chains should be broken but slave themselves don't want freedom.

 

9) Who according to you is Godot? God? An object of desire? Death? Goal? Success? or...

The character of Godot marks the driving force of the Vladimir and Estragon because it is for whom they are waiting. When we read the dialogue between boy and Vladimir that time Vladimir asked to the boy that Godot is white?  Then the boy replied yes. So we can interpret that they talk about Christ. Another interpretation is based on political reading in which we can say that Godot means Hitler because when Vladimir asked to the boy that he is beating or not?  Then boy replied yes. So,  we can connect with the Hitler that he was beating many countries in world  war - 2.

10) "The subject of the play is not Godot but 'waiting' (Esslin, A search for the self). Do you agree? How can you justify your answer?

The very title of the play suggests its central theme as Martin Esslin has pointed out. " The subject of the play is not Godot but waiting, the act of waiting as an essential and characteristic aspects of human condition. This central theme, waiting, will be a recurrent reality within the play, one that it seems to remind Vladimir and Estragon why they are where they are: in no man's land. They are waiting for Godot, someone or something, meaning and direction, an impetus for living, a reason for dying, death salvation? What becomes evident is that both of theme are 'tied'  to Godot, they cannot do anything except to wait for him endlessly.

11) Do you think plays like this can better be 'read' than 'viewed' as it requires a lot of thinking on the part of readers, while viewing, the torrent of dialogues does not give ample time and space to 'think'? Or is it that the audio- visuals help in better understanding of the play?

First one should have back ground knowledge of the play, otherwise they will not get anything. After background reading this play should first watch, reading this play should first watch, this is not advisable for all literature but plays like this one should be watch girat. Because the visual and audio will help to get the sense of the play and after this the play should be read for deeper understanding.


12) Which of the following sequence you liked the most:


 Vladimir-Estragon killing time in questions and conversationa while waiting

 Pozzo-Lucky episode in both acts

.  Conversation of Vladimir with the boy


I liked most the conversations of Vladimir with the boy because it is so relatable.



13)  Did you feel the effect of existential crisis or meaninglessness of human existence in the irrational and indifference Universe during screening of the movie? Where and when exactly that feeling was felt, if ever it was?

Yes, I felt existential crisis during screening of the movie. It was felt when Vladimir and Estragon both are trying to kill time by asking questions and meditation and all that things.


14)  Vladimir and Estragon talks about ‘hanging’ themselves and commit suicide, but they do not do so. How do you read this idea of suicide in Existentialism?

In our innumerable list of desire, one is death also. Vladimir  and Estragon also have desire. We watched one of the video it talks about the philosophical sucide.


15) Can we do any political reading of the play if we see European nations represented by the 'names' of the characters (Vladimir - Russia; Estragon - France; Pozzo - Italy and Lucky - England)? What interpretation can be inferred from the play written just after World War II? Which country stands for 'Godot'?


So far as Pozzo and Lucky [master and slave] are concerned, we have to remember that Beckett was a disciple of Joyce and that Joyce hated England. Beckett meant Pozzo to be England, and Lucky to be Ireland." (Bert Lahr who played Estragon in Broadway production). Does this reading make any sense? Why? How? What?


Ans. Yes, we can interpret the political reading in which Vladimir stand for Russia, Pozzo stand for Italy, Lucky stand for England and Estragon stand for France. So, we can connect this to the world war in which these all countries destroyed by Godot means Germany that is why Vladimir asked to the boy that is Godot beating? Then boy replied yes. So we connect Godot with Germany means Hitler, who destroyed many countries and killed thousands of people. And other interpretation of Pozzo and Lucky master and slave in which we connect Pozzo with England and Lucky with Ireland, so in this matter Ireland struggling a lot with England and recently we have seen Brexit pact.


16) The more the things change, the more it remains similar. There seems to have no change in Act I and Act II of the play. Even the conversation between Vladimir and the Boy sounds almost similar. But there is one major change. In Act I, in reply to Boy;s question, Vladimir says:


"BOY: What am I to tell Mr. Godot, Sir?

VLADIMIR:

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

How does this conversation go in Act II? Is there any change in seeming similar situation and conversation? If so, what is it? What does it signify?


Ans. Yes, there is change in both acts. In act1 Vladimir told to the boy that tell Godot that you saw us. So, here Vladimir taked about both Vladimir and Estragon while in second act Vladimir told the boy that tell Godot that you saw me, so here Vkadimir talked about his self he does not mention the name of Estragon. So, in act 2 Vladimir seems selfish.

Summary:

Waiting for Godot is a play divided in two acts by Samuel Beckett. Beckett's Play came to be considered an essential example of Theatre of the Absurd and also fall in the category of existentialism.
      Act-1 begins on a country road by a tree. It is evening. There were two old men named Estragon and Vladimir. Estragon is sitting one low mound trying to remove his boot and Vladimir joins him and they begin to chat.  They have appearently known each other for years and now they were homeless, debilitated and often suicided. They wondered out that why they did not kill themselves years ago and now they think of doing it today. They are waiting for someone whom they call Godot. While waiting, they shared conversation, food and memories. This scene also include the arrival of two other elderly men named Pozzo and Lucky. Pozzo is the master and Lucky is the slave. Lucky obeyed his master's command and he dances and think out loud for the entertainment of the others, untill he is forcibly silenced. After Lucky and Pozzo depart, a boy arrives and told Estragon and Vladimir that Godot will not be there today but will be there tomorrow. He leaves and they continue to wait.
   Then the act is changed. No more changes occur between the two acts. The second act is almost the same as the first. The tree sprouted leaves. Estragon and Vladimir chat  while they wait for Godot and there also the two elders arrive again-pozzo and Lucky. But this time the change between them was,  Pozzo is blind and helpless and Lucky is mute. Then the some action repeated further Pozzo and Lucky leave and the boy arrives. He has the message as before that Godot will be there tommorow.
  So,  this is the main and also the whole events in the play.  Estragon and Vladimir wait expenetantly and in vain for someone named Godot to arrive. They claim his as an acquaintance but infact hardly known him and also admitting that they would not recognise him. The boy informed them not to expect Godot today but promise,he will arrive the next day. The two again considered suicide but their rope, Estragon's belt, breaks in two when they tug on it. Estragon's trousers fall down but he does not notice untill Vladimir tells him to pull them up. They resolve to bring a more suitable piece and hang themselves the next day if Godot fails to arrive. Again they agree to leave but neither of them makes any move to go.

Theme : Hope

Vladimir and Estragon are lawly bums. Their only material possessions besides their tattered clothes are a turnip and a carrot. Neverthless they have not given up on life, they do not descend into depression on pessimism and cynicism. Even though they frequently exchange insuits, they enjoy each other's company and help each other. Above all, though, they wait. They wait for Godot. They do not know who he is or where he comes from. But they wait just the same apparently because he represents hope. 

     Vladimir and Estragon are homeless rovers attempting to find an answer to a question all human beings face: what is the meaning of life. Godot may have the answer for them. So they wait. After Godot is fails to appear. On the first day, they return to the three,  the next day to continue waiting. He does not come Vladimir and Estragon decide to leave the area. However the stage direction of the end of the play says "They do not move". Apparently, they plan to continue their search for meaning by continuos wait for Godot. 

Characters:

Estragon:- 

 Estragon is one of the two protagonist in the play Waiting for Godot. However, Beckett retrained from elaborating on the characters beyond what he had written in the play. When Beckett started writing he did not have a visual image of Estragon. He is a bum and slaves in ditch where he is beaten each night. However, Estragon never referred to as tramps in the text. He has no memory beyond what is immediately said to him and he relies on Vladimir to remember for him. He is found at ways in bowler hat. Estragon is impatient and constantly wants to leave Vladimir, who is other protagonist and his companion while Waiting for Godot, but it restrained from leaving by the fact that he needs Vladimir. It is the idea of Estragon for the bum to pass their time by hanging themselves. Estragon has been compared to a body. Without an intellect, which therefore needs Vladimir to provide the intellect. Vladimir stands through most of the play whereas Estragon sits down numerous times and even dozes off. He is inert and Vladimir restless.