Author: eric houdek

By Eric Houdek 

In Waiting For Godot, the character Estragon casually proposes hanging himself.  A dialogue insues, as follows

ESTRAGON:
What about hanging ourselves?
VLADIMIR:
Hmm. It’d give us an erection.
ESTRAGON:
(highly excited). An erection!
VLADIMIR:
With all that follows. Where it falls mandrakes grow. That’s why they shriek when
you pull them up. Did you not know that?
ESTRAGON:
Let’s hang ourselves immediately!
VLADIMIR:
From a bough? (They go towards the tree.) I wouldn’t trust it.
ESTRAGON:
We can always try.
VLADIMIR:
Go ahead.
ESTRAGON:
After you.
VLADIMIR:
No no, you first.
ESTRAGON:
Why me?

VLADIMIR:
You’re lighter than I am.

ESTRAGON:
Just so!

VLADIMIR:
I don’t understand.

ESTRAGON:
Use your intelligence, can’t you?
Vladimir uses his intelligence.

VLADIMIR:
(finally). I remain in the dark.

ESTRAGON:
This is how it is. (He reflects.) The bough . . . the bough . . . (Angrily.) Use your
head, can’t you?

VLADIMIR:
You’re my only hope.

ESTRAGON:
(with effort). Gogo light€”bough not break€”Gogo dead. Didi heavy€”bough
break€”Didi alone. Whereas€”

VLADIMIR:
I hadn’t thought of that.

ESTRAGON:
If it hangs you it’ll hang anything.

VLADIMIR:
But am I heavier than you?

ESTRAGON:
So you tell me. I don’t know. There’s an even chance. Or nearly.

VLADIMIR:
Well? What do we do?

ESTRAGON:
Don’t let’s do anything. It’s safer.

 In this dialogue, hanging, which would certainly lead to their death, is viewed as a way to just pass the time.  The implications of death, and ending their own lives, are presented in a minimalistic, non-important light.  By presenting the end of one’s life as unimportant, life itself is shed in a non-crucial light. 

The deadline is nearing… so does anyone have any idea how we are going to compile our compiled post?

By Eric Houdek

As Erica has stated, Waiting for Godot is different from reality due to short term memory lapses by the characters, the concept that time is skewed, and the day is repeated.  I think all of these propsitions tie together.  By presenting the concept that time is skewed by presenting repeating days and unreliable memories, Beckett makes it clear that the specifics of the play are not important.  If they were, the audience would have a clear understanding of exactly when and where the play takes place.  However, by making time and events unreliable, it becomes apparent that this play is universal.  It can be occurring anywhere and at anytime, and it applies to all of mankind. 

By Eric Houdek

As Erica had mentioned, in Waiting For Godot, Pozzo becomes blind in one night and helpless in one night.  Because Waiting for Godot does not operate on a linear time scale, the one night is irrelevant.  Although it may attract the audience because it has happened so “suddenly,” one night could be as little as one night or as long as one’s lifetime.  As Pozzo enters the play, he is indeed somewhat of a powerful man, construed to be much more well off than Lucky.  However, regardless of his fortune and power, Pozzo eventually ends up helpless and blind.  Perhaps Pozzo’s helpless condition represents man’s mortality.  Man eventually will die, whether it be at an old or young age.  Pozzo’s blindness could very well represent man’s inability to comprehend life.  Maybe Beckett is suggesting that regardless of one’s life experience, man will never truly understand what life is about. 

By Eric Houdek

As Erica had stated, Waiting for Godot is different from reality because the characters from within have short term memory lapses.  Thus, the characters are not the most reliable and do not really have an idea about what is going on.  Through using short term memory, the whole premise of the stoy becomes ambiguous, perhaps extending the story to all of mankind.  While the short term memory displayed by the characters leaves the characters as appearing feeble minded and having no chance of understanding of the things going on around them, perhaps Beckett is suggesting that mankind is too feeble minded to understand the reasons for its own existence.

By Eric Houdek

As Alejandro and Mary Beth have stated, Waiting For Godot is different from reality because there is immense ambiguity in the perception of time.  I feel that Beckett has presented this ambiguity for a number of reasons.  First, the inibility of the characters to grasp the true concept of time helps to invoke a sense of hopelessness and cluelessness upon the audience.  When looking at the title, the concept of time is expressed in the word waiting.  The characters spend all of their time waiting for Godot, which turns out to be fruitless.  Perhaps because the audience cannot identify the time that is parallell with the play, Waiting For Godot suggests that the hopeless struggle presented in the play applies to man as a whole.