Waiting For Godot

 Samuel Beckett:-

Samuel Beckett adopted several features of James Joyce’s style and narrative technique while searching for an original and authentic manner of expressing his struggle to represent the alienation of the modern mind. Consequently, he gave is he gave the form of the narrative almost exclusive attention. Thus, the idyllic, the comic, and the dreamlike presented in contrast with the tragic and the melancholic way of life were his main instruments to confer shape and form to a narrative that was to express the feeling of nothingness in an ever-changing world.

 Melancholy influenced Beckett’s writings most. He stated in his German Diaries that he felt most happily melancholic. However the tragic, the dreamlike, the comic, and the idyllic play a good part in his dealing with modern themes, the alienation of modern man in particular. His own temperament opened his work to romantic influences.1 His literary work has been translated into 20 languages ensuring recognition that its enduring features are of a universal nature. This paper’s main aim is to analyze the extent to which the tragic, the idyllic, the humoristic, and the dreamlike features of his short prose writings are addressed by Romanian translations and original literary Romanian workings, in order to prove the imperishable dimension of Beckett’s artistic work.

1. What do you think about the characters of the play?

Godot is a hope and a belief of the two protagonists, Estragon and Vladimir, in Waiting for Godot. The character is someone who enables the protagonists to carry on with their own existence and becomes the grand narrative of the play even though he is absent and never arrives to fulfill Vladimir and Estragon’s needs. Godot’s absence creates a mystery for both the protagonists, who are hoping for a better day, and the audience, who wish for some kind of solution at the end of the show. In his play, Samuel Beckett is questioning what it is that keeps people going through the absurdity of the life they live. Beckett debates the meaning of one’s existence in this world. Godot becomes a symbol of something that people find encourages them to live for another day. He could be seen in many ways, portraying many different identities. This study will explore how the character of Godot and the things that he symbolizes can be seen and understood in the twenty-first century, as well as considering the nature of modern human living now and the social and cultural norms that shape our identities and personalities.  

2. What do you say about their activities and their significance?

This study has raised a debate about the character of Godot in Samuel Beckett’s play Waiting for Godot, a timeless piece that challenged theatre norms in 1950s Europe, even now is still keeping audiences/readers interested by questioning the persona of Godot and the values the character represents. The play’s cultural, philosophical, and sociological contexts force the viewer/reader to reflect upon our own existence and beliefs about the world we are living in. The era in with the play was created and the issues that Beckett was exploring within the play are still relevant today.  As mentioned in the chapter: Roots and Textual Meanings, it is up to the reader/audience to read the metaphors and the symbols within the context of the text, and one may find different meanings from what Beckett had intended. Watching or reading the play incorporates us in the endless waiting for a person who we do not know.

3. Is there any similarity between the situations in the play and the lockdown period of 2020?

This study intends to raise a debate around the absent person of Godot and what meaning the character has today. Since the premiere of Waiting for Godot on the 5th January 1953 in the Theatre de Babylone in Paris, audiences have sought to understand the unknown being of Godot. This study evaluates previous interpretations of the character as well as searches for parallels in the twenty-first century.  The research was undertaken through the use of qualitative secondary sources which assisted in forming the opinions expressed in this study. There was no previous literature found exploring the comparison of social media platforms and the universe of Godot. For this reason, this study attempts to find the comparisons and define Godot in the twenty-first century.  

Godot is the absent character in Waiting for Godot. This study attempts to analyze what meaning the character has today in the twenty-first century. The research undertaken reflects on Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot roots and textual meanings. It studies the writer’s influences in order to understand what the character of Godot meant to the creator, as well as exploring themes in the play such as religion, hope, salvation, and higher powers, which the character of Godot could be seen to represent. Philosophies and theories of Camus, Sartre, and Freud are examined to support the arguments made and throw light on how Godot can be interpreted.  Similarities between the protagonists, Estragon and Vladimir, relationship with Godot and social media in the twenty-first century are explored.

4.  Did you feel like an existential crisis?

An existential crisis often occurs after major life events, such as career or job change, death of a loved one, diagnosis of a serious or life-threatening illness, a significant birthday, experiencing a tragic or traumatic experience, having children, divorce, or even marriage.

For existentialists, an existential crisis is considered to be a journey, a necessary experience, and a complex phenomenon. It comes from an awareness of your own freedoms and how life will end for you one day. That journey may reveal to us that where there was structure and familiarity, now there is a mystery, unfamiliarity, a sense of discomfort, and a feeling like somehow, things don’t fit so well anymore.

5. What did you do to pass time?

During the lockdown, I was preparing for my B.A SEM 6 exam, after reading I was thinking to watch tv shows but due to lockdown new show was not telecast so, I used to watch old Indian shows, Pakistani popular shows & turkey shows...etc. when I feel bored that time this thing helps me to pass time. 

6. How was your psychological condition?

I was scared that if my exam will not be taken then how I will complete my graduation and without that I can not plan anything that what stream to choose. I  was head many people died due to covid - 19 so, I was worried that if we will not able to go to our hometown then...Sometimes mind was blank and not able to understand that what to do?