Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett

 Thinking Activity of The Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett

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1)     What connection do you see in the setting (“A country road. A tree.Evening.”) of the play and these paintings?

                                                 

                                                   In the play first scene is 'a country road, a tree, and evening' it is very symbolical. Barren tree symbolizes negative things and it shows the idea of near to death. These paintings symbolizes Longing. Longing means desire or hope. In our life one by one, we hope many things and then we tries to fulfill it. In these paintings, first is very dark and second is yellowish shade. 'Morning' symbolizes birth or 'Evening' symbolizes death. So, when evening over new hope will come at morning. But these paintings shows our harsh reality of life.

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             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 II on the barren tree -The tree has four or five leaves - ? 

                                                                Writer Samuel Beckett uses  "Tree" in setting of the play and also as the symbol. In first Tree is a barren tree .  And in second play tree is grown up with four or five leaves. The barren tree  shows the 'Hopelessness' of Valdimir and Estragon.  In Act-1 nothing happens and the same things are repeated in  Act-2. But the minor change is that now Tree has four or five leaves on it  which suggest the 'Hope of Tomorrow'.  Valdimir looks at the tree and notice that and says that...."Yesterday evening all bare and black . Now it has leaves on it."  Symbols represents that the things are constantly changed in life also. All things are going to change through time and all days are not same .It constantly changed into gloomy or happiness . So, Tree represents both  the sides of life - and have hope for tomorrow.  Hope is endless and hope is the only thing through which human being is alive today. Hope never going to die. Hope supports us to avoid the meaninglessness of life .

                   5))The play begins with the dialogue “Nothing to be done”. How does the theme of ‘nothingness’ recurs in the play?

       

             The play begins with the dialogue “Nothing to be done”.  The whole play is begins with nothingness because we would not found any beginning or end into the play but we can find great meaning threw this play which shows great way of living life. We can see also see that in life many people things that all problems were come in my life because of my bad fortune but human being himself is the reason of their problems. But many people will do suicide to end their life because they would not found any hope of living life. So the word nothing ness is also something into the play.

                  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 think that the character of lucky is irritating because his duty only to obey his master’s order. Even he has not at least a single freedom that he can move his body. Through this character I think that such slavery of man is unbelievable.

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

              yes, I’m agree with this point “Waiting for godot” is positive play not negative because Vladimir and Estragon Waiting for godot but “godot” is not come but they are waiting there , so “hope” are there. We can say that the Play is meaningless, rubbish kind of thing there. 

                  

               

                   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?

Pozzo - Lucky: Master-Slave

                                                  Yes, I think that the character of lucky is irritating because his duty only to obey his master’s order. Even he has not at least a single freedom that he can move his body. Through this character I think that such slavery of man is unbelievable.

               12)  This type of slavishness is possible, if we take the example of elephant so elephant has capacity to break that row but yet he never do it. Because his mind constructed like that and he never escape from this. As same it also happens in human beings also.

  Which of the following sequence you liked the most:

o   Vladimir – Estragon killing time in questions and conversations while waiting

Vladimir and Estragon: The Had and the Boot

)I                               like the Act of Vladimir and Estragon killing the time in question and conversation while waiting.

               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?

                              Pozzo and Lucky, these character forces us to political reading of the play. As the relationship between them was slave and master relationship which we see in European nation most.