Name: Gond Asmita K.
Class: M.A. SEM -3
Roll
no: Year – 2015
Enrollment
no: pg14101017
Email
Id : asmita.gond414@gmail.com
Paper: : -9 (Modernist Literature)
Submitted
to: M.K.B.U, Bhavnagar University
Topic :
Harold Bloom’s play ‘The search for the self’ in the play ‘Waiting for Godot’
Introduction
of the play writer ‘Samuel Beckett’
The play Waiting for Godot was
written by Samuel Beckett, was born in Dublin, Ireland, in 1906, he rejected
Ireland as his homeland. He was born on 13th April on Good Friday.
He attended a Protestant public school and earned Bachelor of Arts degree from
Trinity College in 1927 and on M.A. in 1931. Although Beckett taught for a
short time, he positioned. He began travelling in Europe and eventually settled
in Paris in 1937. He died in Paris on December 22, 1989, of respiratory
failure.
Works
of Samuel Beckett:
Beckett did most of his writing in
French his works included poetry, critical essays, and novels. In 1951 and
1953, Beckett wrote his most famous novels:
Beckett did most of his
writing in French his works included poetry, critical essays, and novels. In
1951 and 1953, Beckett wrote his most famous novels;
1) The trilogy Molloy
2) Malone Dies and
3) The Unnameable.
However he is most famous for dramas which were written by
Beckett the play ‘waiting for Godot’ was his masterpiece work which was known
as the many critics defining work of Absurdist. Also the most famous of
Beckett’s subsequent plays include……
1) Endgame ( 1958) and
2) Krapp’s Last Tape ( 1959)
He also wrote several even more
experimental plays, like
1) Breath (1969), a thirty – second
plays.
Beckett was awarded
the Nobel Prize in 1969.
Introduction of
the play ‘Waiting for Godot’
Waiting for Godot consists of two men unable to act, or think in any
significant way while they kill time waiting for a mysterious man Godot. The
characters fail to realize that this very act of waiting is a choice; instead,
they view as a mandatory part of their daily routine. It is a play in which
virtually nothing has happened.
Endgame, considered by some critics an even bleaker view of human
existence than Waiting for Godot. Enoch
Brater, in a 1975 essay for the Educational Theatre Journal, argues that
Beckett’s play not simply the writing, but also the staging brought a physical
element to the absurdist movement.
This play also proved the most commercially successful “experimental
“play since Pirandello’s six characters in search of their existence. It is
first produced in Paris in 1952; Waiting for Godot has since been translated
into eighteen languages and performed all over the world.
At last I would like to say that this play indicates to
humanity that one day Godot will come, it means one day death will really come
for which we were waiting.
The essay ‘The search
for the self’ starts with an anecdote on November 19, 1957, a group of worried
actors were preparing to face their audience. The Actor’s were members of the
company of the San Francisco Actor’s Workshop. The audience consisted of
fourteen hundred convicts at the San Quentin penitentiary. No live play had
been performed at San Quentin since Sarah Bernhardt appeared there in 1913.
“The play had been chosen, largely because
no women appeared in it, was Samuel Beckett’s ‘Waiting for Godot”.
Here one question will come in our mind
that why Beckett has not included any female character in his play? After
thinking about it we comes to know that a women is a problem of all the
condition as we can see Milton’s ‘Paradise lost’ that how a disobedience of a
women becomes the fall of the humanity and so I think Beckett has not included
any female character in his play and because of it intellectual rites were
comes in our mind. If Beckett has not included any female character so it was
call his big progress because if in any play a female character we will find so
that play will not become original play because such play was becomes an action play were a hero has to show fighting, love affair , romance etc. But in
Beckett’s play he wants to give a big
message to humanity through his
play, where two tramps Vladimir and Estragon performs only one place gives
message that “ we are waiting for something in our life but ultimately we were waiting for the
death” To achieve something is an
illusion but in reality death is a big achievement because “ God achieved by
death” for whom the humanity is craving.
But
here the actor and Herbert Blau, the director, were apprehensive because they
have to face one of the toughest audiences who were prisoners and they have
done serious crimes. But there they find some personal significance for each
member for the play waiting for Godot in audience.
When the curtain parted,
the play began many prisoners waited for the girls and funny stuff. When this
did not appear they audibly fumed and audibly decided to wait until the house
lights dimmed they will escape. But they made one mistake they listened and
looked two minutes too long and stayed and they left at the end.
Then the newspaper
appeared into the same headline is that all the prisoners likes the play and
they never felt it as a boring play and they has commented also over the play.
A reporter from San Francisco Chronicle was presented and noted that all the
audience did not find any problem to understand the play.
One prisoner told him,
“Godot is a society”, Said another “He is the outside.” A teacher prisoner was
quoted that “They know what is meant by waiting …. And they knew if Godot
finally came, he would only be a disappointment.”
So we can say that this
play we can see with different perspectives which lead us towards our different
understandings and so this play shows harsh reality of society and religion. We
can see this play as psychological and philosophical perspective also. Yes, it
is true that this play has not beginning and no end which was not described by
the play writer also so we can say that our life has beginning but we don’t know that when
will our life will end or when will our death will come for which we were
waiting was unpredictable.
So we can say that this play
related with…..
·
Esoteric : Understanding by few intellectual people
·
Avant-garde : Leading we will find
So the play waiting
for Godot has very deep impact in it been the reason to it that it needs common
sense to understand the play. Significance will not found it will found by
peoples perspectives.
·
No female character
In the play particularly nothing is happens. There is nothing
done in it: no development is to be found there is no bean beginning no end. The
entire action boils down to this: on a
country road, near a tree, two, tramps, Estragon and Vladimir, idle away their
time waiting for Godot, Who never comes.
Two stranger a cruel master and his half crazy slave, cross their path,
and soon depart. At the end of a first act, a messenger from Godot arrives and
says that he and then the show is going on. And there is not female character
in the play. Beckett denies satisfaction to his audience. He wants the audience
to suffer extreme despair.
So we can say that
this play shows a picture of human condition because it shows two tramps of
their boredom, their fear of pain , their shreds of love and hate, are a
surprisingly effective version of the whole human condition a condition for
which actions is no answered, chiefly because there is no obvious action
to be taken, ‘ nothing to be done’ and
so Beckett comes to the and so such a
things we were found in our self and the prisoners has found the same thing
into this play.
So we can say that environment is responsible for the people because
good or bad environment will makes good or evil people if we talk about
terrorists or prisoners they were not bad people by birth but society will
made them in such a way so that they were become bad people. So we can
say that society is into the power and society creates environment and
different religion has different convictions.
When
Alan Sahneider, who was to direct the
first American production of Waiting for Godot , asked Beckett who or what was
meant by Godot , he received the answered , “ if I knew, I would have said so in the play.” Because Becket wants to give chance to
readers and audience to find out that who is Godot.
·
Interpretation of Godot
Godot symbolizes as god has found a
wide acceptance. But other interpretations have been offered too. It has been
suggested that Godot is death that the tramps will hang themselves on the speak
while waiting for it in order to have the right to be still at last. Or Godot
may be the inaccessible self that Beckett pursues through all his work, always
with the ultimate hope that “this time, perhaps at last it will be I.” Several
critics advised us to bother too much to know who or what Godot is. This advice
is based on the view that the play is not about “Godot” but about “Waiting.”
Now it’s true that the play is about “Waiting” but naturally asks waiting for what?
If the tramps waiting for Godot, we should know what or who Godot is,
especially because Godot seems to be a descriptive name. It may happen that the
play writer wants to make foolish to the people that how they identify to Godot
differently. So here the reader is supposed to solve the mystery of Godot.
We can say that people were easily puts faith on others and they starts
to believe others as a sheple means a blind faith. If we take the example of
our Babas and also Radhema we will find that how people starts to believe
blindly to those people as god and they spend their money and faith on them. So
here Beckett also wants give message that don’t believe blindly to others but
you search yourself on your own way and try with different angle so we can say
that different religion has different convictions.
If
we talk about a good play we can say that a good play has often clearly
constructed story or plot but hee we won’t find it.
If we talk about the
film Gabbar we can say that truth will dies with real truth which leads us
towards existentialism is that “ God is existed everywere."
What character were doing i motive
No beginning no end
totally depends on Godot who never comes into the play
driven by lack of
Much of Beckett’s work – including Godot is often considered by
philosophical and literary scholars to be part of the movement of the theatre
of absurd, a form of theatre which steamed from the absurdist philosophy of
Alburt Camus. It means that universe, human being are incapable of finding the
existence of their life which leads towards the philosophical limitations. Thus humanity is doomed to be
face with the absurd, or the absolute absurdity of human existence in lack of
intrinsic purpose.
Martin Esslin
writes very lucidly about how the theatre of the absurd works likes poetry
rather than narrative. Traditional drama
tells a story develops dynamically. The characters grow and change before our eyes
and that is the point of the story to reveal that growth and change. And by it
we start to think that……………
As too artificial and too contrived.
But the theatre of absurd
rejects such a narratives a. The world is not really a neat and all that.
Things happen by chance at random also described reality is better than
rationality. The play is referred as
tragicomedy or “Black comedy”. The tragedy is the fyutility of Vladimir’s desperation,
his growing awareness of the absurdity of his situation. So here the writer’s
aim is not to create artificially casual plots, but to reveal for audiences a
powerful image which can be…..
So we can say that in
any of the drama, play or movie audience requires entertainment but in Waiting
for Godot in this play writer shows his sincerity and reflection of the self
into each and every step of the dialogues.
Statistic situation into this play
Estragon: Well, shall we go?
Vladimir: Yes, let’s
go.
By the
disconsolate utterance, Samuel Beckett introduces the strange world of Waiting
for Godot , a mystery that wrapped in
enigma. So we can say that the dialogues
were shows that we are moving according to the movement of the time because
time will never stops it does not cares anybody because life has to go on. Many
people thinks that one day we will go somewhere but in reality we are only
moving into the earth and the earth moves around the sun so the humanity stands
one place and waiting for the last stop which was death.
The present era is
known as modern era and so people has no time to think about anybody and everyday people
running here and there to earn money for living happily but it is the reality
that our property will go onto the hands of new generation therefore people
earns money by doing hard work bur it is
the reality that we never went anymore but we were waiting only for death but
our works and family forgets those ideas.
In the play we will find that two men were doing time pass
they did not do anything accept worth things. But it is life either we like or
not we have to do whatever decided by the authorities. We can take the example
of government is that we does not like to follow the rules but we have to
because restrictions of the authority.
If we take the
example of the myth Sisyphus we can see that he was doing same thing every day
he puts up the stone which comes down to the
same place but he never got tired of doing that same thing so in such a
way in our life we were doing same thing
because the shape of ideas is
important “ Life is absurd but it is
necessary” , “ we tide with the habit of living the life “ and
we could not stop it because it was a rigid habit which will interwoven with
our life and so I would like to say that “What we do is absurd.”
Many people in their life wants to commit suicide but that was a worth
thing because nobody cares either someone live or die but people will become
happy that “ Zhad gayu ne jagya thai…” so the inner meaning behind into the
dialogues of the two tramps.
Estragon: So long
as one knows
Vladimir : One can
bide ones time
Estragon: One knows what to expect
Vladimir: No further need to worry.
Difference between two
characters Estragon and Vladimir
After reading both of the characters we come to know essential
and characteristic aspects of the human condition. Vladimir and Estragon has
complementary personalities. Vladimir is more practical than the Estragon.
Estragon likes to eat and to sleep but Vladimir as its opposite he likes things
as it get it used to. Estragon used to beaten but Vladimir was very responsible
person because it is Vladimir who talks with that boy who was the messenger of
the Godot. Though they have complementary nature they lives by depending with each other and they
stay together.
Such a things we were find in our life also that in society has
different types of people were leaving some were good others were evil minded
people . In our society we will find crime, murder, rape and other bad things
also done by evil people. But in society we will found some good people also
who cares and helps others but therefore difference between the people we were
leaving our life by compromising our self.
Just like that both
the characters were lives together because “ living life alone was impossible”
each and every step of our life we need any companion to do time pass and to do
waiting for the death also which we can understand by both of the characters.
If we talk about
characters like Pozzo a Luckey they were gradually complementary in their
nature. Pozzo is the sadistic master and
Luckey as submissive slave. Pozzo as a master rules over Luckey because Pozzo
has p and so he has to suffer allot for. Now we can say that it is the harsh
reality of our society is that a powerful nation , people and government always
rules over the people and others has to suffer. If we talk about the systems,
rules and regulations those things were makes slave to the people because
either we would like it or not but we have to suffer allot by being a
slave.
In the
play in act-2 Pozzo gets blind and so now he lost his all power and authority
but now Luckey has all the power because he has all the power now he was free
he can do anything. But when his master Pozzo calls Luckey for giving the rope
he has easily gave to his master and again he became a slave of his master. So
we can say that authority will not allow to people to be free because we were
tide in such a way that we won’t be able to live freely because society also
will not allow us so that we can do
whatever we want. So the humanity also
the slave of his habit of living life as it was designed, but life is necessary
and so we have to obey it like Luckey and Pozzo’s relationships. So we can also
says that one is enjoys to giving pain to others and the one is suffers like
Luckey. So we can say that our body also the slave of our soul and mind when a
one body will dies the soul went to another body to rule over it so our body
itself the slave.
Explanation of the title,
symbols and significance of the play:
The key word of the title is
“waiting’ and ‘Godot’ What Godot exactly means has been the subject of much
controversy. It has been suggested that Godot weekend or diminutive from the
word “God”. Godot may be therefore suggested the intervention of the
supernatural agency. Or Godot stands for a mythical human being whose arrival
is ex to changes the situation. We may presume too, that both these
possibilities like a supernatural agencies and a supposed human being may be
implied through the use of the name “ Godot”. Furthermore, although God fail to
appear in the play, he as real a character as any of those whom we actually
see. However the subject of the play is not “Godot” but “ waiting”, the act of
waiting as an essential characteristics aspect of human condition. Throughout
the lives, human beings always wait for something and Godot is simply
represents the objective of their waiting – an event, a thing, a person,
especially death. Beckett has thus depicted in this situation which has general
human applications. We can also says that Beckett’s conscious sub conscious
intention is in making Godot as an objective of Vladimir and Estragon’s quest
so that they will get involved into the
waiting for Godot and they will never feel boring of waiting for the end of the
life that is death. So we will also find a message that is conscious, alert and
aware in life.
We can also observe into the play is that evening will come but night
will never happens but the next day will arrives it shows that the waiting is
still going on. According to Thomas Hardy he tries to connect sunset with any
injuries or incoherent babbling. We will also found that two characters were
hanged just like Christ who was Voiceless, viewless turner where results were
the same. We will also find that the soul of both of the characters was burning
into the hell. Hardy directed to give readers thinking by the meeting of the
two characters. We can also see that nature as the observer and was pessimistic.
So the voiceless, viewless turners found vision of life by Hardy.
The
two tramps were shown as homeless fellows who show the concept of home like heaven
and hell that a good soul will go heaven and evil soul will go into the hell. When
both the character wants to commit suicide but they can’t because their time
will be not arrived means still god has sent to those people into the word for
completing their remained work and so still those works we not done and so they
were not be able to kill themselves also.
Vladimir also found that how two leaves were grown up into the tree it
shows the cycle of the life that life will goes by changing the tomorrow , one
body will dies the another will come so here we will find the concept of
salvation in to the play that salvation is the key to release the cycle of
birth and death ant that was the Godot
means that was the last stop or we can say fulfillment of waiting into the
life.
The hope of salvation maybe merely an
invention of the suffering and anguish that spring from facing the reality of
human condition. So there are we found existentialist philosophy of Jean Paul
Sartre and the creative intuition of Beckett. Who has never consciously
expressed the existentialist views? So here we will found the way of facing
human conditions and human nothingness , liberty and need of constantly creating ourselves in a succession of choices,
then Godot might have become an image of
what Sartre call” bad faith”. So
we can say that religious and psychological interpretations paradox of change and
stability is necessary into our life.
v
Conclusion :
So we can say that Harold Blooms’
play ‘The search for the self’ is related with our personal self that if a people has no hope so he has no
waiting also like journey makes us painful journey of life. Illusions of
happiness make our life unbearable. Prediction controls our behavior , microprocessor change our life identical to
ourselves .I am so much in myself will found How to break it enigma of human
existence and so we wants attainment self and desire to achieve our goal to satisfy
our self. So Waiting for Godot the play
will be gives a vast scope to understand to human self and existence. So we can
say that nothingness leads us towards absurdities which was necessary. So our
life leads us towards mother’s womb to grave for which we were waiting into our
life.
Works Cited
Esslin,
Martin. The search for the self. Ed. Harold Bloom. Overlook press,
1973.
Kierkegaard, Soren. "Waiting for Godot an
introduction." Existential philosophy (1813-15): 67.
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