What is the Theatre of the Absurd? Waiting for Godot as a Absurd Theatre ?

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What is the Theatre of the Absurd?

Waiting  for Godot as a Absurd Theatre ?

Name: Nikunj Bhatti

Roll no.:19

M.A. Semester:  3

Enrolment No.: 14101005

Year: 2015-16

Paper no.: 9

Email id.:nikunjbhatti332@gmail.com

Submitted to: Department of English

Maharaja Krishnakumarsinhji Bhavnagar University

Ø Introduction

           Samuel Beckett is a renowned Irish dramatist and novelist. “Waiting for Godot” is his well-known play. The play is one of the classic works of theatre of absurd. His some of famous works are “Murphy”, “Molloy”, “The Unnamable”, “Endgame”, “How it is”, “Waiting for Godot” etc. He won Nobel Prize in Literature in 1969. "Waiting for Godot" is a play that captures this feeling and view of the world, and characterizes it with archetypes that symbolize humanity and its behavior when faced with this knowledge. According to the play, a human being's life is totally dependent on chance, and, by extension, time is meaningless. Beckett also deals with nothingness in Waiting for Godot it shows some deep meaning in life in different way. His pen name was Andrew Belis. This paper provides a brief overview of Theatre of absurd. The play Theatre of absurd lack a logical and conventional structure which is the representation of absurd predicament.

The term was coined by the Critic Martin Esslin, who made it the title of his 1962 book on the subject. This type of play first become popular during the 1950s & 60s. Which presented on the stage the philosophy articulated by French philosopher Albert Camus in his essay the myth of Sisyphus. In which he defines the human condition as basically meaningless. “Theater of Absurd” is a term or particular movement started in late 1950s.

•      Martin Esslin’s “Theatre of Absurd”

•      Albert Camu’s “Myth of Sysiphus”

World is without meaning & life is without purpose. Associated with Existentialism. Samuel Beckett, Jean Genet, Tom Stoppard, Friedrich Durrenmatt, Harold Pinter etc who was use Existentialism. Let’s we discuss about Theater of Absurd. First we know what is Absurd?

·        What is Absurd?

“The condition of state in which human exist in a meaningless irrational universe where in people live have no purposes or meaning.”

 “Theatre of Absurd” = “Expression in art of the meaninglessness of human existence.”

Albert Camus’s Myth of Sisyphus it is also deals with Absurdity. Myth of Sisyphus defied the god and put death in chains so that no human needed to die. When god decide on his punishment for all eternity. He would have push a rock up a mountain upon reaching the top the rock would roll down again.

“what is called a reason for living is also an excellent reason for dying.”

Albert Camus, Myth of Sisyphus

Samuel Beckett’s ‘Waiting for Godot’ belongs to the tradition of the Theatre of Absurd. It is unconventional in not depicting any dramatic conflicts. In the play, practically nothing happened, no development is to be found, there is no beginning and no end. The entire action boils down in an absurd setting of a country side road with two tramps Vladimir and Estragon who simply idle away their time waiting for Godot about whom they have only vague ideas. (Hussain)

In fact this play comes under “Theater of Absurd”. It is a kind of tragic comedy and unlikable truth about life and world is described here. There are only five characters in this play. They are Vladimir, Estragon, Pozzo, Lucky and a boy. The effect of existentialism can be found very much here. The play itself is a symbol of hopelessness and nothingness. In “Theater of Absurd”, there is no plot, no story, no beginning and no end. In short, it challenges the tradition of well maid play. This play has same ‘nothing’. The language is simple and vague.

The Theatre of the Absurd shows the world as an incomprehensible place. The spectators see the happenings on the stage entirely from the outside. Without ever understanding the full meaning of these strange patterns of events as newly arrived visitors might watch life in a country of which they have not yet mastered the language. (Esslin)

Ø Characteristics of the “Theatre of Absurd”

ü Broad comedy

ü Menacing and tragic effect

ü Alienation effect

ü Hopelessness in characters

ü Fragmentations

ü Parody of the concept of ‘well maid play’

ü Unconventional writing

ü Irrationality

ü At some extent similar to the characteristics of Postmodernism.

Ø Main features of the Theatre of the Absurd in Waiting for Godot

·        Meaningless of Life:

Theatre of the Absurd presented the life as meaningless and one that could simply end in casual slaughter. This was reflected in the society of the time. It was because of the following reasons:

ü Mechanical nature of Man of the Life

ü Alien worlds

ü Time

ü Isolation

A play is expected to entertain the audience with logically built, witty dialogue. But in this play, like any other absurd play, the dialogue seems to have degenerated into meaningless babble. ‘Nothing to be done’ is the words that are repeated frequently. The dialogues the characters exchange are meaningless banalities.

·        Lack of the Plot

Absurd plays have lack of the plot. There is the great deal of the repetition in action and language

Ex. It lacks the traditional standards of drama, no causal chain of effects and events, no Aristotle’s structure of drama.

·        Non Conventional Story:

Theatre of the absurd have not the conventional story which can convince the readers or viewers. Ex. In this play Estragon & Vladimir always waiting for the man namely Godot who never come.

·        Contradiction and repetition of the dialogues

For example Vladimir yells to Estragon: “Come on . . . return the ball can’t you, once in a way?” Vladimir’s complaint is descriptive of much of the dialogue in the remainder of the play; it is very much like two people playing a game with one another and one is unable to keep the ball in play. One more Ex.,

We’re waiting for Godot (pg-51)

Boy: I don’t know sir:

Repetition of the objects

Ex.

In the play props like hat and boot also symbolizes something in the play. While in first we see Hat and Boots use as props in the play. Both props are means for their time pass. They changing hat passing their boring time. But in deeper connotation Boots is a symbol of lower order of thinking or related with body only and Hat it symbolize higher  thinking and mind  that Vladimir is doing.

·        Devaluation of The Language:

The absurd dramatist felt that conventional language had failed man and it was inadequate means of communication. The uselessness of language was used by the characters constantly; they speak in clichés, overused, tired expressions. They use language to feel the emptiness between them, to conceal the fact that they have 'nothing' to talk about to each other.

Ex. Lucky’s speech in Act-1 (quaquaquaquaqua)

·        Cyclical Structure:

In fact, everything is structured by this revenge motive. But in Waiting for Godot, where there is no motivated action, the sense of nothingness play the pivotal role in determining the every aspect of the play. Absurd play has a repetitive cyclical structure.

ü Similar setting- Debris

ü Timing- day to moon rise

ü Actions- hat Swapping scene

ü Similar Acts structure

ü Same acts ending

·        Element of Existentialism:

Ø Absurd theatre questions the existence of man.

Absurdist believes in the godless world. (World war-2)

Ø Human existence has no meaning and purpose.

“The mystery of human existence lies not in just staying alive, but in finding something to live for”                                   

Waiting for Godot” is an existentialist play because it has clear tints of existentialism in it. Vladimir represents the portion of humanity who trusts in religion and spiritual beliefs to guide them, and that Estragon represents the more ideal existentialist portion of humanity who chooses to stop waiting and construct the meaning of life based on experience in the tangible and physical world around them. The following is an example of dialogue which supports this concept:

Vladimir: Let’s wait and see what he says.

Estragon: Who?

Vladimir:  Godot.

Estragon: Good idea.

Vladimir: Let’s wait till we know exactly how we stand.

Estragon: On the other hand it might be better to strike the iron before it freezes. (Beckett)

                                                                                               

·        Cut off from religion:

Society of that time was cut off from religion. It was presented in absurd play. Ex. In this play Vladimir& Estragon talks about the thieves that were crucified with Christ just for passing time. The tree is symbol of Christianity.

Christian myth described in the dialogues between the boy and Vladimir. The boy, who looks after the goats is not beaten but, his brother who looks after Mr. Godot’s ships is beaten.

Christian ideas, it is also related with many biblical elements and symbols. At the beginning of the play, Vladimir asks Estragon, have he read the Bible or not. Throughout the play, biblical, Christian elements are very much presented with the symbols.

‘’ Religion enables us to ignore nothingness and to get with the jobs of life’’’(john Updike)

·        Absurd Ending:

Absurd play has unexplained ending Hope, religion, nothingness, forgetfulness, purposelessness' of man, ending is not Conclusion. Another example is at the end of both acts, they talks about going but no one goes:

Ø “ESTRAGON: Well, shall we go?

VLADIMIR: Yes, let's go.

(They do not move).”

Ø (End of second act)

“VLADIMIR: Well? Shall we go?

ESTRAGON: Yes, let's go.

(They do not move).”

In short every aspect of the play structure, theme, setting, character, dialogue or some other behavioral silent activities is motivated by one thing that is nothingness now clear that Absurdity or we can say Nothingness tells us something and gives us deep meaning about life and it also shows the reality of life and it is clearly shown in this play with the help of these five characters.

Works Cited

Ø Esslin, Martin. "The Theatre of the Absurd." The MIT Press (2013): 5.

Ø Hussain, Tazir. "Theatre of Absurd and Samuel Beckett's 'Waiting for Godot' as an Absurd Drama." Internation Journal of Science and Research (IJSR) 3 (2014): 1.

Ø Beckett, Samuel. Waiting for Godot. 1953.

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