Samuel
Beckett’s Waiting for Godot (1948) is
an absurd play that falls into both the genre of modernism and postmodernism.
Considering its publishing period and other features such as subjectivism, fragmentation, paradox, existential
crisis, identity crisis etc we can see that
the play more tends to belong to postmodernism than to modernism. Moreover,
this play is also a leading play in the Theatre of Absurd, a theatrical outcome
of postmodernism, which was inspired by existential philosophy and its view
that at the root of our being there is nothingness. In the play, two major
characters Vladimir and Estragon are waiting on a country road, by a tree for
Godot who never comes. Through the barren setting and meaningless waiting the
play actually symbolizes the psychological barrenness of modern people that
arouse after two world wars. Modern people fall in the trap of waiting, a
waiting that has no solution except keeping on waiting.
Prior to our main discussion, we
must know some background information and to do so we must look back to the
events that takes place during the first half of the 20th century in the worlds
of politics, literature, philosophy and religion. The early 20th century
witnessed two World Wars. In literature it gives birth to two recognizable
literary styles: modernism and post-modernism and all these happenings paved
the way for the theatrical tradition the absurd drama, as we mentioned earlier,
that it is an outcome of postmodernism. In fact it is a reflection of the age.
The theatre of the absurd describes a mood, a tone towards life, where man's
existence is a dilemma of purposeless, meaningless, and pointless activity. It
is complete denial of age-old values. It has no plot, no characterization, no
logical sequence, and no culmination. Samuel Becket introduced the concept of
absurdity, nothingness and meaninglessness of life in his play Waiting For Godot.
Now, let us know some basic features
of post-modernism which will help us to analyze the text perfectly. Post-modernism
is the term used to suggest a reaction or response to modernism in the late
twentieth century. Postmodernism has opposite characteristics to
traditionalism, realism. Postmodernism believes in the premise ‘irrational is
real, real is irrational’. Moreover, unlike modernism, postmodernism celebrates
the fragmentation instead of lamenting over it. Postmodernism does not care ground zero in
its framework though traditionalism does. There is no pre-determined rules,
well-established and long-term principles. Events, activities, thoughts,
manners do not exist for a long time in postmodernism. All of these issues are
subjected to change unlike traditionalism. Postmodernism argues that there is
no absolute truth in the universe. Characteristics of literary works in
postmodernism are so broad. Rules of classical literary works are not valid in
these literary works. There is no unity of time, place and action in literary
works in postmodernism. Unlike Classical literary works, there is no hero.
However; characters of literary works in postmodernism are from middle or low
class in other words they are ordinary man. Subject of literary works are inner
world, thought and problems of these ordinary people. Endings of literary works
can be interpreted in many different ways. Outcome of literary works may change
from person to person. On the other hand, there is a close ending in classical
literary works. There is only one lesson for everyone in classical works. For
example, King Oedipus by Sophocles has a close ending and same lesson
for everyone. The lesson is: “obey the fate”.
With
the above information, now it will be a bit easier to analyze our text Waiting For Godot . Waiting for Godot
written in the second half of the 20th Century in other words in just before
the postmodernism, so; there are similarities between postmodernism and the
play.
At first, the play celebrates the
fragmentation in all dimensions. The language, plot, character, setting, and
theme are presented in a fragmented form. It is as if the play were the supreme
example of the fragmentations. The difference between The Waste Land and
Waiting for Godot is that the latter laments for the glory of the past which
has fallen apart, but the former never laments for the past. On the other hand,
the play celebrates the fragmentations.
Another key characteristic of
postmodernism is that it holds the view that what is irrational is real and
what is real is irrational. The play with its bizarre characteristics turns
irrationality in the very rationality, the very unreality into the reality.
To add more, characters (Vladimir,
Estragon) are not from high-class but ordinary man. The play is interested in
their identity problem which is an inner problem. There is no plot as well as
action in Waiting for Godot. So, nothing happens in the play. There is no order
also in postmodernism. It is a common characteristic in both postmodernism and
Waiting for Godot.
Then, in Waiting For Godot there is
no absolute truth. All things are relative here. There is one truth for
everything in traditionalism. Like modernism, postmodernism also believes the
view that there is no absolute truth and truth is relative. Postmodernism
asserts that truth is not mirrored in human understanding of it, but is rather
constructed as the mind tries to understand its own personal reality. So, facts
and falsehood are interchangeable.
Waiting for Godot, as we mentioned earlier, is
concern with identity problem. We do not learn anything, about two major
characters Vladimir and Estragon, such as their age, their status in
society, their job etc.. Though they have name, but we do not know them as they
do not call their names. Vladimir calls Estragon as Gogo and Estragon calls
Vladimir as Didi. Their loss of memory is also associated with their identity
crisis. The characters cannot remember their past. Loss of memory loss of
identity. In Act II, Pozzo appears as blind and he cannot remember that they
had met Vladimir and Estragon the previous day.
Waiting for Godot
is also a play in the Theatre of Absurd, a theatrical outcome of postmodernism. Through the portrayal of
characters, Beckeet asserts that at the root of our being there is nothingness.
Vladimir and Estragon face existential crisis as life seems nothing to
them.This frustration is expressed through the repetation of the sentence, "Nothing to be done” by Estragon. Almost all modern people after two
world wars experience the same feelings. Life appears to them as absurd thing
with full of pureposeless, nothingness and meaninglessness.
Thus, we can say that the play Waiting for Godot is
an interesting play for a study from postmodernist perspectives. The character,
setting, language, and the style of the play go with the later 20th
century literary movement called postmodernism.