English Literature

Vladimir and Estragon, and Pozzo and Lucky are more similar than it seems. Does this hold some significance in Samuel Becketts play Waiting for Godot The comparison between these two sets of characters holds a deeper meaning then what is presented out in the open. Vladimir and Estragon need each other, even when they have both said that they would be happier with out the other, and compared to Pozzo and Lucky they are in many ways the same, especially with their need of domination and submission, which can also be interpreted as dependency. The reader will also find the Beckett never changes the scenery. This adds a sense of repetition the never changing fact that he again links as to why the two cant leave each other. There are a series of events that unfold during the play that suggests there is a need for each other a sense that without their pairing, existence would be next to impossible.

Interpersonal relationships are the main key to understanding the complex union between Vladimir and Estragon. In the first scene the dependence that Estragon has for Vladimir is apparent immediately when he needs Vladimirs help, because he cant even take off his own boot
Estragon, sitting on a low mound, is trying to take off his boot. He pulls at it with both hands, panting He gives up, exhausted, rests, tries again. As before. Enter Vladimir VLADIMIR Hand in hand from the top of the Eiffel Tower, among the first. We were respectable in those days. Now its too late. They wouldnt even let us up. (Estragon tears at his boot.) What are you doing ESTRAGON Taking off my boot. Did that never happen to you VLADIMIR Boots must be taken off every day, Im tired telling you that. Why dont you listen to me ESTRAGON (feebly). Help me VLADIMIR It hurts ESTRAGON (angrily). Hurts He wants to know if it hurts VLADIMIR (angrily). No one ever suffers but you. I dont count. Id like to hear what youd say if you had what I have. ESTRAGON It hurts VLADIMIR (angrily). Hurts He wants to know if it hurts ESTRAGON (pointing). You might button it all the same. VLADIMIR (stooping). True. (He buttons his fly.) Never neglect the little things of life. ESTRAGON What do you expect you always wait till the last moment. VLADIMIR (musingly). The last moment . . . (He meditates.) Hope deferred maketh the something sick, who said that ESTRAGON Why dont you help me VLADIMIR Sometimes I feel it coming all the same. Then I go all queer. (He takes off his hat, peers inside it, feels about inside it, shakes it, puts it on again.) How shall I say Relieved and at the same time . . . (he searches for the word) . . . appalled. (With emphasis.) AP-PALLED. (He takes off his hat again, peers inside it.) Funny. (He knocks on the crown as though to dislodge a foreign body, peers into it again, puts it on again.) Nothing to be done. (Estragon with a supreme effort succeeds in pulling off his boot. He peers inside it, feels about inside it, turns it upside down, shakes it, looks on the ground to see if anything has fallen out, finds nothing, feels inside it again, staring sightlessly before him.) Well ESTRAGON Nothing. VLADIMIR Show me. ESTRAGON Theres nothing to show.  VLADIMIR Try and put it on again. ESTRAGON (examining his foot). Ill air it for a bit). (Beckett, 1)

This also shows how Beckett deems one of the characters (that appear in pairs) as playing the role of an almost a child-like individual. He goes on to prove through the inflection of the characters that Estragon is more simple minded and weak. In this same way, Lucky plays the weaker, less self-sufficient role with Pozzo. When reading Becketts work that is one of the first things you learn about their relationship. He very quickly makes clear how their entire existence is strongly based on each other. How one needs the other to survive.

Estragon depends on Vladimir to entertain him and remind him of the events that have happened as they wait for Godot, and Estragon portrays a life form of someone just for Vladimir to talk to. This would explain why Vladimir would voluntarily exchange his hat for Luckys, and it shows his desire for someone elses thoughts. It is in this instance that Beckett incorporates everyday human feelings man needing man. Beckett uses the full extent of the stage to elaborate on Vladimirs role as entertainer. In several scenes, the actor is directed to move about the stage wildly, and in some instances is dragged around by Estragon, floating and being placed where Estragons whims take him.

Both sets of characters represent the complex relationship of the boy within the man .Vladimir (the man) is more of an intellectual character, the problem solver, the patient one, while Estragon ( the young boy) is more impatient and ready to jump at almost anything. Both need the other in order to be balanced and this balance is necessary for sustainability. The reader finds that Vladimir stands throughout the majority the play when Estragon sits down most of the time and even falls asleep. Vladimir finds himself looking at the sky and talking about religious or philosophical matters. On the other side of things, Estragon is occupied with more base line activities like what is there to eat and how to stop the pain that he is in. He finds himself having a hard time remembering things but can recall certain matters when reminded. Estragons short-term memory is thought to be one of the reasons that they do not leave each other. (Hutchings 63) It is also a way that Beckett shows the roots of who the charter is.

The lighting and imagery used on the set coincides with the opposition of these two characters. In several instances, Beckett uses lighting to influence the mood of this tragicomedy and with the night and day metaphor in mind, one draws the conclusion that this play would not be complete without the tangible use of imagery to signal changes and transitions. In one scene the light suddenly fails...The moon rises back, mounts in the sky, stands still, shedding a pale light on the scene.

Becketts theme of pairs continues with Pozzo and Lucky as well as the constant dependency of the boy within the man. Pozzo and Lucky are first introduced by in Becketts play with Lucky entering on a leash made of rope with Pozzo behind him walking him. The reader will find that Beckett uses the rope around Luckys neck as a symbol of how the pairs are tied to each other in more ways then one. Even though Pozzo is more than capable of carrying his own things, its a sense of insecurity that makes him exaggerate his need for help. Beckett established just how badly Lucky is treated by directing the actor to pull on the rope till he falls. This leaves the reader (or audience) once again wondering why Lucky does not just leave.

Throughout these acts, Beckett uses stage direction to better illustrate the master and slave relationship between Pozzo and Lucky. In one scene, Lucky appears by himself only long enough to reach the middle of the stage before the audience (or reader) realizes that Pozzo is still behind Lucky as always, holding onto the rope and relying on him for direction, but still treating him very badly. They exit and enter together and follow each other around the stage for most of the piece, adding physical attributes to the inseparable relationship that is alluded to through their lines.

It is then revealed that they have been together almost 60 years and things have never changed. Lucky gets whipped and treated horribly because he is the horse pulling Pozzos carriage. It is a relationship that seems to an outsider to be cruel and unfair, but still, Lucky stays by his side. Over the years it has been debated on whether Pozzo and Lucky are similar to Vladimir and Estragon. Although it is apparent that Pozzo and Lucky are more or less Didi and Gogo written on a large scale, there is another thing happening in the background. Pozzo was mistaken for Godot by the two men, but when it came to Lucky, Pozzo is his Godot. Their coinciding themes are not as vivid as it comes across, however, upon closer inspection, it becomes evident that Lucky always possessed more influence in the relationship, for he danced, and more importantly, thought  not as a service, but in order to fill a vacant need of Pozzo. (McMullin Et al, 407) In the end, the reader realizes that the ongoing theme of this work is death, mans ultimate limitation. (Hutchings, 136) It is the fear that drives the characters, remains constant in the minds of the weaker minded, and is a force that creeps slowly towards us all.