Friendship in Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett Essay

Friendship is best served when it is shared by individuals who have defined themselves. Throughout â€Å"Waiting for Godot,† this notion is explored by demonstrating the problems friends experience when they define one another, look to each other for self-definition, have unfair expectations of one another, become self-centered, and maintain friendship out of need, a need to be needed, or habit. Through this exploration, the reader finds that the possibility of ending up in a stagnant relationship as a result of these problems can be simply reconciled. Friendship is best enjoyed between friends who have defined themselves and enter into the given relationship as an outlet for mutual understanding and support, thus stifling the human tendency†¦show more content†¦Unfortunately, sometimes when others have made the effort to define themselves to us, we do not care to listen because we have already defined them in our minds. This error is made by Pozzo in Act 1: â€Å"What is your name?† he asks Estragon, to which Estragon replies, â€Å"Adam† (25). Pozzo does not listen, and instead spouts off a monologue about the sky. Such a mistake prevents their understanding of one another. When one person defines another and ignores the other’s own feelings, a gap in understanding results, which prevents much more than a surface connection between people to be made. Other times, people seek self-definition from others, only to hear what one wants. Such a scenario is played out in Act 1: Pozzo: â€Å"How do you find me? Good? Fair? Middling? Poor? Positively bad?† Vladmir: â€Å"Oh very good, very very good.† Pozzo (to Estragon): â€Å"And you, sir?† Estragon: â€Å"Oh tray bong, tray tray tray bong.† Pozzo: â€Å"Bless you, gentlemen, bless you! I have such need of encouragement...†(26). While Pozzo acquires the encouragement he needs from Vladmir’s statement, he asks directly for Estragon’s opinion--and perceives his incoherent reply to be a compliment. This miscommunication demonstrates both self-centeredness and a disregard for the true opinions of others; as long as Pozzo can convince himself that though others think well ofShow MoreRelatedWaiting for Godot and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead: The Theatre of the Absurd803 Words   |  4 Pagesplays Waiting for Godot written by Samuel Beckett and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead written by Tom Stoppard both incorporate human needs and concerns within their context through its whimsical and comedic dialogues. Both plays belong in the category of the theatre of the absurd, where the existentialist philosophy underlies all aspects of the plays. 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