Context

Question 1

World War II

Answer 1

Beckett wrote Waiting for Godot in the late 1940s, shortly after World War II ended, and the conflicts and horrors of the war were fresh in people’s memory.

Question 2

Beckett and the French Resistance?

Answer 2

He lived in occupied Paris, working with the French Resistance until he had to flee to avoid being arrested by the Germans.

Question 3

Beckett and the red cross?

Answer 3

After the Allied victory in Europe, Beckett volunteered for the Red Cross, witnessing firsthand the consequences of war and Nazi brutality.

Question 4

History of modernism?

Answer 4

The modernist period in literature, which began around the turn of the 20th century, especially after the Industrial Revolution and World War I.
Modernists felt a growing alienation incompatible with Victorian conventions, giving way to new ideas of psychology, philosophy, and modes of expression.

Question 5

Goal of modernism?

Answer 5

To create something completely new.

Sparked much experimentation by merging psychological theory with the creation of many new forms and styles.

Question 6

Tropes of modernism?

Answer 6

Focus on the inner self, Concern with the decline of civilization and the effects of capitalism, Alienation and loneliness of the individual ,Stream of consciousness style, Deviation from traditional plot structures.

Question 7

History of Postmodernism?

Answer 7

Arose after World War II, turned away from modernism’s insistence on entirely new literary forms. Instead, it reflected numerous traditional styles within one work.

Question 8

Characteristics of postmodernism?

Answer 8

Parody or pastiche, Interest in flattened emotions, Focus on an anonymous or collective experience, The use of repeating elements, Unreliable narrators

Question 9

History of The Theater of the Absurd?

Answer 9

Though not a formal movement, the term was coined by Martin Esslin in 1960 to describe the plays of Samuel Beckett, Eugene lonesco, Jean Genet and Arthur Adamov.

Question 10

Tropes of the Theatre of the Absurd?

Answer 10

Lack of purpose and logic, uncertainty, hopelessness and ridiculousness, absurdity of human existence, childish nicknames, slapstick comedy

Question 11

Theatre of the Absurd in Waiting for Godot?

Answer 11

The human condition is depicted as without purpose. Beckett labelled the play a “tragicomedy,” emphasising both the humour and anxiety to be seen in the absurdity of existence.

Question 12

History of Existentialism?

Answer 12

Questions human existence.
Holds that there is no God.
Encourages embracing existence, freedom of choice and finding the meaning of life.

Question 13

Jean-Paul Sartre on Existentialism?

Answer 13

Popularised existentialist themes in the 1940s and 50s.

Proposed that humankind “first surges up in the world and defines [itself] afterwards,”

Question 14

Literary influences?

Answer 14

Bérénice, a 17th-century play by the French playwright Jean Racine, stressed the importance of making an interesting play with little action.
Also, Sartre’s play No Exit, in which characters are trapped in one location.

Question 15

Beckett’s religion?

Answer 15

His family belonged to the Protestant religion in Ireland.
However, Beckett asserted that he was a non-believer.
He asserted that the Christian allusions seen in his works were merely used to serve his dramatic intentions.

Question 16

Cain and Abel?

Answer 16

In the biblical story, God beats one brother, while rewarding the other, testing their loyalty to each other.
The two pairs in Godot suffer a similar punishment.
Both pairs, like Cain and Abel, develop a connection in the face of their suffering.

Question 17

Biblical story of the two thieves and a savior?

Answer 17

This story may an allusion to the play itself, and the dynamic between Vladimir, Estragon, and Godot.
Vladimir and Estragon possess the Christian hope of salvation.
One of the thieves was saved by his belief, justifying the hope for the criminal and downtrodden.

Question 18

Biblical allusion of the boy?

Answer 18

Relates to John’s vision in Revelations.

His mention of sheep and goats refers to a passage in the Book of Matthew.

Question 19

Biblical allusion of hanging from the tree?

Answer 19

Alludes to the crucifixion- linking to the story of the two thieves who were crucified with Jesus.

Question 20

Figure of Atlas

Answer 20

In Greek mythology, Atlas was a Titan condemned to hold up the sky for eternity.
Therefore, becoming a figure of endurance.
However, Pozzo’s malapropism reflects an overturn of this mythological allusion- the characters are enduring pain for no reason.

Question 21

The figure of Pan

Answer 21

Pan is a figure from Greek mythology who was originally a pastoral god.
He was believed to dwell in the mountains and forests and was considered the patron of shepherds.
Associated with music and its magical powers he is credited with inventing the panpipes.

Question 22

The Firmament

Answer 22

In biblical cosmology, the firmament is the vast solid dome created by God on the second day to divide the sea into upper and lower portions so that the dry land could appear.