Waiting for Godot

In some works of literature, a character may not appear at all but play an important role in developing other characters or the action of those characters. Waiting for Godot is a prime example of such plays, where a character, Godot, never appears but is the basis of the play. The absence of Godot in Waiting for Godot, affects the characters’ actions and the development of the theme, that society is characterized by inaction and the ability lacked by individuals to communicate effectively. Godot is an individual that Didi and Gogo are waiting for on a park bench. This act of waiting leads to the conversation between blank and blank about hanging themselves from a tree. This conversation never leads to the action which is similar to how they wait for someone who never arrives. Also, Didi and Gogo converse about leaving the park bench, yet they never actually leave. They sit around and discuss possible actions but never actually initiate them. Godots’ lack of appearance is related to these pointless conversations and ultimately affects Didi and Gogos’ actions because Godot is supposed to be meeting them at this location yet never appears just as Didi and Gogo talk about actions but never actually act on them. Didi and Gogo are characterized by the actions of looking into their hat as if searching for something and peering into their boots for something that isn’t there. These actions are correlated to the absence of Godot because they are looking for something that is not there just as they are waiting for someone who never arrives. With this lack of action and pointless searching, a theme is developed from the absence of Godot. Didi and Gogo repeatedly start conversations where the topic is pointless or keeps switching with every few lines. They respond to one another with answers that do not make sense or answer the questions being asked. These conversations also involve talk about going places and carrying out actions but these topics are never fulfilled.