No Exit

Within this particular interactive oral, the idea of whether the hell in No Exit is represented or disregarded as a theological Christian hell was presented upon us. Throughout time, the Christian hell has been depicted as a fiery, unforgiving place, as shown in the bible verses, Matthew 13:49b-50, “The angles will come and separate the wicked from the righteous and throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing teeth” and Revelation 19:20b, “The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur”. This theological hell has also been seen as place of separation from god and restlessness.
At first glance, the hell in No Exit differs from a classic Christian theological hell in many ways. The characters, Estelle, Garcin, and Inez, are placed in a room where their torture is each other. Despite the physical pain that a Christian hell entails, the characters in No Exit face a torture more centered around mental pain. This can be best represented
Firstly, when Garcin first arrives to the room, he notices that the valet has no eyelids and says “So that’s the idea. I’m to live without eyelids….. No eyelids, no sleep.”(6) This is very similar to the idea that in a Christian hell there is no rest. Then, later on, after realizing that she will forever be in the absence of the people she truly loves, Inez says “Ah, that’s the way it works, is it? Torture by separation” (8). This can be related to how a Christian, who has been sent to hell, would be separated from god, their one, true love. Lastly, although this may have been hard to pick up on, it is possible to see the connection between the fiery Christian hell and the hot, steamy room that No Exit was placed in. Garcin would constantly attempt to take his coat off due to the extreme heat and once exclaimed “Whew! How hot is it here… Stifling, that