Literary Devices in Waiting for Godot
Symbolism, Imagery, Allegory
Waiting for Godot is chock-full of pairs. There’s Vladimir and Estragon, the two thieves, the Boy and his brother, Pozzo and Lucky, Cain and Abel, and of course the two acts of the play itsel...
Setting
This ain't an ornate set, guys. And—apart from a pretty dismal tree—there isn't a lot to look at.We're never really sure whether Act 1 and Act 2 take place in the same location, other than the...
Narrator Point of View
Though all works of literature present the author’s point of view, they don’t all have a narrator or a narrative voice that ties together and presents the story. This particular piece of litera...
Genre
Ooof. With a list like that, we sure have our work cut out for us. But you can't just fit Waiting For Godot into one genre because this brilliant, game-changing play breaks the whole dang genre mol...
Tone
Yes, both these adjectives are simultaneously possible. That’s why they call it a tragicomedy. But what’s interesting about the tone is that isn’t just bleak and comic; it’s bleak because i...
Writing Style
Did you notice the sort of sunny, PBS kiddie show-style banter between the characters? Because that thought came to us when we heard Vladimir ask:VLADIMIR Do you want a carrot? ESTRAGON Is that a...
What’s Up With the Title?
Waiting for Godot: A Tragicomedy in Two Acts is just that: a play about waiting. And waiting. And waiting some more. For some dude named (maybe?) Godot.The title reflects the lack of action—or as...
Plot Analysis
Not applicable, folks. Nothing happens, nobody comes, nobody goes. Or, as scholar David Bradby says in his criticism of Godot, "less than nothing happens."
Booker's Seven Basic Plots Analysis
Vladimir and Estragon are tragic figures throughout the play, with seemingly no control over their life situation. The difference between Booker’s Tragedy plotline and the plotline of Waiting f...
Trivia
Depending on the production and country, some actors pronounce "Godot" like "God-oh" instead of "Guh-doh," thus emphasizing the allusion to God. Beckett once said the emphasis should be on the firs...
Steaminess Rating
Waiting for Godot has no plot, no action—and zero sexytimes. The closest we get is Vladimir’s genital pain from his long-aching prostate, which doesn’t surprise us—suffering is par for the...
Allusions
Søren Kierkegaard: Fear and Trembling (1.410)Atlas (1.444)Jupiter (1.444)Pan (1.515)The Bible: "A dream deferred makes the heart sick; but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life," Biblical Proverb (...