Mark Fischer

12/8/2015

Paper #5

Examine ways in which we can understand Beckett's play as a

response to Nietzsche.

Thomas Becket and Friedrich Nietzsche are thought to be two of the most prominent

thinkers of the 20th century. They were thinkers that brought on a new age of post modern ideals

that the world had not before seen. Both thinkers sought to answer many of the same questions

about the world and human existence. Though seeking answers to the same questions the two

men came to different conclusions with regards to answering their questions. Becket had the

opportunity to read Nietzsches writings during his lifetime and thus had the distinct advantage

of responding to the work. Becket took his opportunity to respond with his play Waiting for

Godot. In this witty satirical representation of human life, Becket manages to challenge many of

the teachings and thoughts Nietzsche. The play Waiting for Godot can be viewed as a response to

Nietzsche by addressing the main theme of the ubermensch.

In Beckets play the two characters Estragon and Vladimir stand by a tree in an unknown

area and simply wait for someone named Godot to arrive. When looking closer at the situation

that the two characters run a close parallel to Nietzsches idea of the overman. In Nietzsches

description of the overman he describes one that has rejected all authority and any kind of

religious ties. With this rejection of all social constraints and living in any way that one sees as

most beneficial to oneself, the ubermensch would separate from the human heard and rule over

them. In his continued description of this progression of the human species, the overman has
done whatever it takes to get to the final point of being above all others. Nietzsche had come up

with this theory and wrote about the practice of Zarathustra. Zarathustra the protagonist of

Nietzsches mock gospel and exemplary ubermensch lived his life both rejecting religion and

lecturing citizens of the cities and towns that he traveled to. Becket responds to this story with

the playing out of the two main characters of his play. The two men show a hypothetical situation

of what the ubermensch would look like if acted out in the mind of Samuel Becket. Adding to the

true depth of Beckets work, the theme of the Ubermensch can be seen and observed in more

than one way.

The first way that the theme of the Ubermensch appears in the text is in the relationship

between Estragon and Vladimir. Though these two are seemingly friends and are waiting for the

same person at the same time and in the same place, they often take on the role of a caretaker and

patient role. Vladimir is constantly supporting and reassuring Estragon of what it is that they are

actually doing. Which is of course waiting for Godot. In this relationship it can be said that

Vladimir represents a hypothetical ubermensch. That would mean that Estragon in his feeble

mindedness and lack of a short term memory is representing the heard. Estragon does what he is

told and is very much so content with do so. As the herd Estragon deals with misery and

suffering in the boot incident. He also is provided for by Vladimir when he admits to being

hungry. He is all but reliant on Vladimir being present for his very survival. Which is sort of in

agreement with how Zarathustra treated the people when he came down from the mountain. He

saw them as the herd that was moving in the wrong direction. Zarathustra and Vladimir are in

commanding roles and rule and assure the herd behind them. The relationship between the way

that Zarathustra and Vladimir continue their relationship with the herd is very different from one

another.
 Vladimir and Estragon do not always hold onto the same role in their relationship. What

this means is that sometimes the role of the ubermensch is not held solely by Vladimir. Now

there is not a significant amount of evidence that supports at any time that Estragon takes his

place as the ubermensch but rather they are both parts of the herd. With this back and forth of

these roles in the relationship Becket is getting at the finality of the ubermensch. When Nietzsche

describes his ubermensch, it is an entirely new state of being for man. It would not be something

that one moves back and forth from. Becket is giving this example to show that even if humans

do change for their own personal betterment, then that person is still going to need someone to

talk to. On top of that the ubermensch is a very difficult and lonely position to hold alone. It is

also important to notice how the relationship between Estragon and Vladimir is described as one

of the caregiver and patient. Nietzsche would say that this relationship is one that is clearly a

master slave nature. That is not so cut and dry when it becomes unclear who is the master and

who is the slave. The back and forth and switching of these qualities gives the appearance of a

dependence of both the caretaker and the one being cared for. By making comparisons and

connections it would be safe to say that the caretaker could not exist without the caretaker. Using

the same reason to combat Nietzsche, this poses the question of how much dependence does the

ubermensch have on the herd. For without the herd there can be no overman. If the herd were to

be lacking, then there would be nothing to be over and all would end up at the very beginning

when all were man. The relationship between the two characters shows some comparable themes

to that of Nietzsches philosophy, but a great deal of what Becket is saying lies in the setting of

the play.

The play itself is set in nowhere in particular. Really the only detail that is known to the

reader is that there is a tree nearby. The way that the setting and the very basis of the play is to
look at the two protagonists as if they were both ubermensch. This in more ways is posing a

response to the great German thinker's theory. By existing and waiting for Godot the two men are

not doing much of anything at all. That could be Beckets point that he is wanting to make about

the ubermensch. Now that Vladimir and Estragon are past all that society has to offer and past

religion and all of the nonsense that the herd deals with, there is nothing for them to do. They

have achieved the level of ubermensch and it is not really that great. All they have to do is wait

for the next large event in their lives, which in this case is the arrival of Godot. It could be trying

to show that if what Nietzsche said about the stepping over of mankind and creating a new post

religion, post society being were to come true, that there would be nothing to do once humans

got there. If people had no meaning to live for and disregarded everything that society wanted

them to do and only did what was for themselves, then all a person would do for their entire life

would be to stay alive and wait to die. For all of the other things in this world are based on some

sort of worldview context. The two men seem fairly content with what they are doing but

ultimately they are just trying to pass the time. If there is nothing for people to gain from living

the lives that we do, then one might as well convince themselves they have a purpose in life.

Becket gives the alternative to this way of thinking in these mens actions. If there is no point to

existence then nothing should be done, because there is no real benefit to it. Once people begin

to develop the traits of the ubermensch they will isolate themselves from the herd and form a

separation between the two. From the herd the ubermensch will look lonely bored and confused

with what to do and how to live their life. While the members of the herd will go along seeing

their purpose little by little every day.

It seems to be rather up in the air how to take this play and work it into the good life. On

one hand the play represents so many reasons to say that Nietzsches ubermensch would not be
that great even if it were true, but at the same time it really trivializes ones own life. If there

really is nothing out there that keeps people moving and no purpose for anything that happens in

the world, then Becket gives us what would be true. That people are just on this planet living

their lives by wasting time in the most efficient way they can. This relates to the idea of doing

nothing. When people say they are doing nothing they are usually doing something that is

considered a waste of time. Taking a new existentialist or nihilist perspective of the world there

is no action that is a more significant waste of time than anything else. No matter what people do

they will more or less be doing the same thing as Vladimir and Estragon, waiting for something

big to come and let us know what to do.

The actions of the two men should also be looked at using the three options that one has

in life by Albert Camus. More than one time in the story the two men consider ending their own

lives simply to end the waiting game. They dont see a point in them being alive simply waiting

for whatever it is that is coming. It ends up being more of a burden to them then it would be a

reward so they keep on living. The question then comes down to what option did they choose?

Did they take the route of philosophical suicide or did they just keep living? In the mentioning

and rejection of suicide Becket forces the reader to come to a very difficult assessment of which

of the other two options did these men choose. When the reader looks at these two characters and

attempts to assign them one of the two options it becomes nearly impossible, and rightfully so. In

the wasting of time that is human existence, Becket is pointing out that it doesnt really matter

what the other option is that we choose. In this world we are here wasting time and as long as

time is passing we have the choice to waste it in whatever manner we so do which to choose.

Time is another concept that Becket toys with in the play. The two men dont have

accurate signs for telling how much time has been passing them. There are two different ways in
which this was analyzed with connection to the human experience. The first is that humans do all

sorts of planning for the future when there is no assurance that the future exists. There is nothing

set in stone about the time that each person has while they are on this earth so time should not be

the dictator of ones life. The second way to approach time as in the play is to consider the

following question. Why if there really is nothing but time to be wasted does Vladimir care so

much about it? He is always worried about how long they have been waiting and for no apparent

reason. It shows that time is both humans best friend and worst enemy. The only thing that is

clearly out of the Ubermensch control. Time is something that one cannot be hurried or slowed

down. Time is the ultimate equalizer for both man and ubermensch.