It wasn't until I was able to see the play acted that I lost all meaning ascribed to the drama while reading it. But as we have all come to understand: from one minute to the next, opinions, interpretations, and messages received from a Beckett production are subject to change. It was after I saw the setting and positioning of the characters on the stage that an interesting thought came to mind. Perhaps the room could be understood as a human head (with two windows for eyes), and entities inhabiting it are the different drivers (and baggage) of our minds. Hamm would, under this interpretation, constitute the central processing unit. The one who gives commands, sits about and expects to be pampered, or at the very least, entertained. Clov could be considered a symbol of the body, weak yet able, and always a slave to the mind. Now, the implications of this paradigm are seemingly endless, and I am in no way confident enough to face them, let alone explain them. Such as, if Hamm had found Clov when he was a boy and 'took him in' than that could suggest that the mind is eternal and constantly in search of a vessel. I would highly doubt that Beckett would be comfortable with these implications or even this analysis (No symbols where none intended, naturally). No matter how far from the mark it may be, the interpretation, I do not think, could be exhausted of all its veracity. We are of course invited into some form of a mind in this play, and what better setting for such a exploration than within the mind itself. The wonderful nature of Beckett is his ability to present his audience with something so useless to interpret that it becomes infinitely approachable. Tomorrow I expect to chastise myself for having such an elementary interpretation and proceed to replace it with one as equally feeble.
I definitely see similarities between the room in "Endgame" and a head or skull. Really, *all* of the cramped, dark rooms in Beckett's work resemble skulls. The walls, floors, and ceilings are the barriers between what's inside and what's outside, and the men inside are trapped, unable to do anything else but talk to themselves. I think this is the concept, mentioned by an actress from a production of "Not I," of Beckett "putting consciousness on the stage," or, rather, "in a room."
ReplyDeleteMike,
ReplyDeleteDon't you dare replace this idea, it is genius! I never would have been able to come up with this close of an examination of the room. I always concentrate so heavily on the characters, and I do not think about place with Beckett. Your blog is well written, as usual, and I really like the picture you chose to put here. I also change my opinion of the play once watched, and am so glad we are given the opportunity to do so. Keep up the good work!
-Marla