Contrary to the traditional plays that usually have clear plots, recognizable characters and logical dialogues, the plays that are categorized as absurd lack all of these essential elements. For this reason, actors playing Vladimir must first fully comprehend the practice of Theatre of the Absurd and the implicit information about the characters in the play script.
The original notion of Theatre of the Absurd came from the existentialist philosopher Albert Camus who said, “The absurd is born of this confrontation between the human need and the unreasonable silence of the world” . During the devastating World War two, the endless wars as well as the loss of traditional and moral values cause many to question the meaning of life. A group of …show more content…
Vladimir is often characterized as a tramp , as seen in both figure 2 and 3, which are homeless people who detached from the society. However, there are no specific physical descriptions in the script to suggest they are tramps. Beckett refusing to be drawn to the backgrounds of the characters encourages the actors to look for their own motivations. So, the actors should not let the identity of tramps restrain their understanding and acting of the play. The reason why most of the actors characterize Vladimir as tramps is that their struggle with society can be comic or even ridiculous. They need to change reality into weirdness while still making the audience think and doubt moral values. This can help to express the essence of Theatre of the Absurd. The feeling of confusion or absurdity has to be always expressed on the stage and transferred to the audience by actors applying their own experience to the …show more content…
Normally, the audience’s laughter at a comedy is the expression of releasing intense emotions. However, that is not what Beckett expects for triggering laughter. His aim is to portray how life is ridiculous and to waken the senses of his audience. Due to the traumatic experiences of World War two, these plays containing such serious backgrounds are not possible to amuse the audience and generate the feeling of happiness. Instead, they are for illustrating the tensions between tragedy and comedy as well as the awfulness of human existence. Just like what Samuel Beckett said, "Nothing is funnier than unhappiness, I grant you that. Yes, yes, it's the most comical thing in the
The original notion of Theatre of the Absurd came from the existentialist philosopher Albert Camus who said, “The absurd is born of this confrontation between the human need and the unreasonable silence of the world” . During the devastating World War two, the endless wars as well as the loss of traditional and moral values cause many to question the meaning of life. A group of …show more content…
Vladimir is often characterized as a tramp , as seen in both figure 2 and 3, which are homeless people who detached from the society. However, there are no specific physical descriptions in the script to suggest they are tramps. Beckett refusing to be drawn to the backgrounds of the characters encourages the actors to look for their own motivations. So, the actors should not let the identity of tramps restrain their understanding and acting of the play. The reason why most of the actors characterize Vladimir as tramps is that their struggle with society can be comic or even ridiculous. They need to change reality into weirdness while still making the audience think and doubt moral values. This can help to express the essence of Theatre of the Absurd. The feeling of confusion or absurdity has to be always expressed on the stage and transferred to the audience by actors applying their own experience to the …show more content…
Normally, the audience’s laughter at a comedy is the expression of releasing intense emotions. However, that is not what Beckett expects for triggering laughter. His aim is to portray how life is ridiculous and to waken the senses of his audience. Due to the traumatic experiences of World War two, these plays containing such serious backgrounds are not possible to amuse the audience and generate the feeling of happiness. Instead, they are for illustrating the tensions between tragedy and comedy as well as the awfulness of human existence. Just like what Samuel Beckett said, "Nothing is funnier than unhappiness, I grant you that. Yes, yes, it's the most comical thing in the