Waiting For Godot Humor Analysis

Register to read the introduction… Lucky’s relationship with Pozzo is clearly one of submission and resignation, and through this relationship Beckett brings up the question of how and why we, as humans, allow ourselves to be controlled by others. Beckett’s use of humor in this situation is seen initially in his introduction of Lucky; when he enters the stage he is described as being “[driven] by means of a rope passed around his neck” by Pozzo. The absurdity in Beckett’s humor comes into play here in that Beckett makes what we often consider to be a figurative concept of being controlled by someone else literal. The idea that one person is capable of controlling another is made funny because the image is so ludicrous. The rope around Lucky’s neck and the fact that he is being forced to carry Pozzo’s belongings serves as a symbol of the socially constructed power structure—Pozzo is clearly in control in this situation and Lucky is being forced to comply with and do the bidding of his master. What also makes this humorous is the absurdity of the circumstance; Lucky is allowing himself to be literally led by a rope by someone who is supposedly superior to him, and does nothing to protest. This communicates how people have created a society in which they control one another by ranking, be it racial, socio-economic, age/gender-related, or anything else. It also brings to …show more content…
What the play does, however, is communicate this message through the use of humor. Were it not for Samuel Beckett’s inventive weaving of jest into the intricate tapestry of existentialist commentary that is Waiting for Godot, the work would be emotionally draining and fail to accomplish what many existentialists yearn to achieve—the desire to live fully despite the meaninglessness of existence. The nonsensical delivery of Waiting for Godot is vital to the play’s ability to evoke in the reader an understanding of the hopelessness of the human predicament because with this humor the work blooms with vivacity and results in the reader simultaneously enjoying himself and better understanding Beckett’s