Introduction
Endgame is a play written by Samuel Beckett in 1957 and it has a close resemblance to other plays like the theatre of the Absurd and Waiting for Godot. The first script of the play was written and acted in French at the Royal Court Theatre. Later on, it was translated to English by Beckett. He had studied both English and French and that is why he was able to interpret the play himself.
Samuel Becket uses four characters to outline the theme in the play. These characters in the play include; Hamm, Clov, Nagg, and Nell. Hamm was disabled and he could neither stand nor see. Clov was Hamm’s servant but he could not sit. Nagg who was Hamm’s father lived in a dustbin and was not lucky to have legs. The other character was Nell. She was Hamm’s mother and lived with Hamm’s father. The title of the play is symbolic of the chess game.
Endgame in the chess game means that time when a player is left with a few pieces to play. However, the fact that Beckett was a chasing player and he understood both the English and French make the title very suitable. The events in the play can both be interpreted as optimistic and pessimistic. The play illustrates pessimism with its relation to how it uses the elements of a play while it is optimistic because Beckett used World War I to make the play more relevant to get more sales.
Characters
The characters in the play have disabilities. Hamm who is the main character in the play cannot move together with his parents Nagg and Nell. The only person capable of moving in the play is Clov but he can not sit. This play is symbolic of world politics. When the book was published, the world faced a nuclear threat. Nuclear weapons posed a big threat to the world and people were likely to be wiped out due to nuclear infections.
The characters in the play that can not move are likely to die because they can’t get what they want. This is about the world which was likely to be finished in search of power. This symbolizes the end of the world. Here, the play is optimistic about the likely event of the world coming to an end. Beckett is optimistic that since the end of the world was eminent through the threat posed by nuclear weapons, his play will be relevant.
The plot
The play reflects both on the past and the present. Hamm’s parents enjoyed life after they were engaged at Lake Como. In the play, this is the only time when the couples were happy. At the same time, it is during this same time that they lost their feet. They were roving with a bicycle before their legs were crushed by the bicycle’s tandem at Ardennes forest. This is the same place where a fierce battle between the Germans and the French was fought during the First World War. Also, Napoleon III was defeated by the Germans at this place.
After successfully defeating the French during World War I, the Germans went on to lose during World War II. Nag and Nell represent the Germans who succeeded but later failed. The characters’ names have also been used to show how Becket anticipated the German Fall. Hamm represents a hammer, Nag is a German version to mean Nail while Clov is a French version to mean Nail. Building requires the use of a hammer and nails. Becket uses the names to represent further war among the European countries that went on to become a reality. Therefore, the writer is optimistic that the European nations will fight each other in the future which came to be true.
Conclusion
Endgame was first released in 1957. This was exactly one year after the release of another play called Waiting for Godot. Waiting for Godot was a very famous French play. The release of Endgame just immediately after Waiting for Godot was a pessimist move to make the play famous. The play was released in French in Landon where most people understood English. Beckett used characters’ names that had both French and English meanings. In the play, characters play as if they are part of the game. Becket’s work relies mostly on the elements of play than actual reality.
The title of the play means the end. However, even the Endgame in a chase game is played. In the play, Clov does exactly what Hamm instructs him about where to be placed. When Hamm feels far to the left, Clov will move him to the desired position, to the right. The movements are only important in the game of chase, Hamm who is the king can also move forward and then backward. The play simply employs elements of play without meaning. Therefore, Becket is a pessimist when he uses the moves in the play.