Samuel Beckett's Waiting for Godot

by Harold Bloom (Editor)

Each title features:
- Critical essays reflecting a variety of schools of criticism
- Notes on the contributing critics, a chronology of the author's life, and an index
- An introductory essay by Harold Bloom.

Genres: Nonfiction, Literary Criticism, Drama, Plays, Literature, Philosophy, Classics

172 pages, Hardcover

First published February 1, 1988

About the author

Harold Bloom was an American literary critic and the Sterling Professor of Humanities at Yale University. In 2017, Bloom was called "probably the most famous literary critic in the English-speaking world." After publishing his first book in 1959, Bloom wrote more than 50 books, including over 40 books of literary criticism, several books discussing religion, and one novel. He edited hundreds of anthologies concerning numerous literary and philosophical figures for the Chelsea House publishing firm. Bloom's books have been translated into more than 40 languages. He was elected to the American Philosophical Society in 1995.
Bloom was a defender of the traditional Western canon at a time when literature departments were focusing on what he derided as the "school of resentment" (multiculturalists, feminists, Marxists, and others). He was educated at Yale University, the University of Cambridge, and Cornell University.

Reviews

[Kamakana · Rating 5 out of 5]

if you like this review i now have website: www.michaelkamakana.com

??? '90s?: i have to admit i prefer this play over anything else the man wrote: this critical work helped me understand why. it strikes me, as most modernist work, to still have a romantic faith in power of great art, belief we as artists and critics could really be onto something significant about the human experience, idea that art was not exhausted or irrelevant, even if the outcome was a bleak black humor of the original ‘tragicomedy’...

more:
Waiting For Godot
Beckett: A Guide for the Perplexed
The Essential Samuel Beckett: An Illustrated Biography, Revised Edition

[Alice · Rating 2 out of 5]

writing a book about a book about nothing might be just a little too much.

[Malika Saara Khan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Waiting for Godot is a landmark in modern drama. When it premiered in Paris, the audience was stunned. No one had ever seen or heard anything like this before. Some were puzzled, some disgusted while others were enthusiastic. The title Waiting for Godot describes the action exactly. Vladimir and Estragon, two educated but homeless unemployed men, have an appointment to meet Godot on a country road.

We do not know anything about this Godot. Instead of meeting Godot, they encounter another bizarre couple of males: Pozzo, a tyrant, and his servant Lucky, whom he drags along a rope. The play consists of dialogues between each or both of these pairs. They joke to pass the time and have deep reflections on the problems of human existence. There is hardly any other action in the play. A boy appears at the end of each act to inform them of Godot’s continuing absence while Pozzo’s second entrance reveals him to have been blind.


 Nothing happens, nobody comes, nobody goes, it’s awful 


“Nothing happens, nobody comes, nobody goes, it’s awful!” This phrase stunningly sums up the whole play.

[Angie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Useful, and yet still obnoxious.

[Matthew De Alba · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was in between a 3.5 and a 4 for this play and I can confidently say that Samuel Beckett's Waiting for Godot is a solid 4! I appreciate Becket's satirical commentary on existentialism, and try to get closer to answering "What is the meaning of life?" I think the overall broadness and ambiguity just made it a little less enjoyable for me, however, I respect and appreciate it, and I couldn't picture it any other way. But, the English major spirit in me thoroughly enjoyed the many "easter eggs" and rhetorical devices to pull out from the text. I think this is a must-read for everyone, especially those who keep on waiting.

[Thomas Bazar · Rating 5 out of 5]

In my opinion, the greatest of all plays. It's unlike anything else I have read, seen or performed. The characters of Pozzo and Lucky are a brilliant duo. The play captures our 'pale blue dot' in a vast universe as strongly as any other. It's sad, funny, philosophical, tragic and wonderfully absurdist. The best of the best.

[sarah boudreaux · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thinks it’s a very funny story, and made me laugh a good bit. I did like the beauty of it in that in many ways it truly is about nothing. Three stars mostly because there’s a lot to contemplate about after reading that.

[Natalia Stornello · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not great. I understand the concept of absurdism, but it was just so boring. I understand that everything is a metaphor, but I was falling asleep just reading it. I think that if I were to see it performed I would still be very bored. Don’t think I’ll be reading any of Beckett’s other work.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

Famous for the punchline but didn't give me a lot to chew on.

[Donatella · Rating 1 out of 5]

oh these poor people trying to give explanations on this text...

[McArthur Library · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was forced to read this play as part of my AP Literature class. Surprisingly, however, it became my favorite book of the year! I loved the ambiguous plot and how fast it read. After reading it a few times, you can develop your own interpretation. Get your friends to read it and have a discussion about it. It's so much fun!

[Eve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good