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E336: Twentieth-Century British Literature Beckett's End Game Study Questions Al Drake. Office: Cyber Cafe, M 6-7 | 714-434-1612 1. How would you characterize the dialogue in this play, in comparison to older, more "realistic" drama? Another way of asking this question is, "what is the value of words in this play?" Do they serve the same purpose as they do in older kinds of drama, or not? Explain. 2. How do you interpret the relationship between Hamm and Clov? And why does Hamm keep demanding his "dog"? 3. "Habit is the ballast that chains the dog to his vomit," writes Beckett in an essay on Proust. "Breathing is habit." How might you use this kind of thinking as a way to describe his handling of plot in Endgame? 4. Beckett dealt often with the untenability of love and with the illusory quality of friendship and relationships more generally. How do Nagg and Nell reflect this interest? 5. On page 2480, Nagg retells his story about the Englishman and his trousers. Later, on page 2489, Hamm declares "it's story time," and launches into his own little tale. What is the point of this kind of storytelling in Endgame? 6. What is the point of the little boy's appearance at page 2498? What do Hamm and Clov think his significance is? 7. What is the "endgame"? It's said that nothing ever happens in Beckett's plays. If something were to happen in Endgame, what would it be? Explain. 8. A general question: Beckett's aim is surely not to please an audience--at least not in any simple way. What elements of traditional drama does he reject to strip us of our viewing pleasure? What's the payoff for being patient with him? In other words, wherein lies the value of Beckett's postmodern drama for you as an individual viewer? Edition: The Norton Anthology of English Literature, 7th. ed., Vol. 2C only. New York: Norton, 1999. ISBN: 0393975703.
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