M.A. Semester 3, 
Paper 9 - 
The Modernist Literature. 


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Relooking the research

Absurdity of Existentialism in the light if

Samuel Beckett’s ‘Waiting for Godot’ and Shrikant Shah’s ‘ Apne Badha Akash Niche Ubha chhie’.

Bhumi Dangi

(Third Year B.A)

Existentialism

Existentialism is mainly a European philosophy that originated before the turn of the twentieth century, but became popular after World War II (1939 – 45). In simple words Existentialism is the term which contains theory of our existence. Nowadays science has its own vista and acknowledgement it is nothing else but collections of reasons. Slowly and steadily science developed as a stream, people started looking for the reasons behind every single incidence and some literary genius found life itself an incident. Although, I may not consider science to as the cause, of the firm but basically roots of Existentialism lies in the scientific bent of mind. The questions that make you feel agitated from within. Whenever you are coming on a maturity level in your life, such kinds of questions have to rise from your mind which may not have any answers.

 A more technical definition of existentialism reveals the reason for its name. Existentialism is the study of existence. If you take existence to be everything that exists — such as chairs and tables, people — all philosophy, science, and religion would seem to have the same subject. But existentialism isn’t the study of everything that exists; it’s the study of existence itself — the study of what it means for something to exist at all as opposed to not existing. It’s also the study of what it means for something, as opposed to nothing, to exist at all. Of course, the primary focus of existentialism is a particular kind of existence, the kind of existence that includes existing things like you, because you’re aware of your existence and capable of questioning it.

The seeds of existentialism may be traced back to an earlier period of the history of philosophy. During the 18th century reason and nature were given more importance, objectivity was very much emphasized, leading to industrial and technological developments and science was given utmost importance. From the scientific viewpoint, man was also regarded as an object. Man became a slave to machines in developing industrial society. Against this situation existentialism emerged as a protest against the society and asserted the supremacy of individuality of man.

It deals with the following fundamental issues

1.      Existence precedes Essence

2.      Importance of Subjectivity

3.      Man’s Freedom

4.      Criticism of Idealism

5.      Criticism of Naturalism

6.      Criticism of Scientific Culture

7.      Attention on Human Weakness and Security

Themes such as freedom, decision, and responsibility are prominent in all existentialist philosophers. These matters constitute the core of personal being. It is the exercise of freedom and the ability to shape the future that distinguishes man from all other beings that we know on earth. It is through free and responsible decisions that man becomes authentically himself. Another group of recurring existentialist themes includes such topics as finitude, guilt, alienation, despair, moods, changing feelings, emotional life of man and death. Discussions of these have not been prominent in traditional philosophy, yet they are discussed at length in existentialism. For the existentialist man is never just part of the cosmos but always stands to it in a relationship of tension with possibilities for tragic conflict.

Who is an Existentialist?

According to Alain Badiou-

A writer of absurd, of despair, of empty skies, of incommunicability and of eternal solitude in sum, on Existentialist.

Kierkegaard, Albert Camus, Samuel Beckett, Jean Paul Sartre, Harold Pinter are writers and founders of the term. As we all know the history of W.W.II, Existentialism came in existence by this horrific notable event. Divided into two parts, Existentialism is a strange philosophy because it contains question only every question are answered here ultimately nothing, it contains emptiness, solitude within.

If shows purposelessness of life. How strange is life! Which seem to be the most sensible things have no aim ultimately? That is why, a group of thinkers and critics consider the term as pessimistic.

 But think this emptiness, the nothingness is mystery because, once you got the answer, you’ll surely lose its charm. Life contains mystery with that emptiness its one of the most important psychological conditions to be survived. After all it is up to you that how you think about it.

Hence, the term may followed by the two different aspects, (point of view), Optimism or pessimism pessimistic point of view may lead us to an gloomy life but by expanding our limits of horizons, we may able to feel it on the other shades of colour.

Existentialism in ‘Waiting for Godot’

“Waiting for Godot” is Beckett’s despondently portrayed interpretation of how mankind derives meaning from life. Vladimir and Estragon believe they have made a conscious choice to wait for Godot. They find a lot of comfort in passing the time through their trivial conversations while munching on carrots and turnips. Even more importantly, though, they have each other to help pass the time. It is indeed the journey that makes life most meaningful: the freedom of choice, the trivial daily routines, and the inspirational companionships on the journey through life.

Beckett, throughout the play, presents human purpose through the bleakest possible fashion. The play is encompassed by uncertainty. Will Godot ever come? What day is it? How long have we been together? How old is he? Is Pozzo really blind? Did the same boy come yesterday? All these questions and many others are left unanswered. Beckett has also stripped theater to only its bare essentials. He casts only five total characters; all are introduced with little or no background information. All that is given for the setting is that it is evening on a county road.

In Jean-Paul Sartre’s book, Existentialism and Human Emotions, he says,

“I cannot be anything unless others recognize me as such. In order to get any truth about myself, I must have contact with another person. The other is indispensable to my own existence, as well as to my knowledge about myself” (Sartre 38).

Vladimir recognizes Estragon as a necessary companion and vice-versa so each is able to qualify himself as a meaningful person. The two characters derive much of their self worth from their companionship and what they do for one another. Estragon seems week and irresponsible, so Vladimir always comes to his aide. For example, Vladimir helps Estragon get his boots on saying, “Yes yes. Come on, we’ll try the left first.” (77). Vladimir is also the one that seems to be responsible for feeding Estragon. When Estragon violently says, “I’m hungry,” Vladimir cheerfully responds, “Do you want a carrot,” as if feeding Estragon is his most appealing duty (18, 16). Both these examples contribute to Vladimir feeling that his life is meaningful. Vladimir and Estragon certainly share the strongest desire for companionship.

This is apparent in the following dialogue:

Vladimir: Gogo!

Estragon: Didi!

Vladimir: Your hand!

Estragon: Take it!

Vladimir: Come to my arms!

Estragon: Your arms?

Vladimir: My breast! (85-86).

Waiting for Godot is an existentialist play because it has all the ingredients of existentialism per se in it. It is an existentialist play because ‘Existentialism’ as a term stands for one’s awareness of one’s being and questiong it at the same time. ‘Waiting for Godot deals not only with the existence or identity but also deals with man’s mental condition. For instance, Vladimir and Estragon continuously complain of the slowness of the time passing and do their best to hurry it with their futile diversions.

No one comes in the play t the very end and waiting becomes the only way of humans which may define their existence. Here we find existentialism knit closely to the content of the play and the outcome is the absurdity of the reality of human existence.

Exitentialism in Gujarati Literature by focusing upon Shrikant Shah’s ‘Aapane Badha Akash Niche Ubha Chhie’

Shrikant Shah is one of the most revered Gujarati Existential writers others like Adil Mansoori,  Chinu Modi (Dayal na pankhio, Photographer), Hasmukh Baradi (Kalo Kamlo); Labhshankar Thaker (Pilu Gulab ane hu) ; Mahesh Dave (Mane Orishyo Dekhay chhe) shrikant shah (Tirad); Madhu Ray (Into na sat rang),

Gujarat writers used to read this philosophy and they were very much influenced by the works and the term itself.  Gujarati writers, therefore, tried to feel it without going through the pain of it and as a result the end product is a body without its soul.

‘Apane…’ is an existential play by Shrikant Shah. The style of writing is absurd. In this play, there are six characters and here, we should take protagonist as an existential person.  Protagonist Rajesh is dead before 2 years at the time shown in setting of the play. He had a family consisting of a wife, a daughter, a brother and a friend, in a way a complete happy family, a ‘perfect family’ but the problem is raised with the death of Rajesh not for the vacuum that is created by Rajesh, but the problem for Rajesh as being an existential character.  His friend, utpal was taking his place in the life of his wife. Her brother was handling his business. The problem is not that he is absent but his ‘absence’ has not affected their lives. First phrase of the play suggest that his existence lies only in the memory of their family members.

mari hasti mari pachhal a rite visrai gai,

angali jal mathi nikli ne jaga purai gai”

utpal: jara agal chali ne radiyogram upar padela tara patidenva photo ne undho padi de ne?

rekha: kem ? rajesh no dar lage chhe?

utpal: rajesh dar lage tevo manas kyarey na hato. rekha tu mara mitra ne anyay kari rahi chhe.

rekha: kem jane hu tm rajesh ne olakhati j n hou?

(radiogram pase jai rajeshna photo ne undho padi de chhe, pachhi najik avine utpal pase besi jay chhe)

With the presence of Utpal, Rekha felt a new world building around her. Utpal then talks with Ashu, who was very well settled in business. Nothing as such changed in the lives of rajesh’s family members; his nonexistence was irrelevant to all of them.

Existence of human being is just like a bubble in the water, he/she wouldn’t matter one he/she is no more. Rajesh s spirit wanted to note the changes and the influence upon his family members on evening his spirit came and noticed these things

rajesh          : (motethi hase chhe.,,) ha..ha..ha…

rajesh hasto hoy a vakhete sampurn andharu thai jay chhe ane farithi sampuran light thay chhe tyare rajesh khurshi par hoto nathi, rekha, beera, utpal ane aashu ae chare jana vato kare chhe. parantu temno avaj sambhlato nathi… matr mime.

turantj andhkar thai jay chhe ane aek spotlight radiogram par pade chhe tya photoframe tatha pani na glass padela chhe.

This play tries a lot to be existential at its core but unfortunately its outcome is soulless. Gujarati Existential writers made an attempt to be existential in their approach but it should not be forgotten that it is to be felt, and not merely produced.

This paper, therefore attempts to take a stand that existentialism as a philosophy (if it can be termed so) cannot be borrowed, as the outcome would mean that it is a lifeless skeleton of thoughts.

References

1.     Beckett Samuel, Waiting for Godot

2.     Shah Shrikant, Aapde Badha Ek Aakash Niche Ubha Chhie

3.     Macquarrie, J. (1968): Existenatialism, Pelican Book.

4.     Sartre, J.P. (2007) Existentialism Is A Humanism, tr. C. Macomber, New Haven: Yale University Press.

5.     Barry Peter (2008), Beginning Theory, New York: Manchester University Press.

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n  Research was conducted while I was conducting my bachelors. There are several things to add after re-visiting the text. This would go in informal way as these are abstract points which occurred to my mind while studying it in class.

-                     A text is something which has so many things to cater with each n every reading. A text is never static. It always moves on with layers of meanings and the layers opens up itself while visiting again and again. Some of the time it happens we get something totally different than what we have seen before.

-                     As Gandhiji says ‘if in case, I contradict in my statements, consider the last one.’ Because the latest one comes after more sanity, more experience.

-                     Earlier while I was conducting the research work, I found existentialism a very passive, pessimistic, negative term to think upon. But this time, while discussing the text in class, we were given numerous examples and explanation what existentialism would mean. Knowing the fact that what we are doing is of no mean, we are to play our role very skilfully. It is a new vision towards life. It is never pessimistic term but what it does with our mind is – “it is alarming us” as two of the character uses in their dialogues frequently in ‘Waiting for Godot’.

-                     In my research work, I have taken the work “Apne badha akash niche ubha chhie” by shrikant shah. Here i would take another work by equally valent Gujarati writer ‘Labhshankar Thakar’ – ‘vriksh’. First let me introduce writer in brief. Labhshankar Thakar is well-known Guajarati playwright as well as poet, who is very much influenced by the movement Existentialism. He is the one who brought existentialism in Guajarati literature with his contemporary authors like ‘Madhu Rai’.

Visiting play ‘vriksh’ very briefly -

Vriksh is also an absurd play in which a person suddenly becomes a tree. At first family members of that person gets shocked. After some time they realise that this is the matter of news out of which we can earn lots of money. Now they are happy. And they had enough money out of that incident. Now in order to build a bigger house, his own father and wife were ready to cut him (in form of tree) off from roots.

The story otherwise seems very much interesting but what we must feel here is, it cannot go under the umbrella named ‘existentialism’ or ‘theatre of absurd’. Rather the idea of presenting the thing in such a way itself becomes absurd. Lot many perspectives.

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