Allusion To Christianity In Samuel Beckett's Waiting For Godot

Waiting for Godot is a play written by Samuel Beckett that tells two, different yet identical, stories. Beckett’s play tells the story of two characters, Didi (Vladimir) and Gogo (Estragon), and their wait for the arrival of someone by the name of Godot. While they wait, they discuss a variety of topics and even meet two strangers named Pozzo and Lucky. Near the end, Vladimir and Estragon encounter a boy who tells them that Godot is sure to come the following day. At the end of the day, both men say that they should part, but they instead stay with each other. The second act, however, does tell the same exact story with different dialogue. The same characters are brought back and end up in new situations, but the conclusion for each character

From what I analyzed, the whole play itself is an allegory of the second coming of Jesus Christ. Though we never meet Godot or learn a lot about him, he can represent the Christian God and Jesus Christ, since they are the same person according to Christianity. In Hebrews 9:28 of the Bible, it mentions that “Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him” (New International Version). In Beckett’s play, both Vladimir and Estragon are waiting for Godot. They repeat that they are waiting for him several times throughout the play. For example, in Act II, Vladimir says, “We are waiting for Godot to come” (Beckett 72). If the last two letters of Godot were removed, then the meaning of the whole sentence changes to “we are waiting for God to come.” While it seems as if it is a coincidence that Godot has God in his name, it is important to ask why Godot did not come like the boy said he would. When first encountering the boy in Act I, Vladimir says, “It wasn’t you who came yesterday?” (42). The boy then tells them that Godot will come the following day, the same thing occurs in Act II as well. From there, one can take away that Vladimir and Estragon have been waiting days, weeks, months, possibly years for Godot to finally come, which is similar to how Christians

In fact, no other character in the play knows or has seen Godot except for the boy. Which ultimately raises the question, why did Vladimir and Estragon not follow the boy? Form what I understand, both men have to wait until Godot comes to them and the boy is merely just a messenger. In other words, the boy could symbolize a messenger from heaven (like Gabriel to the Virgin Mary) that was sent to remind Vladimir and Estragon (humanity) that Godot (God) was going to come. The only information that the readers and the characters have on Godot is from the boy. In the second act of the play, the boy gives a small description as to what Godot looks like. The boys states that Godot has a white beard (Beckett 89). This information that the boy gives matches one of the descriptions of God that John gives in which he says, “His head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow” (New International Version, Revelation 1:14). In addition to that, the boy also keeps mentioning that Godot will arrive tomorrow, but Vladimir and Estragon continue to wait for his arrival (Beckett 85). Is he (the term “he” can be applied to Godot or Christ) going to come tomorrow, next week, next month, next year? Ultimately, it is unknown when Godot (God/Jesus Christ) is actually going to come, therefore, he sends the boy (an angel) to remind humanity that he is coming. From the brief descriptions that the boy gives, Godot can be seen similar to God