The Complete Dramatic Works (16 page)

POZZO:
What’s gone wrong now?

VLADIMIR:
My friend has hurt himself.

POZZO:
And Lucky?

VLADIMIR:
So it is he?

POZZO:
What?

VLADIMIR:
It is Lucky?

POZZO:
I don’t understand.

VLADIMIR:
And you are Pozzo?

POZZO:
Certainly I am Pozzo.

VLADIMIR:
The same as yesterday?

POZZO:
Yesterday?

VLADIMIR:
We met yesterday. [
Silence
.] Do you not remember?

POZZO:
I don’t remember having met anyone yesterday. But tomorrow I won’t remember having
met anyone today. So don’t count on me to enlighten you.

VLADIMIR:
But –

POZZO:
Enough. Up pig!

VLADIMIR:
You were bringing him to the fair to sell him. You spoke to us. He danced. He thought.
You had your sight.

POZZO:
As you please. Let me go! [
VLADIMIR
moves
away
.] Up!

[
LUCKY
gets
up,
gathering
up
his
burdens
.]

VLADIMIR:
Where do you go from here?

POZZO:
On. [
LUCKY
,
laden
down,
takes
his
place
before
POZZO
.] Whip! [
LUCKY
puts
everything
down,
looks
for
whip,
finds
it,
puts
it
into
POZZO
’
s
hand,
takes
up
everything
again
.]
Rope!

[
LUCKY
puts
everything
down,
puts
end
of
the
rope
into
POZZO
’
s
hand,
takes
up
everything
again
.]

VLADIMIR:
What is there in the bag?

POZZO:
Sand. [
He
jerks
the
rope
.]
On!

VLADIMIR:
Don’t go yet!

POZZO:
I’m going.

VLADIMIR:
What do you do when you fall far from help?

POZZO:
We wait till we can get up. Then we go on. On!

VLADIMIR:
Before you go tell him to sing!

POZZO:
Who?

VLADIMIR:
Lucky.

POZZO:
To sing?

VLADIMIR:
Yes. Or to think. Or to recite.

POZZO:
But he’s dumb.

VLADIMIR:
Dumb!

POZZO:
Dumb. He can’t even groan.

VLADIMIR:
Dumb! Since when?

POZZO:
[
Suddenly
furious
.]
Have you not done tormenting me with your accursed time! It’s abominable! When! When!
One day, is that not enough for you, one day like any other day, one day he went dumb,
one day I went blind, one day we’ll go deaf, one day we were born, one day we shall
die, the same day, the same second, is that not enough for you? [
Calmer
.]
They give birth astride of a grave, the light gleams an instant, then it’s night
once more. [
He
jerks
the
rope
.]
On!

[
Exeunt
POZZO
and
LUCKY
.
VLADIMIR
follows
them
to
the
edge
of
the
stage,
looks
after
them.
The
noise
of
falling,
reinforced
by
mimic
of
VLADIMIR
,
announces
that
they
are
down
again.
Silence:
VLADIMIR
goes
towards
ESTRAGON
,
contemplates
him
a
moment,
then
shakes
him
awake
.]

ESTRAGON:
[
Wild
gestures,
incoherent
words.
Finally
.] Why will you never let me sleep?

VLADIMIR:
I felt lonely.

ESTRAGON:
I was dreaming I was happy.

VLADIMIR:
That passed the time.

ESTRAGON:
I was dreaming that –

VLADIMIR:
[
Violently.
] Don’t tell me! [
Silence.
] I wonder is he really blind.

ESTRAGON:
Blind? Who?

VLADIMIR:
POZZO.

ESTRAGON:
Blind?

VLADIMIR:
He told us he was blind.

ESTRAGON:
Well what about it?

VLADIMIR:
It seemed to me he saw us. estragon: You dreamt it. [
Pause.
]
Let’s go. We can’t. Ah! [
Pause.
]
Are you sure it wasn’t him?

VLADIMIR:
Who?

ESTRAGON:
Godot.

VLADIMIR:
But who?

ESTRAGON:
Pozzo.

VLADIMIR:
Not at all! [
Less
sure.
]
Not at all! [
Still
less
sure.
] Not at all!

ESTRAGON:
I suppose I might as well get up. [
He
gets
up
painfully.
]
Ow! Didi!

VLADIMIR:
I don’t know what to think any more.

ESTRAGON:
My feet! [
He
sits
down,
tries
to
take
off
his
boots.
] Help me!

VLADIMIR:
Was I sleeping, while the others suffered? Am I sleeping now? Tomorrow, when I wake,
or think I do, what shall I say of today? That with Estragon my friend, at this place
until the fall of night, I waited for Godot? That Pozzo passed, with his carrier,
and that he spoke to us? Probably. But in all that what truth will there be? [
ESTRAGON
,
having
struggled
with
his
boots
in
vain,
is
dozing
off
again. 
VLADIMIR
stares
at
him.
]
He’ll know nothing. He’ll tell me about the blows he received and I’ll give him a
carrot. [
Pause.
] Astride of a grave and a difficult birth. Down in the hole, lingeringly, the
grave-digger
puts on the forceps. We have time to grow old. The air is full of our cries. [
He
listens.
]
But habit is a great deadener. [
He
looks
again
at 
ESTRAGON
.] At me too someone is looking, of me too someone is saying, he is
sleeping, he knows nothing, let him sleep on. [
Pause
.]
I can’t go on! [
Pause
.]
What have I said?

[
He
goes
feverishly
to
and
fro,
halts
finally
at
extreme
left,
broods.
Enter 
BOY
right.
He
halts.
Silence
.]

BOY:
Mister … [
VLADIMIR
turns
.] Mr Albert …

VLADIMIR:
Off we go again. [
Pause
.] Do you not recognize me?

BOY:
No, sir.

VLADIMIR:
It wasn’t you came yesterday.

BOY:
No, sir.

VLADIMIR:
This is your first time.

BOY:
Yes, sir.

[
Silence
.]

VLADIMIR:
You have a message from Mr Godot.

BOY:
Yes, sir.

VLADIMIR:
He won’t come this evening.

BOY:
No, sir.

VLADIMIR:
But he’ll come tomorrow.

BOY:
Yes, sir.

VLADIMIR:
Without fail.

BOY:
Yes, sir.

[
Silence
.]

VLADIMIR:
Did you meet anyone?

BOY:
No, sir.

VLADIMIR:
Two other … [
He
hesitates
]
…
men?

BOY:
I didn’t see anyone, sir.

[
Silence
.]

VLADIMIR:
What does he do, Mr Godot? [
Silence
.]
Do you hear me?

BOY:
Yes, sir.

VLADIMIR:
Well?

BOY:
He does nothing, sir.

[
Silence
.]

VLADIMIR:
How is your brother?

BOY:
He’s sick, sir.

VLADIMIR:
Perhaps it was he came yesterday.

BOY:
I don’t know, sir.

[
Silence
.]

VLADIMIR:
[
Softly
.] Has he a beard, Mr Godot?

BOY:
Yes, sir.

VLADIMIR:
Fair or … [
He
hesitates
]
… or black?

BOY:
I think it’s white, sir.

[
Silence
.]

VLADIMIR:
Christ have mercy on us!

[
Silence
.]

BOY:
What am I to tell Mr Godot, sir?

VLADIMIR:
Tell him … [
He
hesitates
]
… tell him you saw me and that … [
He
hesitates
]
… that you saw me.

[
Pause.
VLADIMIR
advances,
the
BOY
recoils.
VLADIMIR
 
halts,
the
BOY
halts.
With
sudden
violence
.]
You’re sure you saw me, you won’t come and tell me tomorrow that you never saw me!

[
Silence.
VLADIMIR
makes
a
sudden
spring
forward,
the
 
BOY
avoids
him
and
exit
running.
Silence.
The
sun
sets,
the
moon
rises.
As
in
Act
One.
VLADIMIR
stands
motionless
and
bowed,
ESTRAGON
wakes,
takes
off
his
boots,
gets
up
with
one
in
each
hand
and
goes
and
puts
them
down
centre
front,
then
goes
towards
VLADIMIR
.]

ESTRAGON:
What’s wrong with you?

VLADIMIR:
Nothing.

ESTRAGON:
I’m going.

VLADIMIR:
So am I.

ESTRAGON:
Was I long asleep?

VLADIMIR:
I don’t know.

[
Silence
.]

ESTRAGON:
Where shall we go?

VLADIMIR:
Not far.

ESTRAGON:
Oh yes, let’s go far away from here.

VLADIMIR:
We can’t.

ESTRAGON:
Why not?

VLADIMIR:
We have to come back tomorrow.

ESTRAGON:
What for?

VLADIMIR:
To wait for Godot.

ESTRAGON:
Ah! [
Silence
.] He didn’t come?

VLADIMIR:
No.

ESTRAGON:
And now it’s too late.

VLADIMIR:
Yes, now it’s night.

ESTRAGON:
And if we dropped him? [
Pause
.] If we dropped him?

VLADIMIR:
He’d punish us. [
Silence.
He
looks
at
the
tree
.] Everything’s dead but the tree.

ESTRAGON:
[
Looking
at
the
tree
.]
What is it?