

This might indicate a sexual past: he refers to a woman he knew who "had the clap".although it is unclear whether this is the cause of his current condition or not. He suffers from a venereal disease that causes him pain in his genitals and a need to urinate when he laughs. This hat focus (in terms of being head centred) may be interpreted as being representative of his higher status (see Estragon's boots) and his intellectual nature: because of this, he is usually taller than Estragon, but this is a convention of the theatre and is not written in the play.ĭespite this sometimes peevish and obsessive nature, Vladimir would seem to have a carnal side. After long periods of thought (or whenever he is bored) he fiddles with it and plays with the brim. He claims that it "hurts" him, and is eventually driven to appropriate Lucky's. Another important prop is his bowler hat.

He is something of a pack rat: he carries all the food the tramps have (though he never eats himself), and has other (to quote the play) "miscellaneous" junk in various pockets. Vladimir is deeply concerned with appearances and goes to great lengths to make sure Estragon behaves so that his own dignity is preserved. This would explain his constant references and his attempts to engage Estragon in philosophical/ religious debate.

One explanation of this intellectualism is that he was once a philosopher. The " optimist" (and, as Beckett put it, "the major character" 1) of Godot, he represents the intellectual side of the two main characters (in contrast to his companion Estragon's earthy simplicity). Albert) is one of the two main characters from Samuel Beckett's Waiting for Godot. Vladimir (affectionately known as Didi a small boy calls him Mr. JSTOR ( March 2021) ( Learn how and when to remove this template message).

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