Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett - A Short Summary & Review

Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett - A Short Summary & Review

By: a.d. elliott | Take the Back Roads - Art and Other Odd Adventures

A Rite of Fancy Book Recommendation and Review

Keeping up the unkept appointment.

A short summary:

In Waiting for Godot, Samuel Beckett presents two men, Vladimir and Estragon, who wait endlessly for someone named Godot to arrive. They pass the time with conversation, arguments, philosophical musings, jokes, and repeated gestures, all while nothing of consequence seems to happen.

The play defies traditional structure. There is no resolution, no revelation, and no clear sense of progress. Instead, Beckett turns waiting itself into the subject, examining time, hope, meaning, and human companionship in a world that offers no clear answers.

My favorite quote from the book:

"The tears of the world are a constant quantity. For each one who begins to weep, somewhere else another stops. The same is true for the laugh."

- Samuel Beckett, Waiting for Godot

Questions to ponder while reading:

How long do you wait before giving up?

What is the purpose of doing nothing?

My review:

I don’t know why, but I love this play. Waiting for Godot is strange, circular, and stubbornly resistant to interpretation, and that’s exactly its charm.

The rhythm is unforgettable: bicker, philosophy, bicker, and somehow that cycle feels deeply familiar. Beckett captures how people fill silence, avoid despair, and lean on one another when certainty never arrives. The humor is dry, absurd, and quietly devastating.

At its core, the play suggests that meaning isn’t found in arrivals or conclusions, but in persistence and presence. Life may be repetitive and unresolved, but it’s better when shared, preferably with a bowler hat.

Waiting for Godot isn’t about answers. It’s about endurance, companionship, and the strange comfort of continuing on anyway.

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About the Author
a.d. elliott is a wanderer, photographer, and storyteller traveling through life

She shares her journeys at Take the Back Roads, explores new reads at Rite of Fancy, and highlights U.S. military biographies at Everyday Patriot.

You can also browse her online photography gallery at shop.takethebackroads.com.

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