Waiting for Godot, Samuel Beckett

• ACT I
• Estragon, sitting on a low mound, is trying to take off his boot. He pulls it off with both hands, panting. He gives up, exhausted, rests, tries again. As before.
• VlADIMIR. ... All my life I've tried to put it from me, saying, Vladimir, be reasonable, you haven't tried everything. And I resume the struggle.
• ESTRAGON. Beat me? Certainly they beat me.
• VLADIMIR. ... On the other hand what's the good in losing heart now, that's what I say. We should have thought of it a million years ago, in the nineties. (All of this is the sunk cost fallacy?)
• VLADIMIR. Were waiting for Godot.
• ESTRAGON. And if he doesn't come?
• VLADIMIR. We'll come back tomorrow.
• VLADIMIR. I'm curious to hear what he has to offer. Then we'll take it or leave it.
• VLADIMIR. To Godot? Tied to Godot! What an idea! No question of it. [Pause.] For the moment.
• ESTRAGON [timidly, to POZZO]. You're not Mr. Godot, sir?
• ESTRAGON. Personally I wouldn't even know him if I saw him.
• POZZO. You're being spoken to, pig! Reply! [To ESTRAGON.] Try him again.
• POZZO. I hope I am not driving you away. Wait a little longer, you'll never regret it.
• POZZO. Ah! Why couldn't you say so before? Why he doesn't make himself comfortable? Let's try and get this clear. He has not the right to? Certainly he does. It follows that he doesn't want to. There's reasoning for you. And why doesn't he want to? [Pause.] Gentleman, the reason is this.
• POZZO. I do. But instead of driving him away as I might have done, I mean instead of simply kicking him out on his arse, in the goodness of my heart I am bringing him to the fair, where I hope to get a good price for him. The truth is you can't drive such creatures away. [Luckly weeps.]
• POZZO. That was nearly sixty years ago... [he consults his watch]... yes, nearly sixty. [Drawing himself up proudly.] You wouldn't think it to look at me, would you? Compared to him I look like a young man, no? [Pause.] Hat! [LUCKY puts down the basket and takes off his hat. His long white hair falls about his face. He puts his hat under his arm and picks up the basket.] Now look. [POZZO takes off his hat. He is completely bald.] Did you see?
• VLADIMIR. And now you turn him away? Such an old and faithful servant?
• POZZO. No no, I wouldn't think of it! [Pause. Aside.] Ask me again.
• POZZO. Yes yes, you have been correct. So that I ask myself if there is anything I can do in my turn for these honest fellows who are having such a dull, dull time.
• ESTRAGON. Perhaps he could dance first and think afterwards, if it isn't too much to ask of him.
• LUCKY. On the other hand, with regard to--
• [VLADIMIR and ESTRAGON protest violently. POZZO jumps up, pulls on the rope. General outcry. LUCKY pulls on the rope, staggers, shouts his text. All three throw themselves on LUCKY who struggles and shouts his text.]
• POZZO. His hat! [VLADIMIR seizes LUCKY's hat. Silence of LUCKY. He falls. Silence. Panting of the victors.]
• ESTRAGON. He has stinking breath and I have stinking feet.
• VLADIMIR. Yes, but not so rapidly.
• VLADIMIR. You have a message from Mr. Godot?
• [The BOY looks at them in turn, not knowing to which he should reply.]
• BOY [in a rush]. Mr. Godot told me to tell you he won't come this evening but surely tomorrow.
• BOY. He beats my brother, Sir.
• VLADIMIR. Christ! What has Christ got to do with it! You're not going to compare yourself to Christ!
• ESTRAGON. Wait! [He moves away from VLADIMIR.] I sometimes wonder if we wouldn't have been better off alone, each one for himself. [He crosses the stage and sits down on the mound.] We weren't made for the same road.
• VLADIMIR. We can still part, if you think it would be better.
• ESTRAGON. It's not worth while now.
• VLADIMIR. Yes, let's go.
  [They do not move.]
• ACT II
• VLADIMIR. ...
  A dog came in the kitchen
  And stole a crust of bread.
  Then cook up with a ladle
  And beat him till he was dead.
• VLADIMIR. Who beat you? Tell me.
• ESTRAGON. You see, you feel worse when I'm with you. I feel better alone too.
• VLADIMIR. No, I mean before they beat you. I would have stopped you from doing whatever it was you were doing.
• VLADIMIR. Yes of course it was there. Do you not remember? We nearly hanged ourselves from it. But you wouldn't. Do you not remember?
• ESTRAGON. I remember a lunatic who kicked the shins off me. Then he played the fool.
• ESTRAGON [suddenly furious]. Recognize! What is there to recognize? All my lousy life I've crawled about in the mud. And you talk to me about scenery!
• ESTRAGON. You and your landscapes! Tell me about the worms!
• VLADIMIR. But yesterday evening it was all black and bare. And now it's covered with leaves.
• ESTRAGON. Oh... this and that I suppose, nothing in particular. [With assurance.] Yes, now I remember, yesterday evening we spent blathering about nothing in particular. That's been going on now for half a century.
• ESTRAGON. We always find something, eh Didi, to give us the impression we exist?
• VLADIMIR. We could play at Pozzo and Lucky.
• VLADIMIR [triumphantly]. It's Godot! At last! Gogo! It's Godot! We're saved! Let's go and meet him!
• [Enter POZZO and LUCKY. POZZO is blind. LUCKY burdened as before. Rope as before, but much shorter, so that POZZO may follow more easily. LUCKY wearing a different hat. At the sight of VLADIMIR and ESTRAGON he stops short. POZZO, continuing on his way, bumps into him.]
• ESTRAGON. We should ask him for the bone first. Then if he refuses we'll leave him there.
• VLADIMIR. In anticipation of some tangible return.
• VLADIMIR. Let us not waste our time in idle discourse! [Pause. Vehemently.] Let us do something, while we have the chance! It is not every day we are needed. Not indeed that we are personally needed. Others would meet the case equally well, if not better. To all mankind they were addressed, those cries for help still ringing in our ears! But at this place, at this moment of time, all mankind is us, whether we like it or not. Let us make the most of it, before it is too late! Let us represent worthily for once the foul brood to which a cruel fate consigned us! What do you say? [ESTRAGON says nothing.]
• POZZO. Help! I'll pay you!
• [He tries to pull POZZO to his feet, fails, tries again, stumbles, falls, tries to get up, fails.]
• VLADIMIR. Help me up first, then we'll go together.
• [ESTRAGON pulls, stumbles, falls. Long silence.]
• VLADIMIR [violently]. Will you stop it, you! Pest! He can think of nothing but himself!
• ESTRAGON. To try him with other names, one after the other. It'd pass the time. And we'd be bound to hit on the right one sooner or later.
• ESTRAGON. We'll see soon. [He reflects.] Abel! Abel!
• ESTRAGON. Suppose we got up to begin with?
• VLADIMIR. Simple question of will-power.
• ESTRAGON. Then why doesn't he?
• ESTRAGON. Then why don't we? What are we waiting for?
• POZZO. I used to have wonderful sight--but are you friends?
• ESTRAGON. Exactly. Would we have helped him if we weren't his friends?
• ESTRAGON. Highwaymen! Do we look like highwaymen?
• POZZO. I woke up one day as blind as Fortune. [Pause.] Sometimes I wonder if I'm not still asleep.
• [With a sudden fury ESTRAGON starts kicking LUCKY, hurling abuse at him as he does so. But he hurts his foot and moves away, limping and groaning. LUCKY stirs.]
• 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. You have a message from Mr. Godot.
• VLADIMIR. He won't come this evening.
• VLADIMIR. I don't know. A willow.
• ESTRAGON. Why don't we hang ourselves?
• ESTRAGON. You haven't got a bit of rope?
• VLADIMIR. ... It might do at a pinch. But is it strong enough?
• [They each take an end of the cord and pull. It breaks. They almost fall.]
• ESTRAGON. Yes, let's go.
  [They do not move.]