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3.5/5
Non-Fiction
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Rating: 4/5
Pages: 126
Started: 6 January 2023
Finished: 14 January 2023
Summary:
Tom Stoppard's award-winning absurdist play tells the story of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, the minor characters from Shakespeare's Hamlet as they bumble their way through their own story, searching desperately for direction while careening inevitably toward death.
Thoughts:
This play was a pain to analyze, since it was so bizarre, but it was quite fun to read. I liked the combination of jokes and serious thoughts on life, and its portrayal of death was fascinating.
Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead: Act 1
Stage Direction: “Two Elizabethans passing time in a place without any visible character” (11).
absurdism is defined in part by the unclarity and confusion of all involved. this stage direction gives the audience no clues that they might use to orient themselves/make sense of the absurd play
“visible character” implies that there might be character in the setting–and ultimately meaning in the play–but it can’t be seen at first glance.
“We have been spinning coins together since— This is not the first time we have spun coins!” (14).
Guildenstern to Rosencrantz
spinning coins is an idle game, a symbol of the simplicity and aimlessness of the men’s existence
the fragmented sentence hints at disruption, confusion, but the cheerful second sentence contradicts the mood of the unsettling realization that R&G can’t remember/understand time
like the setting blanked in the stage directions, this line renders time unclear
even in chaos, time is something that is supposed to be orderly. Stoppard’s removal of time as something for the audience to orient themselves with is another clear addition to the absurdity of the play
“Good. Year of your birth. Double it. Even numbers I win, odd numbers I lose.” (31)
Guildenstern, tricking the player
most people aren’t prepared to think about numbers when they go to see a play, so this is an absurd mind-bending idea
it also shows how clever Guildenstern is–he gets confused sometimes, but his intelligence showcased in such a clever, cerebral way shows the audience that he’s not an idiot
“(correcting) Thanks Guildenstern … and gentle Rosencrantz” (37)
the queen is the one who mixes up R & G here, while the king is right
this makes her seem uncaring, unintelligent, ditzy
since she’s one of the only female characters in the play, i can’t help but feel her negative portrayal casts a sexist light on the whole book
“Don’t let them confuse you” (37)
Guildenstern to Rosencrantz, about Hamlet and the others in his world
this casts blame directly onto Hamlet and company, not Rosencrantz’s capacity to be confused. and while Rosencrantz does get confused away from Hamlet’s world (i.e. the coin toss) he and Guildenstern only lose his ability to speak any sense immediately after interacting with Claudius, and then once away from the people of the castle, both men’s ability to speak normally returns
perhaps here Stoppard is commenting on the silver tongues of the powerful, and how they can cleverly do damage to more innocent people
“He was just a hat and a cloak levitating in the grey plume of his own breath, but when he called we came” (39).
Guildenstern to Rosencrantz about the Messenger
the messenger symbolizes a direction or a calling, but it’s an artificial one, not the true heroic calling that comes from the self
hat and cloak as metonymy for a messenger (who is never actually seen on stage) takes away the humanity/substance of the messenger, making them nothing more than a plot device
levitating and gray plume of breath are both insubstantial ideas, adding to the impression that the messenger isn’t solid or real, but is instead just a catalyst
coming when called shows obedience and mindlessness, suggesting that Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are the opposite of plot devices–they are without agency.
“Let me get it straight. Your father was king. You were his only son. Your father dies. You are of age. Your uncle becomes king” (49).
Rosencrantz speaking to Guildenstern in a game, pretending Guildenstern is Hamlet
in one bit of musing, Rosencrantz makes a better guess about Hamlet’s suffering than anyone does in all of Shakespeare’s Hamlet.
the contradiction of their confusion and their clarity is fascinating
through this contradiction, Stoppard may be suggesting that characteristics that read as confused or mad can sometimes bring clarity
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead Act 2
Play Within a A Play Within A Play
“Wheels have been set in motion [...] Because if we happened, just happened to discover, or even suspect, that our spontaneity was a part of their order, we’d know that we were lost” (60).
Guildenstern to Rosencrantz
wheels are logical, orderly and unstoppable. they also revolve around one point, which is a symbol for the the different worlds in Rosencrantz and Guildenstern seem to move while the characters stay directionless, still.
the men are in a play, they have no spontaneity because it has already been written by the person who created the order. thus, Guildenstern is saying that their lives have no point.
“We’re actors—we’re the opposite of people!” (63).
the Player to R & G
actors play characters that aren’t real, and they always know what’s coming next.
R & G are too confused to know what’s coming next, thus Stoppard suggests that they are real people
“Life in a box is better than no life at all” (71).
Rosencrantz to Guildenstern
a box is enclosed, and has only one set of possibilities contained inside—it’s a symbol for a play
thus Stoppard suggests that there is still value in living a life with predetermined actions and end
our box is death (and other societal constraints)
Direction
“Before we know the words for it, before we know that there are words, that for all the compasses in the world, there’s only one direction, and time is its only measure” (72).
Rosencrantz to Guildenstern
direction is supposed to be intuitive, inherently known from birth, and time is supposed to be inexorable
yet R & G are confused by direction and seem to have no sense even of time, and thus have no way to have a purpose in the world.
through this, Stoppard adds to the sense of randomness, lack of order, and absurdity
Death as Direction
“It never varies—we aim at the point where everyone who is marked for death dies” (79).
the Player to R & G
“never” is an absolute, which is fitting since death is the ultimate end
though R & G don’t seem to understand time, and can’t find a physical or metaphorical direction, the one thing they can count on is that they will die. like everyone else, they were born marked for death
An Air of Eerie Randomness
“What brings ROS forward is the fact that under their cloaks the two SPIES are wearing coats identical to those worn by ROS and GUIL [...] He does not quite understand why the coats are familiar” (82).
stage direction
the audience is watching players playing characters watching themselves played by players who are playing within the play
almost but not quite recognizing yourself brings to mind the idea of the uncanny valley
Stoppard uses this confusing onion-like structure of dramatic irony and overt macabre themes to create an eerie and odd scene
Direction, Intelligence, Trust
“That must be east, then. I think we can assume that.:
Rosencrantz to Guildenstern
Rosencrantz is the less intellegent of the two, the more trusting
he is able to have trust in his own choice of a cardinal direction
since literal directions symbolize purpose, this suggests that his trust and less suspicion, compared to Guildenstern’s, allows him to have some purpose
“I’m assuming nothing [...] I’ve been taken in before”
Guildenstern to Rosencrantz
his intelligence and wariness hinders his happiness
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead Reflection
“All the world’s a stage / And all the men and women merely players,” wrote Shakespeare in his play As You Like It. Tom Stoppard’s play, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, takes this idea to an extreme. Stoppard stacks plays within plays to create an eerie and unsettling effect, ultimately challenging the audience to uncomfortably question their role in the play and in the world around them. When Rosencrantz and Guildenstern watch the end of the performance put on by the players, they see two of the actors dressed identical to themselves, pretending to be dead. The overt macabre themes and hair-raising dramatic irony create a sense of unease.The stage direction instructs, “he does not quite understand why the coats are familiar,” (82). Many people experience fiction—books, movies, plays—looking for escapism, not realizing that fiction is so captivating precisely because it reflects our own human condition right back at us. Similarly, the play’s protagonists do not see themselves in the play because they are not looking. This, combined with the unsettling image of the protagonists seeing themselves dead, asks those watching the play to wonder where in the play they are being reflected—and implies that they should be wary.
In the play’s movie adaptation, Stoppard takes the theme of a play within a play even further. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern watch a silent dumbshow depicting—obviously, to those familiar with the story—the final scenes of Hamlet. The fact that the protagonists' fate is spelled out there even more clearly only adds to the confusion, eeriness, and sense of inevitability.
A little earlier in the play, Rosencrantz reflects to his friend that “life in a box is better than no life at all” (71). By box he means coffin, the house of death that contains only a single inevitability—exactly like a play. Thus, through the discussion about life in a box, Stoppard suggests that the inevitability of being in a play, of having no free will, an n entire life already written, is still better than death. There is still value, Stoppard implies, in living a life with a predetermined end. Which is lucky, since everyone is destined to die.
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern spend an excessive amount of time without direction. They lose track of time, can’t figure out the cardinal directions, and never really know what they are supposed to do next. Even their reason for going to the castle is intangible—the messenger has no physical body, and is only a portent, a symbol of external motiavations: “He was just a hat and a cloak levitating in the grey plume of his own breath, but when he called we came” (39).
Yet there is one thing that is inevitable, that gives them direction: death. By presenting death as the only sure direction or point of orientation, Stoppard argues that its inevitability can be considered comforting. The Player remarks that, “[death] never varies—we aim at the point where everyone who is marked for death dies” (79). “Never” is an absolute term, fitting since death is the ultimate end. And in a tragic play, death can be counted on to mark the final act. Though the protagonists of the play have no sense of physical or moral direction, Stoppard implies that they—and by proxy we— can count on the fact that to be born is to be marked for death.
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead: Act 3
The Boat Symbol
“Yes, I’m very fond of boats myself. I like the way they’re—contianed. You don’t have to worry about which way to go, or whether to go at all—the question doesn’t arise, because you’re on a boat, aren’t you? boats are safe areas in the game of tag” (100).
Guildenstern to Rosencrantz
physically, boats are shelter against the harsh and deadly sea. in that sense, they symbolize protection and isolation.
boats almost always have a direction, and though people have free will on them, but they are all the time being inexorably pulled somewhere. thus, they also symbolize fate.
because of both its protection and the direction it offers, a boat is a comfortable place for Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, but on it they cannot grow.
“One is free on a boat. For a time. Relatively” (101).
Guildenstern to Rosencrantz
the protagonists are free within the boat, but the boat’s course is inevitable, and they are trapped inside
in that, the boat is much like a play, and also like society. their ability to excercise their will is very limited, and their direction is predetermined.
“We can move, of course, change direction, rattle about, but our movement is contained within a larger one that carries us along as inexorably as the wind and the current” (122).
Guildenstern to Rosencrantz
again, the boat is fate, just as the play they are in is fate
through this extended symbol, Stoppard calls the audience to question what inevitable device is pulling them along.
Direction
“You’ve only got their word for it” (110).
Guildenster to Rosencrantz, about their friendship to Hamlet
this brings up the question of ones perception versus the perception of others
“But that’s what we depend on” (110).
Rosencrantz to Guildenstern,
they have built themsleves off of the perceptions of others, with no personal idea of direction. they depend on the external validation of others’ opinions to give them direction.
but though this example is extreme, Stoppard uses it to call attention to the ways that we depend on the perception of others rather than our own idea of self
“But he can’t—we’re supposed to be–we’ve got a letter—we’re going to England with a letter for the King” (119).
Guildenstern to Rosencrantz and the Player
he is upset not that he no longer has to send Hamlet to death, but that the clear purpose we was given has been thwarted
considering Rosencrantz and Guildenstern’s positions as protagonists, as the characters we’re supposed to relate to the most, Stoppard voices a question about peoples’ priorities in society through this immoral prioritization
Inevitability + Death
“You had money in both hands” (103).
Guildenstern to Rosencrantz
the first coin they played game was a surprising coincidence, the perfect mysterious beginning for a story
this game is the opposite—the result is inevitable
its inevitability is also foreshadowing for the soon-to-come end of the play—and end of the protagonists
“Then that’s it—we’re finished” (105)
reminds audience that it’s a play, ups their sense of anticipation for the end, and their expectation for death
through this reminder, Stoppard proposes the question of what happens when a play is over, to the actors or to the audience.
“Death is the ultimate negative. Not-being. You can’t not-be on a boat” (108).
Guildenstern to Rosencrantz
ironically, since Charon’s boat is one of the stages of the afterlife in Greek mythology, one can not-be on a boat
but by stating there is no existance after death—no ghost, no heaven, no fame—stoppard suggests that death is truly final.
“If we stopped breathing, we’d vanish” (112).
unlike the death that people can depend on being the end to their story, one must continue to chose to live in order to stay alive.
“All right then. I don’t care. I’ve had enough. To tell you the truth, I’m relieved. And he disappears from view” (125).
there’s no noticable death
stoppard creates situational irony out of everyone’s fact-like expectation that there will be dramatic murdres
but as r and g said to the players, a death acted out isn’t really death, death is not existing anymore
so maybe the do really die? and it’s more meaningful for not being something that we can see, and instead they are no longer players in a play—they are free to find their own direction
Words
Expiate (v) atone for guilt or sin