Lebanon is “Waiting for Godot”: An analysis on the failure of the Lebanese revolution

Opinion Analysis by Taleen El Gharib, Featured Writer

May 5th, 2021

Life imitates art, and in this case, literature has been the world’s canvas. One cannot deny the power of words, but sometimes, even language fails to express truth– despite it being the purpose of language in the first place. The inability of language to express the absolute truth has been utilized as a literary device in many works of existentialist literature, and there is no better example than Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot. 

Samuel Beckett laid the foundations for the Theater of the Absurd, inspired by existentialist thought. Waiting for Godotremains one of the most important masterpieces in literature, primarily because it aimed to question the unanswerable: What is the meaning of life? Beckett was part of the French resistance against the Nazi German occupation of France during World War II, and this play is a response to the disillusionment and despair after the war. A similar event occurred after the first World War: American writers formed The Lost Generation, survivors of the war who lost faith in humanity and questioned their purpose in life. These writers included Ernest Hemingway, E.E. Cummings, and F. Scott Fitzgerald, who all sparked doubts about the legitimacy of the American Dream.

Beckett reflected the post-war environment and the absurdity of life. In Waiting for Godot, nothing really happens. It is about two characters, Vladimir and Estragon, who are waiting for Godot, someone they have never met or seen before, and we never know why they’re waiting for him – all we know is that he never arrives. Many speculated that Godot represented God, but in order to truly understand the depth in the meaning behind the play, this article will refer to Freudian thought and Sartre’s existentialist philosophy. 

Freud and the pleasure principle

It is only natural that humans tend to seek pleasure and avoid pain, and this is the concept behind the pleasure principle. Freud mentions three sources of pain: nature, our own bodies, and other people. In order to cope with pain, people seek coping mechanisms that relate to these three sources, including isolation, sublimation, love, art, drugs, etc. It is very important to mention that in that list of coping mechanisms is also religion, which Freud considers a mass illusion and a childish reliance for coping with the discontents of society. His book Civilization and its Discontents discusses how society itself brings unhappiness because of all its restrictions (whether it be through law or religion).

To Freud, religion is too idealistic and is a strong repressive force that is denying a great deal of pleasures and crude desires. It is a consolation through which one seeks solace and guidance from God, and by doing so, people will keep waiting for something that will never come. This ties directly to Beckett’s play. Vladimir and Estragon’s vicious cycle of waiting for someone who will never arrive is a reflection of our society today. Just as they wait for Godot, people wait for solace, guidance, and purpose.

The act of waiting could be one of the major obstacles today. When considering the possibility of making a positive impact being diminished by the act of waiting, then this becomes a problem. This could easily be added to the list of coping mechanisms that Freud discussed, and it could be a very dangerous state of denial; denying the reality of a situation is possibly one of the most damaging events, on the personal and societal level.

The October 17 Revolution: futile or fruitful?

If Samuel Beckett believes that people live aimlessly waiting for a purpose, and Sigmund Freud believes the act of waiting is a coping mechanism against pain, then what can one deduce about the future of Lebanon and movements against corruption?

Lebanese people have remained dormant for many years and endured an immeasurable amount of suffering and tragedy. The problem lies in the fact that nothing was done about the reality of the situation in Lebanon, and even now, over a year since the uprisings began in 2019, no changes occurred. Many people heavily criticized the uprisings, as it is, until today, unguided and without a clear-cut, defined purpose. Yes, people go to the streets for the common desire to change, but there is no clear definition of that change.

The question remains: what are the Lebanese people waiting for?

A Civil War, sectarian rule and divide, hyperinflation, the Beirut blast – many of these seem like very valid reasons for a strong movement due to the unbelievable amount of suffering Lebanese people continue to endure. Elections are not something to rely on for change, considering the horrible living conditions of large masses and communities – votes are more easily bought now than ever before.

It is also not a matter of leadership that is not allowing the uprisings a chance to flourish, as there are many leaderless uprisings in history that succeeded. However, those leaderless movements were strategic. The crisis is currently strengthening the political class instead of weakening it. One easy example is Walid Joumblatt, Druze leader of the Progressive Socialist party. He has been providing financial support to institutions, hospitals, and food security to his people – a strategic move many other, if not all, leaders are relying on in order to maintain their power. These “innocent” acts of kindness and compassion for the suffering masses are how political leaders are leeching off their people.

Surely, Lebanese people are aware that the ‘revolution’ is going nowhere. Of course, change does not occur overnight, and the journey is long and painful, but it appears that the journey is still all theoretical.

Vladimir and Estragon, many times during the play, contemplate leaving and stop waiting. At the end of every scene, there is a call for action, but no action follows up. It is a vicious cycle that repeats every day, and it is exactly what is going on with the ‘Lebanese revolution’. Calling it a revolution might even be generous. This does not mean that there are no true revolutionists at heart who are truly fighting for change, but a movement does not only require strategy, it also needs the strength found in numbers.

Clearly, the act of waiting is doing tremendous harm by allowing leaders the opportunity to strengthen the political class and maintain its control over the population. 

If Godot does not arrive, then bring him by force.