Interpretation Challenge: Breath: The Shortest Play by Samuel Beckett

Hello Readers,

This blog is part of my classroom learning process it's in form of challenge. Challenge because it is - A Thirty Second play by Samuel Beckett and the challenge is given by Dr. Dilip Barad. Click here to see the challenge.


# Breath (play) by Samuel Beckett

Samuel Beckett was an Irish poet, playwriter, novelist and literary translator.he was able to write in English and French both. His work mostly includes black comedy as well as tragic comedy and humor on Human existence, he falls under the key figure of "Theatre of The Absurd".

Here I'm going to interpret his one of the mysterious play called "Breath"-A Thirty Second play(1969); the shortest play was ever written. It seems unbelievable. The play has no characters, no dialogues. You can put this full play in your WhatsApp status also.😆


CLICK HERE TO SEE SCRIPT OF PLAY.


Curtain.

[1. Faint light on the stage littered with miscellaneous rubbish. Hold for about five seconds.

2. Faint brief cry and immediately inspiration and slow increase of light together reaching maximum together in about ten seconds. Silence and hold about five seconds.

3. Expiration and slow decrease of light together reaching minimum together (light as in I) in about ten seconds and immediately cry as before. Silence and hold for about five seconds.]


This play is not like other ordinary plays, it seems different from other because first of all it's modern play and also it tries to introduce nothingness or absurdity. It tries to reveal the sense of senselessness. The question of existence and meaninglessness of human life. HOW?

You can read above that there are only three things happening in the entire play.

1] Brief Cry 
2] Breath 
3] Cry

Here the playwright used some words like-

~ The stage littered with miscellaneous rubbish
~ Inspiration
~ Expiration too.

The message is very clear, there is only a breath between two cries. 

First, let me check the nearest and easiest possibilities of interpretations. At the first reading of the play, we might think about some situations like given below, 

1] It seems the scene of a few minutes before the rape/murder- a cry of a victim to save his/her life- breathing sound from his fearful heart- again cry of a victim for help. Here miscellaneous rubbish can be the place where a victim was kept. Inspiration and expiration are connected with the hope of a victim.

2] Patient of depression- We know that the patient of depression, they suddenly start crying then stop to breath and again cry- with/without any reason. Here miscellaneous rubbish can be the mind of a patient which is full of garbage and unuseful things. Inspiration and Expiration can be described as a flaw and the quality of thoughts. 

3] Sobbings of the earth because of pollution.

4] It's just a scene of someone's birth- The first cry of a mother because of labor pain - she gave birth to child and doctor takes a breath of success and the first cry of the child.

But, it is not as simplest or as easiest as it seems. There is deep philosophical meaning behind it. It sounds like the life circle of human beings.

The first scene is miscellaneous rubbish which might suggest our belief, disbelief, thoughts, ideas, religions, fake identities, money, power, position, so on and so far, all mortal wishes. this all things are universal it always remains on earth before the birth of mine and yours and it will remain after the death of mine and yours. This first cry is life, it's birth, it's a sign of beginning, ring of the bell- ultimately starting point of a voyage. Inspiration and expiration are the part of this journey it symbolizes hesitances of life or it can interpret as sun and moon. Breath symbolizes the period of human life how short and how inane it is; And the last cry is the death.

At last in a few words, it is the futility of life from womb to tomb in a half minute.
(30 seconds)


CLICK HERE TO WATCH SOME MORE ADOPTION OF THIS PLAY.

THANK YOU.

Pre-Thinking Task:- As a warm-up for Edgar Allan Poe's short stories.

Hello Friends,

This blog is part of my learning process on Edgar Allan Poe's short stories, the task is given by the Guest lecturer Dr. Jay Mehta.

Click here to see given task.


QUESTIONS:-

01. Recollect a moment of your life when you were at the height of ferocity (anger) on someone with/without some specific reason. What did you feel like speaking to or doing with that person?

ANS:- 
I hate liers. The worst kind of enemies are those who pretend to be our friends and I really hate this kind of people, Their words don't match with their actions. They feel jealous because others respect us. Indeed, it happened many times when I was on the hight of ferocity but let me be frank, without some specific reason I can never be angry with anyone. I have a dual personality just like coconut, people found me cruel from my outer behavior but actually, I'm too much emotional. I can easily hurt by my dearest persons, so whenever somebody tried to hurt me or pull me down at that time I'll be very frustrated, but these were the days when I was not aware of the damage, anger is creating in my life. The situation of today is different. The easiest solution to my excessive anger is sports, I have learned to covert my anger into energy, and most importantly I have started departing my self from unwanted people and situations. 

02. Have you ever felt the tremendous drive to hit or murder someone? When? Why? How? Elucidate.

ANS:- 
Whenever I heard something about a rape case on any girl or any women at that time my anger was uncontrollable and I was on the edge of firing the whole world, my anger was on the hight that many times I think about to be Baaghi and punish all bloody bastards. When I come to know about the cases of Asifa and Geeta, I thought that that rapist mightn't be given capital death. They should live to suffer, their eyes should scrape, their all bones should be broken and though they should live to endure the pain. This is one example of my tremendous drive to murder someone but except this many times, I felt to kill someone, but as I have already said that I'm trying to control my anger and so sometimes I used to do Pranayam also.

03. Have you ever felt like committing suicide? Was it just a passing thought or you were serious? What propelled you to think so? Describe your experience (although momentary) of suicidal tendency.

ANS: Sometimes, but it was just thought, I never tried to commit suicide. I love my life and nowadays there is no plan of dying at all. Still, I wanted to do many things in this life before completing my wishlist I'll not be going to die and after completing wishes there is no life at all. 

04. Write about the scariest of your dreams. Have you ever cried or screamed by a bizarre and horrible nightmare? Elaborate.

Ans: Psychology says if you concern too much about something that thing will come in your dreams one or another way, interpretations may vary. Many times I have seen one particular dream it was the death of my family member; when it happens to me I suddenly wake-up and cries but after 1-2 minutes I realize that it was just a nightmare and then I feel relief. 


05. Do you believe in ghosts? Have you ever undergone any experience of supernatural elements? Explain.

Ans: I think if God exists then Ghost must exist. According to Shivmahapuran Ghosts are followers or servants of Lord Shiva so I think they might exist. I have read one book called THE SECRET in which I read that there are some energy exists in this universe we can call it positive or negative vibes, in other words, we can call them God, Bhagwan, Allah or super natural power. I'm not sure about the experience.


Thank you,