Estragon (affectionately Gogo; he tells Pozzo his name is Adam) is one of the two main characters from

Samuel Beckett Samuel Barclay Beckett (; 13 April 1906 – 22 December 1989) was an Irish novelist, dramatist, short story writer, theatre director, poet, and literary translator. His literary and theatrical work features bleak, impersonal and Tragicomedy, tr ...

's '' Waiting for Godot''. His name is the French word for

tarragon Tarragon (''Artemisia dracunculus''), also known as estragon, is a species of perennial herb in the family Asteraceae. It is widespread in the wild across much of Eurasia and North America and is cultivated for culinary and medicinal purposes. ...

Personality

The impulsive misanthrope

Estragon represents the impulsive, simplistic side of the two main

character Character or Characters may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''Character'' (novel), a 1936 Dutch novel by Ferdinand Bordewijk * ''Characters'' (Theophrastus), a classical Greek set of character sketches attributed to The ...

s, much in contrast to his companion

Vladimir Vladimir may refer to: Names * Vladimir (name) for the Bulgarian, Croatian, Czech, Macedonian, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Slovak and Slovenian spellings of a Slavic name * Uladzimir for the Belarusian version of the name * Volodymyr for the Ukr ...

's careful intellectualism and verbosity. He cares little for appearances, and is mostly concerned with eating and sleeping (much to Vladimir's chagrin). Due to his

pessimist Pessimism is a negative mental attitude in which an undesirable outcome is anticipated from a given situation. Pessimists tend to focus on the negatives of life in general. A common question asked to test for pessimism is "Is the glass half empt ...

ic outlook on life, he has abandoned all hope of any alleviation from their suffering, and regards "Godot" suspiciously. This is perhaps because Estragon has far more to worry about. Of the two, Estragon suffers the most physically. He is kicked by Lucky, takes numerous pratfalls, and is beaten by a gang of thugs every night. He also has great difficulty with his boots. In the first act, they do not fit and cause him pain. At the end of the act, he leaves them on the side of the road in disgust. In the second act, he finds them in the same place, now mysteriously fitting him. This boot focus (in terms of the character being foot centred) may be interpreted as being representative of his lower status (see

's hat) and his "earthy" nature (e.g. his love of carrots, radishes, etc.). Estragon has a misanthropic view of

human Humans (''Homo sapiens'') are the most abundant and widespread species of primate, characterized by bipedalism and exceptional cognitive skills due to a large and complex brain. This has enabled the development of advanced tools, cultu ...

ity: he considers people to be "ignorant apes" and seems to want them to leave him alone. However, he is very attached to Vladimir (despite occasionally bickering with him): he needs protection, and Vladimir provides it. Estragon is often seen as the child to Vladimir's adult, and as such looks for parental security in him.

The poet

Estragon should not, however, be written off as merely a childish simpleton. He easily matches Vladimir in verbal melee (he delivers the ultimate insult in calling Vladimir a "

Critic A critic is a person who communicates an assessment and an opinion of various forms of creative works such as art, literature, music, cinema, theater, fashion, architecture, and food. Critics may also take as their subject social or gover ...

!"). He also shows an artistic side, and even claims to have once been a

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or w ...

. His brief, but evocative, monologue about the "maps of the

Holy Land The Holy Land; Arabic: or is an area roughly located between the Mediterranean Sea and the Eastern Bank of the Jordan River, traditionally synonymous both with the biblical Land of Israel and with the region of Palestine. The term "Holy ...

" is very poetic in nature. He can even quote Shelley (with a slight alteration): Excerpt from Shelley's poem: "Art thou pale for weariness/Of climbing heaven and gazing on the earth..." Estragon's play on it: "Pale for weariness...Of climbing heaven and gazing on the likes of us."

Appearance

Estragon is given perhaps the most minimal description in the play. He is only described as wearing "rags", walking with a limp (that eventually wears off) and being lighter than Vladimir. Because of his rather gluttonous nature, however, he is often played as being short and slightly fat (in comparison to the often tall and lanky

). His clothes are usually a bit dirtier than Vladimir's as well, and seem to be in far worse condition. This interpretation is best attributed to his total lack of restraint and inhibitions (diving for food, sleeping in ditches, etc.). Many famous actors have taken on the role (especially those of the aforementioned body type), notably

Bert Lahr Irving Lahrheim (August 13, 1895 – December 4, 1967), known professionally as Bert Lahr, was an American actor. He was best known for his role as the Cowardly Lion, as well as his counterpart Kansas farmworker "Zeke", in the MGM adaptation of ...

, Sir

Ian McKellen Sir Ian Murray McKellen (born 25 May 1939) is an English actor. His career spans seven decades, having performed in genres ranging from Shakespearean and modern theatre to popular fantasy and science fiction. Regarded as a British cultural i ...

and

Robin Williams Robin McLaurin Williams (July 21, 1951August 11, 2014) was an American actor and comedian. Known for his improvisational skills and the wide variety of characters he created on the spur of the moment and portrayed on film, in dramas and come ...

(with

Steve Martin Stephen Glenn Martin (born August 14, 1945) is an American actor, comedian, writer, producer, and musician. He has won five Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and was awarded an Honorary Academy Award in 2013. Additionally, he was nominate ...

as Vladimir). Beckett is even said to have wanted

Marlon Brando Marlon Brando Jr. (April 3, 1924 – July 1, 2004) was an American actor. Considered one of the most influential actors of the 20th century, he received numerous accolades throughout his career, which spanned six decades, including two Academ ...

in one production (with

Buster Keaton Joseph Frank "Buster" Keaton (October 4, 1895 – February 1, 1966) was an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. He is best known for his silent film work, in which his trademark was physical comedy accompanied by a stoic, deadpan expression ...

as Vladimir){{cn, date=March 2020.

Relatives

Tom Stoppard Sir Tom Stoppard (born , 3 July 1937) is a Czech born British playwright and screenwriter. He has written for film, radio, stage, and television, finding prominence with plays. His work covers the themes of human rights, censorship, and polit ...

's ''Godot'' pastiche, ''

Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead ''Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead'' is an absurdist, existential tragicomedy by Tom Stoppard, first staged at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 1966. The play expands upon the exploits of two minor characters from Shakespeare's ''Hamle ...

'', the character Rosencrantz closely resembles Estragon.

External links