FratFiles

• Save Paper

Endgame Analysis



Endgame is the term used to describe an ending in chess where the outcome is already known. Chess masters often study endgames in order to guarantee themselves victory once they maneuver their opponent into a certain position. Beckett, an avid chess fan, saw the parallel between the chess endgame the final stages of life. He realized that death is the final outcome and that regardless of how a person plays the game, he or she will die. The imagery of chess is presented in the play through Clov and Hamm who are red and Nagg and Nell who are white.

The stage setting is important because it has been likened to a skull. The two windows on the back wall form the eye sockets of this skull, and the characters represent the brain and memory. Thus the entire stage serves as a metaphor for an aging mind.

This skull-like setting is complemented by several textual references to Dante's Inferno. For instance, Clov comments at one point that they are in a......

View the rest of this paper...

Approximate Word Count: 4011
Approximate Pages: 17 (250 words per double-spaced page)

Similar Essays

1. Complete Analysis Of Beckett'S Endgame
   

   Complete Analysis of Beckett's Endgame. Endgame Analysis Endgame is the term used
   to describe an ending in chess where the outcome is already known. ...