Review of Endgame

Review of Endgame

Endgame is play that both mysterious and worth pondering. There are several meanings for Endgame. In English, it has the meaning of the end, the last game or the game that can’t be solve in chess. In French, it means the end of life. All of these meanings give me an ominous feeling.

The literal meaning of the title gives me a feeling of the destination of lives, or the final-straw. This is also what I imagined when Ms. Guarino first explains the meaning of this title. Compare with the last play we watched, which is Warriors Don’t Cry, this play is more amorphous: Its setting is not based on real story, and the message it gives us is not clear. Also, the four characters and the dependent relationship between Hamm and Clov, which they rely on each other but they also torture each other, are all not really possible to be in real life. After I finish watching this play, there are many questions that I can’t understand. If I need to use one word to describe this play, then it is mysterious.

As the title shows us, this kind of life will never end. Everyday of people who live in this house are the same. Their day starts by Clov opening the curtains, waking the whole family up, and saying: “I will leave you!” to Hamm again and again, but he never really did it. An interesting point in this play is that each character has their own endgame. For Hamm’s parents, Negg and Nell, everything happens on yesterday. The endgame for them means a cycle that has no start and no ending. They were trapped in trash bin; they can’t see the light; they also can’t kiss each other. Their body was separated, just like the endgame for chess, there is nothing else they can do. Negg and Nell’s love are also like endgame, which it seems their love ends when Nell died, but it actually continues in their heart. “Kiss me.” “We can’t” “Try!” For Nell and Negg, there will never be an ending for their simple but pure love. For Hamm and Clov, their relationship is much more complicated. Although Hamm is not Clov’s real father, he still gives him a place to live. For their dependent relationship, the endgame means it can’t be solved. But for Hamm after Clov left him, the endgame means the end of life. Clov said many times that he will leave Hamm who tortures and orders him, but he never really takes that step. Every time he hears Hamm blows the whistle, he could have pretend he didn’t hear it, but he still walks to Hamm with his painful leg. When Hamm gets angry throwing things away, Clov manage for hi. When Hamm wants to touch his dog, Clov puts the toy on his side. This kind of relationship reminds me of what children do when their parents call them. Even though the kids don’t want to listen to their parent, they still listen after all. If there is really a boy outside, then maybe the relationship between Hamm and Clov will be recur on that little boy. Just like what Hamm said: “One day, you will be me.”