本站原创Repetitionmeansaneventthatrepeatstheactofdoingandperformingagainandtherepeateduseofthesamewordorwordpatternasarhetoricaldevice.AfterreadingSamuelBeckett’splayEndgame,IfindthattheBeckettianlanguageisbestpresentedwithitsrepeatingofstory-telling,actionsofthecharactersandtheirwords.Throughtheuseoftheserepetitions,Beckettsuccesullyrevealedthemeaninglessnessandmonotonyoftheworld,acplishedtheplay’sinternalcyclepattern,thuorcingthereaderintoanactiveroleinreadingprocess.
First,Beckettimpressedreaderswithrepetitivelanguagetoemphasizethemeaninglessnessandmonotonyoftheworld.RubyCohnhasthissentence:
“Inspiteofhisextraordinaryvocabularyandimpressivemandofseverallanguages,BeckettdeliberatelylimitsthewordsofEndgame,chargingeachwordwithanenormousburden.”
Trueenough,Becketthaddevaluedthelanguagemaskedbyconviction.TheessentialpurposeofrepetitioninEndgameistohighlighttherelationshipbetweenthisdeviceandthemainthemeofhisplays―toshowpeopleaworldwithoutcertaintyandbereftofmeanings.Withthefullrangeofhisgenius,Beckettbringsintotheplaythevarietyofdramaticforms,implyingthereaderwithrepetitivewordstostressthemonotonyoftheworld.LeonardPronkobelievesthatBeckettemploysrepetitiontoemphasizetheinterminablefutility.Thedestructionofreaders’ideascanbeacplishedthroughtheextendeduseoftextualrepetition.JustasHammalwayssaidintheplay,“it’inished,nearlyfinished”,oncetheessentialphraseiswellestablished,Beckettcanevengosofartoomitparts,evenessentialsegmentsofarecurrentphrase,therebyleadingthereaderontoanactiveroleintheclosureprocess.
TheplaysystematicallyrepeatsdetailedmovementswhichrangeromthestepsClovtakesortheknocksHammmakesonthewallortheknocksNaggmakesonNell’sashbin.Intheplay,readerscanperceivethattimeseemsdoesn’tpassinsuchaplace,thusthecharactersinitshouldfindtheirownwaytopasstime.Onesolutionadoptedbythemiechanicalrepetition,re-enactingsituationswithoutperceivinganysignificanceintheserepeatedwordsandactions.OneexampleiswhenCloveaskedHamm“soyouallwantmetoleeyou”Hammanswered,“Naturally.”ThenClovesaid,“thenI’llleeyou.”Hammfollowed,“youcan’tleeus.”Clovethenresponded,“thenIwon’tleeyou.”Onecannotfindanythingofvalueinthisdialogue,sinceitdemonstratesnothingmeaningful.Usingthisrepetition,Beckettmadecleartheemptinessofthecharactersinnermind.ThemostrepeatedsentenceinEndgameisHamm’s“Isitnottimeformypain-killer”,suggestingtheneedofapain-killerofHamminappearance.However,afterprobingdeeperintotheplay,readerscanfindthattheonlypain-killerforHammisdeath.Hammalsohasthissentencesaidfrequently:“It’stimeformystory.”Therepetitionof“thisistimefor等”soundinglikeanalarm,remindshimtodothingsaccordingtothetimewhichinfactdoesnotexistintheirworld.Hammsaidthisphrasetoremindhimofhishabitofthepasttime,whichisalsoawayforhimtokilltime.ThisalsoshowromasidethemonotonyandmeaninglessnessoftheworldappearedinEndgame.
“Pause”isthemostfrequentlyrepeatedwordinthetext.Apauseallowsthereadertothinkbackwardsandfullysoakedintothefeelingofdespair.Intheplay,storiesanddialoguesareconstantlyinterruptedbypause,losingtheiroriginalcoherence.However,theinterruptionsattimesnotonlygiveenoughtimeforthereadertobeaffectedbythemelancholymoodbutalsocreateaslighthopeinthem.Intheplay,therepeatedactionofpauseseparatethespeeches,thusalsoisolatethecharacters.Asobservedintheplay,thepauseenhancedthepainfulnessofwaiting,theemptinessofexistence,theexpectancyofcollapseandthemanifestationoftotaldespair.
Beckettalsomadeuseofrepetitiontounderlinetheinternalcyclepatternoftheplay.InEndgame,thereisatensionbetweenthequestfortheend,forsilenceandstillness,andalongingtoprolongtheendbyrepeatingthesamejokesandstoriesandbyprovidingthesameoldquestionsandanswers.JustasHammsaysatthebeginningoftheplay,“it’stimeitendedandyetIhesitateto―(heyawns)―toend.”Tomaketheinternalcyclegoingoothly,Hamm,neartheendoftheplay,saysthestoryhasended:“Momentornothing,nowasalways,timewasnever,andtimeisover,reckoningclosedandstoryended”.Hammfrenziedlybelievesthatheisontheprocessofmakingsenseoutofthesenselessenvironment,albeithewillneverputanendtothemeaningbyrepeatingwordsandacts.ToBeckett,“anyreturntoastartingpointmayevoketheconceptofcircularityinthetextandtoitsend,innumerablerepetitionsandreturnstoearlymotifs,phrasesandsituationsserveeffectivelytodestroyanysenseoflinearprogression”.Astheplayopens,Clovsaidtonelesslywithfixedgaze:“Finished,nearlyfinished,itmustbenearlyfinished”.Later,Hammtookupthissentenceandsaid,“It’inished,we’refinished.(pause.)Nearlyfinished.”Thisrepetitionconcludedaindividualinternalcy cle.Hammsubstitutes“it”with“we”,implyingthathumanbeingsarerunningdownlikeanunwoundedclock,liketheuniverseitself,andeachindividualsendisaboutthesame.Thestorydoesnotetoannormalend,asreaderscontinuetowonderwhathappenedwhenesthedénouement.WhathappenedtotheboyorhiatherIsthestorymadeupasHammsuggestsIfnot,whichcharacterisHammWhichonerepresentsClovWillClovtakeHamm’splaceandbabyClovtakeClov’splace,asHammpredictedTakingscenethatClovstandingmotionlesslyonthestage,possibleendingofthestoryisleftopen.Therefore,theendingofthestoryresemblesare-beginning,acplishingthegeneralcyclonicoftheplayandgivingEndgameaninterminableend.UsingHamm’svoice,Beckettdeclareshispurposeofadoptingthistechnique,“Theendisthebeginningandyetyougoon”.
Last,thetextrepetitionhelpstostressthecharacters’unconsciousnessofproblemswhiletheacceptanceofabnormalitytendstopuzzlethereaders.Thetextualrepetitiondestructsreaders’ideas.Beckett’somittingofrepetitivephraseforcethereadertothinkratherthanleadthemtothenaturalconclusion.Thistechnique,muchlikeblankfilling,distinguishedmodernplaywrightswithtraditionalplaywrights.Atthebeginningoftheplay,Clovmeditatedabouttheending,reachingtotheevocationofaparadox,regardlessofthewaningoflogicalprogress.Thisphilosophicalchallengehauntstheplayfrombeginningtotheend.However,mostreadersareunlikelytogetthisuntilHammofferedhisanalogytoClovabouthis“impossibleheap”.Tobeginwith,Clovquestionedwhenindividualgrainsbeeaheap:“Grainupongrain,onebyone,andoneday,suddenly,there’saheap,alittleheap,theimpossibleheap.”Inhiind,theheapis“impossible”.Anysinglegrainisnotaheapandaheapisjustanaccumulationofeverysinglegrain.Whenreadingthis,readerightbenotabletounderstandthemeaningofhissentencesandthereasonwhytheyarehere.However,byusingrepetition,BeckettsuggestedthefunctionofthietaphorthroughthevoiceofHamm.Hammlaterconsideredhowindividualmomentakeupawholelife,withhisanalogy,thislifewasdescribedas“impossible”astheheapwhichconsistedofdiscretemoments,untildeathterminatesit.Hemourned:“Momentuponmoment,patteringdown,likethemilletgrainsof等(hehesitates)等thatoldGreek,andalllifelongyouwaitforthattomountuptoalife”.HammandClovdepictedtheirworldoutsideasdead,empty,likeahellwithnosun,nolight,nodarknessbutgrey.Timeiszeroandeverythingiszero.However,Hamm’sstoryaboutthemadpainterhintsthatthesenegativeperceptionoftheworldoutsidemayjustbethesubjectimpressionofanego.Inthestory,Hammsaid:
“I’dtakehimbythehandanddraghimtothewindow.Look！There！Allthatrisingcorn！Andthere！Look！Thesailsoftheherringfleet！Allthatloveliness！(pause.)He’dsnatchawayhishandandgobackintohiscorner.Appalled.Allhehadseenwasashes.”
ThehesitantmannerinwhichHammindicateshisexperiencemaysuggestthatClovandHammweresufferingthesamementalproblemlikethepainter,sincetheyalsosawnothingbutashesoutside.WhenHammstatedthisstory,hepausedtwicewhenitcametosay“engrer”.Beckettemphasizingtheword“engrer”byputtingapausebeforeitbothtimesshowsthatherelateadnesswithartisticcreativity.Atthesametime,asvyreadercanalsogetanimplicationthatonlyartisticprofessionalscanperceivethehuman’entalemptiness.
AsoneofSamuelBeckett’srepresentativeworks,Endgamegivesaprehensiveexhibitionofhisgeniusbyprogressingtowardsakindoftotalemptinessinwhichplot,languageandcharacterscrumbletonothing,leingonlyoicewaitingthesilenceandtheend.Neithercharactersnorreadersheanexactperceptionofthetime,buttheyknowtimeispassingwithoutapause.Forthem,thepast,thepresentandthefuturemeannothingandtheonlywaytopassthemeaninglesstimeistodeliberatelyrepeatmemories,tellingstoriesandmakingpauses.
WorksCited:
1,Beckett,Samuel.Endgame.London:FaberandFaber.1958
2,Cohn,Roby.SamuelBeckett:TheComicGamut.NewBrunswick:RutgersUniversityPress,1962
3,Eliopulos,James.SamuelBeckett’sDramaticLanguage.TheNetherlands:Mouton&Co.N.V.,Publishers.1975
4,Lane,RichardJ.BeckettandPhilosophy.London&NewYork:Palgre.2002
5,斯坦利•,菲什.读者反映批评：理论与实践（文楚安译）.北京：中国社会科学出版社,1998.
（张楠：女,湖北襄樊人,1989年11月出生,四川外语学院研究生部2010级英语专业英美文学方向硕士研究生.）