]
NELL: So white.
HAMM: What? What’s she blathering about?
[ CLOV stoops, takes NELL ’
s
hand, feels her pulse. ]
NELL: [ To CLOV .] Desert!
[ CLOV lets go her hand, pushes her back in the bin, closes the lid. ]
CLOV: [ Returning to his place beside the chair. ]She has no pulse.
HAMM: What was she drivelling about?
CLOV: She told me to go away, into the desert.
HAMM: Damn busybody! Is that all?
CLOV: No.
HAMM: What else?
CLOV: I didn’t understand.
HAMM: Have you bottled her?
CLOV: Yes.
HAMM: Are they both bottled?
CLOV: Yes.
HAMM: Screw down the lids, [ CLOV goes towards door. ]Time enough, [ CLOV halts. ]My anger subsides, I’d like to pee.
CLOV: [ With alacrity. ] I’ll go and get the catheter.
[ He goes towards the door. ]
HAMM: Time enough, [ CLOV halts. ]Give me my pain-killer .
CLOV: It’s too soon. [ Pause. ]It’s too soon on top of your tonic, it wouldn’t act.
HAMM: In the morning they brace you up and in the evening they calm you down. Unless it’s
the other way round. [ Pause. ]That old doctor, he’s dead, naturally?
CLOV: He wasn’t old.
HAMM: But he’s dead?
CLOV: Naturally. [ Pause. ] You ask me that?
[ Pause. ]
HAMM: Take me for a little turn, [ CLOV goes behind the chair and pushes it forward. ]Not too fast! [ CLOV pushes chair: ] Right round the world! [ CLOV pushes chair. ]Hug the walls, then back to the centre again. [ CLOV pushes chair. ]I was right in the centre, wasn’t I?
CLOV: [ Pushing. ]Yes.
HAMM: We’d need a proper wheel-chair. With big wheels. Bicycle wheels! [ Pause. ]Are you hugging?
CLOV: [ Pushing. ]Yes.
HAMM: [ Groping for wall. ]It’s a lie! Why do you lie to me?
CLOV: [ Bearing closer to wall. ] There! There!
HAMM: Stop! [ CLOV stops chair close to back wall. HAMM lays his hand against wall. ]Old wall! [ Pause. ]Beyond is the … other hell. [ Pause. Violently. ]Closer! Closer! Up against!
CLOV: Take away your hand. [ HAMM withdraws his hand. CLOV rams chair against wall. ]There!
[ HAMM leans towards wall, applies his ear to it. ]
HAMM: Do you hear? [ He strikes the wall with his knuckles. ] Do you hear? Hollow bricks! [ He strikes again. ]All that’s hollow! [ Pause. He straightens up. Violently. ]That’s enough. Back!
CLOV: We haven’t done the round.
HAMM: Back to my place! [ CLOV pushes chair back to centre. ] Is that my place?
CLOV: Yes, that’s your place.
HAMM: Am I right in the centre?
CLOV: I’ll measure it.
HAMM: More or less! More or less!
CLOV: [ Moving chair slightly. ] There!
HAMM: I’m more or less in the centre?
CLOV: I’d say so.
HAMM: You’d say so! Put me right in the centre!
CLOV: I’ll go and get the tape.
HAMM: Roughly! Roughly! [ CLOV moves chair slightly. ]Bang in the centre!
CLOV: There!
[ Pause. ]
HAMM: I feel a little too far to the left, [ CLOV moves chair slightly. ]Now I feel a little too far to the right, [ CLOV moves chair slightly. ]I feel a little too far forward, [ CLOV moves chair slightly. ]Now I feel a little too far back. [ CLOV moves chair slightly. ]Don’t stay there [ i.e. behind the chair ] , you give me the shivers.
[ CLOV returns to his place beside the chair. ]
CLOV: If I could kill him I’d die happy.
[ Pause. ]
HAMM: What’s the weather like?
CLOV: The same as usual.
HAMM: Look at the earth.
CLOV: I’ve looked.
HAMM: With the glass?
CLOV: No need of the glass.
HAMM: Look at it with the glass.
CLOV: I’ll go and get the glass.
[ Exit CLOV .]
HAMM: No need of the glass!
[ Enter CLOV with telescope. ]
CLOV: I’m back again, with the glass. [ He goes to window right, looks up at it. ]I need the steps.
HAMM: Why? Have you shrunk? [ Exit CLOV with telescope. ]I don’t like that, I don’t like that.
[ Enter CLOV with ladder, but without telescope. ]
CLOV: I’m back again, with the steps. [ He sets down ladder under window right, gets up on it, realizes he has not the telescope, gets down. ]I need the glass.
[ He goes towards the door .]
HAMM: [
NELL: So white.
HAMM: What? What’s she blathering about?
[ CLOV stoops, takes NELL ’
s
hand, feels her pulse. ]
NELL: [ To CLOV .] Desert!
[ CLOV lets go her hand, pushes her back in the bin, closes the lid. ]
CLOV: [ Returning to his place beside the chair. ]She has no pulse.
HAMM: What was she drivelling about?
CLOV: She told me to go away, into the desert.
HAMM: Damn busybody! Is that all?
CLOV: No.
HAMM: What else?
CLOV: I didn’t understand.
HAMM: Have you bottled her?
CLOV: Yes.
HAMM: Are they both bottled?
CLOV: Yes.
HAMM: Screw down the lids, [ CLOV goes towards door. ]Time enough, [ CLOV halts. ]My anger subsides, I’d like to pee.
CLOV: [ With alacrity. ] I’ll go and get the catheter.
[ He goes towards the door. ]
HAMM: Time enough, [ CLOV halts. ]Give me my pain-killer .
CLOV: It’s too soon. [ Pause. ]It’s too soon on top of your tonic, it wouldn’t act.
HAMM: In the morning they brace you up and in the evening they calm you down. Unless it’s
the other way round. [ Pause. ]That old doctor, he’s dead, naturally?
CLOV: He wasn’t old.
HAMM: But he’s dead?
CLOV: Naturally. [ Pause. ] You ask me that?
[ Pause. ]
HAMM: Take me for a little turn, [ CLOV goes behind the chair and pushes it forward. ]Not too fast! [ CLOV pushes chair: ] Right round the world! [ CLOV pushes chair. ]Hug the walls, then back to the centre again. [ CLOV pushes chair. ]I was right in the centre, wasn’t I?
CLOV: [ Pushing. ]Yes.
HAMM: We’d need a proper wheel-chair. With big wheels. Bicycle wheels! [ Pause. ]Are you hugging?
CLOV: [ Pushing. ]Yes.
HAMM: [ Groping for wall. ]It’s a lie! Why do you lie to me?
CLOV: [ Bearing closer to wall. ] There! There!
HAMM: Stop! [ CLOV stops chair close to back wall. HAMM lays his hand against wall. ]Old wall! [ Pause. ]Beyond is the … other hell. [ Pause. Violently. ]Closer! Closer! Up against!
CLOV: Take away your hand. [ HAMM withdraws his hand. CLOV rams chair against wall. ]There!
[ HAMM leans towards wall, applies his ear to it. ]
HAMM: Do you hear? [ He strikes the wall with his knuckles. ] Do you hear? Hollow bricks! [ He strikes again. ]All that’s hollow! [ Pause. He straightens up. Violently. ]That’s enough. Back!
CLOV: We haven’t done the round.
HAMM: Back to my place! [ CLOV pushes chair back to centre. ] Is that my place?
CLOV: Yes, that’s your place.
HAMM: Am I right in the centre?
CLOV: I’ll measure it.
HAMM: More or less! More or less!
CLOV: [ Moving chair slightly. ] There!
HAMM: I’m more or less in the centre?
CLOV: I’d say so.
HAMM: You’d say so! Put me right in the centre!
CLOV: I’ll go and get the tape.
HAMM: Roughly! Roughly! [ CLOV moves chair slightly. ]Bang in the centre!
CLOV: There!
[ Pause. ]
HAMM: I feel a little too far to the left, [ CLOV moves chair slightly. ]Now I feel a little too far to the right, [ CLOV moves chair slightly. ]I feel a little too far forward, [ CLOV moves chair slightly. ]Now I feel a little too far back. [ CLOV moves chair slightly. ]Don’t stay there [ i.e. behind the chair ] , you give me the shivers.
[ CLOV returns to his place beside the chair. ]
CLOV: If I could kill him I’d die happy.
[ Pause. ]
HAMM: What’s the weather like?
CLOV: The same as usual.
HAMM: Look at the earth.
CLOV: I’ve looked.
HAMM: With the glass?
CLOV: No need of the glass.
HAMM: Look at it with the glass.
CLOV: I’ll go and get the glass.
[ Exit CLOV .]
HAMM: No need of the glass!
[ Enter CLOV with telescope. ]
CLOV: I’m back again, with the glass. [ He goes to window right, looks up at it. ]I need the steps.
HAMM: Why? Have you shrunk? [ Exit CLOV with telescope. ]I don’t like that, I don’t like that.
[ Enter CLOV with ladder, but without telescope. ]
CLOV: I’m back again, with the steps. [ He sets down ladder under window right, gets up on it, realizes he has not the telescope, gets down. ]I need the glass.
[ He goes towards the door .]
HAMM: [
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