Violently. ]But you have the glass!
CLOV: [ Halting, violently. ]No I haven’t the glass!
[ Exit CLOV .]
HAMM: This is deadly.
[ Enter CLOV with telescope. He goes towards ladder. ]
CLOV: Things are livening up. [ He gets up on ladder, raises the telescope, lets it fall. ]I did it on purpose. [ He gets down, picks up the telescope, turns it on auditorium. ]I see … a multitude … in transports … of joy. [ Pause. ]That’s what I call a magnifier. [ He lowers the telescope, turns towards HAMM .] Well? Don’t we laugh?
HAMM: [ After reflection. ]I don’t.
CLOV: [ After reflection. ]Nor I. [ He gets up on ladder, turns the telescope on the without. ]Let’s see. [ He looks, moving the telescope. ]Zero … [ he looks ]… zero … [ he looks ] … and zero.
HAMM: Nothing stirs. All is –
CLOV: Zer –
HAMM: [ Violently. ]Wait till you’re spoken to! [ Normal voice. ] All is … all is … all is what? [ Violently. ]All is what?
CLOV: What all is? In a word? Is that what you want to know? Just a moment. [ He turns the telescope on the without, looks, lowers the telescope, turns towards HAMM .] Corpsed. [ Pause. ] Well? Content?
HAMM: Look at the sea.
CLOV: It’s the same.
HAMM: Look at the ocean!
[ CLOV gets down, take a few steps towards window left, goes back for ladder, carries it over and sets it down under window left, gets up on it, turns the telescope on the without, looks at length. He starts, lowers the telescope, examines it, turns it again on the without. ]
CLOV: Never seen anything like that!
HAMM: [ Anxious. ] What? A sail? A fin? Smoke?
CLOV: [ Looking. ]The light is sunk.
HAMM: [ Relieved. ]Pah! We all knew that.
CLOV: [ Looking. ]There was a bit left.
HAMM: The base.
CLOV: [ Looking. ]Yes.
HAMM: And now?
CLOV: [ Looking. ]All gone.
HAMM: No gulls?
CLOV: [ Looking. ]Gulls!
HAMM: And the horizon? Nothing on the horizon?
CLOV: [ Lowering the telescope, turning towards HAMM , exasperated. ]What in God’s name could there be on the horizon?
[ Pause. ]
HAMM: The waves, how are the waves?
CLOV: The waves? [ He turns the telescope on the waves. ]Lead.
HAMM: And the sun?
CLOV: [ Looking. ]Zero.
HAMM: But it should be sinking. Look again.
CLOV: [ Looking. ]Damn the sun.
HAMM: Is it night already then?
CLOV: [ Looking. ]No.
HAMM: Then what is it?
CLOV: [ Looking. ]Grey. [ Lowering the telescope, turning towards HAMM , louder. ]Grey! [ Pause. Still louder. ] GRREY! [ Pause. He gets down, approaches HAMM from behind, whispers in his ear. ]
HAMM: [ Starting. ]Grey! Did I hear you say grey?
CLOV: Light black. From pole to pole.
HAMM: You exaggerate. [ Pause. ]Don’t stay there, you give me the shivers.
[ CLOV returns to his place beside the chair. ]
CLOV: Why this farce, day after day?
HAMM: Routine. One never knows. [ Pause. ] Last night I saw inside my breast. There was a big sore.
CLOV: Pah! You saw your heart.
HAMM: No, it was living. [ Pause. Anguished. ]Clov!
CLOV: Yes.
HAMM: What’s happening?
CLOV: Something is taking its course.
[ Pause. ]
HAMM: Clov!
CLOV: [ Impatiently. ]What is it?
HAMM: We’re not beginning to … to … mean something?
CLOV: Mean something! You and I, mean something! [ Brief laugh. ] Ah that’s a good one!
HAMM: I wonder. [ Pause. ]Imagine if a rational being came back to earth, wouldn’t he be liable to get ideas
into his head if he observed us long enough. [ Voice of rational being. ]Ah, good, now I see what it is, yes, now I understand what they’re at! [ CLOV starts, drops the telescope and begins to scratch his belly with both hands. Normal voice. ] And without going so far as that, we ourselves … [ with emotion ]… we ourselves … at certain moments … [ Vehemently. ]To think perhaps it won’t all have been for nothing!
CLOV: [ Anguished, scratching himself. ]I have a flea!
HAMM: A flea! Are there still fleas?
CLOV: On me there’s one. [ Scratching. ]Unless it’s a crablouse.
HAMM: [ Very perturbed. ]But
CLOV: [ Halting, violently. ]No I haven’t the glass!
[ Exit CLOV .]
HAMM: This is deadly.
[ Enter CLOV with telescope. He goes towards ladder. ]
CLOV: Things are livening up. [ He gets up on ladder, raises the telescope, lets it fall. ]I did it on purpose. [ He gets down, picks up the telescope, turns it on auditorium. ]I see … a multitude … in transports … of joy. [ Pause. ]That’s what I call a magnifier. [ He lowers the telescope, turns towards HAMM .] Well? Don’t we laugh?
HAMM: [ After reflection. ]I don’t.
CLOV: [ After reflection. ]Nor I. [ He gets up on ladder, turns the telescope on the without. ]Let’s see. [ He looks, moving the telescope. ]Zero … [ he looks ]… zero … [ he looks ] … and zero.
HAMM: Nothing stirs. All is –
CLOV: Zer –
HAMM: [ Violently. ]Wait till you’re spoken to! [ Normal voice. ] All is … all is … all is what? [ Violently. ]All is what?
CLOV: What all is? In a word? Is that what you want to know? Just a moment. [ He turns the telescope on the without, looks, lowers the telescope, turns towards HAMM .] Corpsed. [ Pause. ] Well? Content?
HAMM: Look at the sea.
CLOV: It’s the same.
HAMM: Look at the ocean!
[ CLOV gets down, take a few steps towards window left, goes back for ladder, carries it over and sets it down under window left, gets up on it, turns the telescope on the without, looks at length. He starts, lowers the telescope, examines it, turns it again on the without. ]
CLOV: Never seen anything like that!
HAMM: [ Anxious. ] What? A sail? A fin? Smoke?
CLOV: [ Looking. ]The light is sunk.
HAMM: [ Relieved. ]Pah! We all knew that.
CLOV: [ Looking. ]There was a bit left.
HAMM: The base.
CLOV: [ Looking. ]Yes.
HAMM: And now?
CLOV: [ Looking. ]All gone.
HAMM: No gulls?
CLOV: [ Looking. ]Gulls!
HAMM: And the horizon? Nothing on the horizon?
CLOV: [ Lowering the telescope, turning towards HAMM , exasperated. ]What in God’s name could there be on the horizon?
[ Pause. ]
HAMM: The waves, how are the waves?
CLOV: The waves? [ He turns the telescope on the waves. ]Lead.
HAMM: And the sun?
CLOV: [ Looking. ]Zero.
HAMM: But it should be sinking. Look again.
CLOV: [ Looking. ]Damn the sun.
HAMM: Is it night already then?
CLOV: [ Looking. ]No.
HAMM: Then what is it?
CLOV: [ Looking. ]Grey. [ Lowering the telescope, turning towards HAMM , louder. ]Grey! [ Pause. Still louder. ] GRREY! [ Pause. He gets down, approaches HAMM from behind, whispers in his ear. ]
HAMM: [ Starting. ]Grey! Did I hear you say grey?
CLOV: Light black. From pole to pole.
HAMM: You exaggerate. [ Pause. ]Don’t stay there, you give me the shivers.
[ CLOV returns to his place beside the chair. ]
CLOV: Why this farce, day after day?
HAMM: Routine. One never knows. [ Pause. ] Last night I saw inside my breast. There was a big sore.
CLOV: Pah! You saw your heart.
HAMM: No, it was living. [ Pause. Anguished. ]Clov!
CLOV: Yes.
HAMM: What’s happening?
CLOV: Something is taking its course.
[ Pause. ]
HAMM: Clov!
CLOV: [ Impatiently. ]What is it?
HAMM: We’re not beginning to … to … mean something?
CLOV: Mean something! You and I, mean something! [ Brief laugh. ] Ah that’s a good one!
HAMM: I wonder. [ Pause. ]Imagine if a rational being came back to earth, wouldn’t he be liable to get ideas
into his head if he observed us long enough. [ Voice of rational being. ]Ah, good, now I see what it is, yes, now I understand what they’re at! [ CLOV starts, drops the telescope and begins to scratch his belly with both hands. Normal voice. ] And without going so far as that, we ourselves … [ with emotion ]… we ourselves … at certain moments … [ Vehemently. ]To think perhaps it won’t all have been for nothing!
CLOV: [ Anguished, scratching himself. ]I have a flea!
HAMM: A flea! Are there still fleas?
CLOV: On me there’s one. [ Scratching. ]Unless it’s a crablouse.
HAMM: [ Very perturbed. ]But
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