Reaction to The Caretaker

This play containing three characters with an exceedingly simple plot ling and basically no comedic value whatsoever was an extremely boring read. Certain aspects of the dialogue were tortuously tediously such as the conversation about Davies’ shoes and his nagging in general. Another tedious aspect of this play was the stage direction which explained the position of every object in a cluttered room in relation to another aspect. This being said however it must be noted that all these elements which make the play so un-enjoyable are also what inform on the major theme. The recurring dialogue of Davies inspecting a handout such as the shoes and the bag and then rejecting it is intended to parallel England after WWII and the way it dealt with other countries. Even the unreadable stage directions indicate important symbols such as the statue of Buddha and the toaster. Aston’s continuous fiddling with the toaster could emphasize the repetitive nature of life and is an example of how the seemingly boring and useless repetition does in fact serve a purpose in this play. I can understand why such a play due to its underlying theme and hidden meaning would be a hit with literary critics but I cannot imagine why it would be a popular commercial success due to its obtuseness and un-amusing nature. This play contrasts with the other absurdist plays which contain funnier comedic moments with the scene with the bag being passed around failing to arouse my interest.