The Unending Waiting of Homo Sapiens: A Comparative Study of Anand's Untouchable and Beckett's Waiting for Godot

Indian novelist Mulk Raj Anand's Bakha and Irish Nobel laureate dramatist Samuel Beckett's Estragon and Vladimir have encompassed the whole world where Bakha is from the East and Estragon and Vladimir are from the West bearing uniformity in their voices. They are standing in the labyrinth of waiting as if waiting is the essence of human existence. Through the characterization of these three characters, Anand and Beckett have depicted the existential and identity crises of humankind on earth. They represent those people who are entangled with their surroundings and circumstances being completely unaware of their forthcoming future. Although the three protagonists have been shaped from two different worlds, there is a symphony of voices. The protagonists of both texts bear resemblance to some incidents of the contemporary world which are socially, culturally and politically significant to the world intelligentsia. This is a qualitative study and the objective is to critically analyze the unending waiting of homo sapiens (the scientific name of human beings) in relation to their existential crisis and their optimism for a better future in light of the masterpieces Untouchable and Waiting for Godot. The psychological trauma and never-ending waiting of the three protagonists Bakha, Estragon, and Vladimir can be observed through the lens of the materialistic class distinction, attempt of mimicry, oppression of the high caste, identity crisis of the inferior class and their living under the fear of continual domination and exploitation. To elucidate these socio-psychological dynamics, psycho-analysis and post-colonial theories and writings have been considered.