Waiting for Godot… begins with two men on a barren road by a leafless tree. These men, Vladimir and Estragon, are often characterized as “tramps,” and we soon see that the world of this play is operating with its own set of rules—where nothing happens, nothing is certain, and there’s never anything to do.

Sound boring?

Vladimir and Estragon—who are also called Didi and Gogo respectively—are waiting for Godot, a man (or perhaps a deity). The tramps can’t be sure if they’ve met Godot, if they’re waiting in the right place, if this is the right day, or even whether Godot is going to show up at all. While they wait, Vladimir and Estragon fill their time with a series of mundane activities (like taking a boot on and off) and trivial conversations (turnips, carrots) interspersed with more serious reflection (dead voices, suicide, the Bible).

The tramps are soon interrupted by the arrival of Lucky, a man/servant/pet with a rope tied around his neck, and Pozzo, his master, holding the other end of the long rope. The four men proceed to do together what Vladimir and Estragon did earlier by themselves: namely, nothing.

Lucky and Pozzo then leave so that Vladimir and Estragon can go back to doing nothing by themselves. Vladimir suggests that this is not the first time he’s met with Lucky and Pozzo, which is surprising, since they acted like strangers upon arrival. (Then again, Estragon can’t even remember a conversation ten lines after it happens, so we’re not going to depend on memory in this play.)