"Krapp's Last Tape" Response

Throughout reading Krapp’s Last Tape I found myself recognizing many similarities between Krapp and Willy from Death of a Salesman:

·         Firstly, the description of Krapp in terms physical appearance immediately reminded me of Willy Loman. The line in Krapp’s Last Tape that explains Krapp’s attire as a “grimy white shirt open at neck, no collar” especially reminded me of Willy’s attire during the garden scene of Death of a Salesman (Beckett, p.333).

·         Also, the fact that both Krapp and Willy are both old men adds to the struggles each character deals with.  Just as Willy spent much of Death of a Salesman reflecting on his younger days of success, Krapp spends most of Krapp’s Last Tape listening to himself from years back and pondering on past occurrences such as his mother’s death and his young lover.

·         Furthermore, I noticed that both Krapp and Willy share the similarity of becoming somewhat senile as they approach the end of their lives. Willy’s nighttime garden scene in Death of a Salesman where he is seen mumbling to himself represents ongoing depression as well as inability to let go of the past. Similarly, I interpreted Krapp’s actions including the constant unlocking and locking of drawers, his fascination with bananas, as well as the random pauses and unstructured speech pattern as a sign of an old man losing his grip with reality.

·         Finally, the end of each play ends similarly for both Krapp and Willy in the sense that they are both left as ultimately defeated and depressed old men. Although Willy ended up killing himself, Krapp’s Last Tape ends with the dialogue “Perhaps my best years are gone. When there was a chance of happiness” (Beckett, p.337).



Willy Loman
Image source:
 http://www.alexanderbarnett.com/salesman.html



Krapp
Image source: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/theatre/8020032/Krapps-Last-Tape-Duchess-Theatre-review.html