31 according to him, is the way how the message is delivered. It seems like he relies
the problem to the orator. Therefore, he is irresponsible.
3. Absurd
The old man is a man who feels the absurdity. The absurd is not a man nor in the world, but in their presence together. In brief, absurd is living in the world
with no purpose; a man is lost. It is shown in this play through the conversation between the old man and the old woman.
OLD MAN : Come my darling, close the window. Theres a
bad smell from that stagnant water, and besides the mosquitoes are coming in.
OLD WOMAN : How can you, my darling? ... It makes me dizzy.
Ah This house, this island, I cant get used to it. Water all around us ...water under the windows,
stretching as far as the horizon. Act 1:2
He lives in the island which is surrounded by the water. It shows that the old man is living alone in his world. Although, he lives with his wife, but the house is the
only one which is built. There is no other home so that it is difficult to reach by others. Moreover, the guests have to come with boats to reach the island. Hence, it
can be called an isolated island. The isolated island where the old man is living shows that he is lost. It
symbolizes he is trapped in some places, his house. Hence, there is a distance between him and the world. In this context, the old man is far away from the
others who live in the other place. Furthermore, the absurd can be seen when the human being realizes about
his condition. Then, when the human being realizes the mechanically routine of
32 life, it means that he has experienced the absurdity. It is shown by the old man.
The old man realizes that he always does the same thing a day after day. It can be seen when he protests if it is boring to tell the same story every night.
OLD WOMAN : Tell me the story, you know the story: Then at
last we arrived... OLD MAN
: Again? ...Im sick of it ...Then at last we arrived? That again...you always ask for the same thing …
Then at last we arrived...” But it’s monotonous. .. For all of the seventy-five years that weve been
married, every single evening, absolutely every blessed evening, youve made me tell the same
story, youve made me imitate the same people, the same months. ..always the same ...lets talk about
something else. Act 3:3
The old man knows so well about his life. He realizes the change of the shadow of the sunlight. He thinks that the shadow can be seen at 6 p.m. However,
now there is no shadow. He adds that long ago, at 9 p.m., there was a shadow. OLD MAN
: The conversation between the old man and the old woman shows that they know their routine of life.
OLD WOMAN : You cant see them, theres no sunlight, its
nighttime, my darling. OLD MAN
: There are still shadows. Act 1:2 OLD MAN
: Its six oclock in the evening...it is dark already. It wasnt like this before. Surely you remember, there
was still daylight at nine oclock in the evening, at ten oclock, at midnight. Act 2:2
Furthermore, there is an object in absurdity, in daily life. The awareness of the object brings human being to the unexplainable situation between the human
being and the world. It can be seen when he has a routine of life. He realizes that he has something to tell about. The message is something to tell about.
33 OLD MAN
: I have a message, thats Gods truth, I struggle, a mission, I have something to say, a message to
communicate to humanity, to mankind.
OLD WOMAN : To mankind, my darling, your message
OLD MAN : Thats true, yes, its true. Act 5:5
Moreover, the old man definitely feels confused about the message so that he hires the orator to tell the message.
OLD MAN : Its not I whos going to speak, Ive hired a
professional orator, hell speak in my name, youll see. Act 7:6
Likely in absurd, the message is the object. The old man tells that the message is about his experiences and it is very important for all human being. The
old man does not tell what the message is in whole conversation. He always says that the orator will come soon. He thinks that he cannot say it. However, the
message tells about the old man’s experiences, it means that the message is unexplainable. Experience is the situation between the human being and the
world. It becomes the basic of the old man’s message. The last evidence is that the old man commits suicide in the end of the
story. As Camus says that absurd leaves choices for all human beings to encounter the absurd; and the old man chooses to commit suicide. In Act 24, after the
emperor comes, the old man and the old woman shout each other, they say goodbye each other while getting near to the window. Then, they throw
themselves out the window to the water. It means that the old man dies. Committing suicide which the old man does makes him absurd. Thus, he declares
that life is not worth living.
34
B. The Meaning of the Chairs
