New Perspectives

 

If there is anything I have learned – or maybe just something I have already known but it is strongly reinforced – from Waiting for Godot, it is that there are many perspectives to life: the helplessness portrayed by Vladimir and Estragon, the constancy in the world by Pozzo, and just the lack of casual motion by the play’s author, Samuel Beckett. Actually, I can even relate this to something I have been recently re-watching: Mr. Bean.

The comedic show is about a character, Mr. Bean, who always gets himself into some sort of mess. With the few lines actually spoken, most of the show relies on Rowan Atkinson’s (the actor) awkward and unusual movements and facial expressions, which he does a fantastic job at. And it is this weirdness which makes the show so encapsulating. Rather than doing things the normal way, he always uses his quirkiness to come up with a brilliant, yet sort of stupid, solution. Whether it be exploding fireworks in a paint can to paint his room, removing the stuffing from a stuffed teddy bear and then using that for a baby’s diaper, spraying washer fluid for the windshield to rinse his mouth after brushing while driving a car, or simply removing the steering wheel from his car when he’s out so nobody can steal his car, Mr. Bean continuously views life, and how to go about it, very differently from the ordinary person. And you never know, maybe Bean is actually on to something…

My point is that whether I am enjoyably watching Mr. Bean, or frustratingly getting through Waiting for Godot, there is always something to admire about a change in perspective.