This becomes clear when they don't even prevent they're own deaths. Instead of attempting to change their fate, they simply go with the flow. They go on to England and try and follow their original plan; which ultimately leads to their deaths. Both sets of characters want or wanted to feel an importance in life. Early in Waiting for Godot, Vladimir points out to Estragon that they should have been the first to jump off the Eiffel Tower. This shows how meaningless they find life to be in that they would have actually found meaning in killing themselves. Its as if they would've felt a sense of accomplishment if they'd have jumped off of the Eiffel Tower because they would have been the first to do it. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern also want to feel important. After finding out that they were intended to be put to death in England, Rosencrantz says, "Who'd of thought that we were so important?" Throughout the whole play they were trying to feel useful by helping the King and following his demands, but in the end they feel important because their deaths were being plotted the whole time. In the end they're not worried about their deaths, just like Estragon and Vladimir don't worry about their's, they just want to find meaning to it. They figure that if the King wants them dead that they must be very important; that their lives actually had some worth. Stoppard and Beckett both make great use of game playing in these two plays. Vladimir and Estragon make use of game playing to pass the time as they wait for Godot. Playing games keeps them busy and occupied as they wait. Beckett uses game playing to symbolize Vladimir and Estragon's boredom of life and of their present situation. Game playing also shows the lack of depth of the characters. They have nothing better to do then to try and pass time in an unconstructive way. They essentially have nothing better to do with their lives but to sit and wait and play games. This g...
