Endgame

When Hamm asks for his gaff (a metal hook), Clov is left wondering why he allows Hamm to boss him around. He fetches the gaff anyway and watches as Hamm tries (and fails) to use it to wheel his chair around the room. The men bicker about fetching oil for the squeaky wheels of the chair. Hamm remembers an artist friend who believed that the world was ending and that “he alone had been spared” (28). Hamm cannot remember when this was, only that it happened many years ago. Hamm suggests, once again, that Clov should leave, then wonders how he will know if Clov has left. Clov responds that he will know when he blows his whistle and no one comes. Hamm responds: that might simply mean that Clov has collapsed and died in the kitchen. Clov, under orders from Hamm, comes up with a solution. He sets an alarm clock. If the alarm clock does not ring, he explains, then that will mean that he has died. As he fiddles with the clock, Hamm announces that the time has come for his story. Hamm tells Clov to wake