Carol - difference between us seems to be that I too love subtext, as long as there is some. as it were, TOP-text?, 'surface'-text? - I am sure you get what I mean - for it to be 'sub' to. Trouble, to me, is that both WtWTA & Beckett (& I would add Virginia Woolf, whom I also mentioned above} are all SUB-text with no surface-text, which to me is essential.

I understand what you're trying to say, but obviously there is enough surface text for some people, so obviously it is a matter of individual perception. You seem to need more surface text than some other people in order to discern the subtext. For me, both Beckett and Sendak employ just the right amount of both surface text and subtext.