Waiting for Godot

In Samuel Beckett's Waiting for Godot, what does the character of 'the boy' stand for?

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The is the messenger, he arrives near the end of each act to inform Vladimir and Estragon that Mr. Godot will not arrive is simply called "boy." Timid and fearful, he addresses Vladimir as Mr. Albert and admits in the first act that Pozzo and his whip had frightened him and kept him from entering sooner. He claims that he tends goats for Mr. Godot and that Godot is good to him, though he admits that Godot beats the boy's brother. On each visit the boy claims to have not seen Vladimir and Estragon before. In the second act the boy reports that he thinks Godot has a white beard. Other than representing the "message", the boy might be seen as an example of youth and innocence.

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Waiting for Godot