Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?

"Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" Is a play written by American playwright Edward Albee.



Author Biographical Information
Edward Albee is an American playwright he is best known for The Zoo Story, The Sandbox, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, and a rewrite of the book for the unsuccessful musical version of Truman Capote's Breakfast at Tiffany's.

Setting: Historical Information
No Historical Information on Setting

Genre
Play-Fiction

Plot Summary
Married Couple Martha and George have company over at around 2:00 am, it’s just for a couple of drinks but a couple of drinks lead to too many drinks, and so many secrets lead to pain and trouble for the married couple and their guests, Nick and Honey.

Characters

 * George - He's Martha's Husband, he's been violent ever since he murdered his parents, he also has a very short temper.
 * Martha - George's Wife, she loves to torment George by bringing painful memories from his past, she ends up cheating on him with their guest Nick.
 * Nick - Husband to Honey and is a biologist college professor. He and George start off joking, then they both start to grow very hostile to one another.
 * Honey - Nick’s Wife, she ends up getting drunk in half of the book, and passes out in the house on the floor in the bathroom.

Author's Style
The Author’s style shows a lot of hostility between his Characters, especially with George and Martha.

An example that demonstrates the style: pg: 83

Martha: “You wouldn’t dare say a thing like that if he was here! You’re a coward!”

George: “You know… that great shock of white hair, and those little beady red eyes… a great big white mouse.”

Setting
The House of George and Martha

Themes

 * Theme One - Violence just creates pain and suffering.
 * Theme Two - Too many drinks can lead to disaster.

Symbols

 * Wine- Pain


 * Roses- Forgiveness


 * Beer- Sin

Significance of the Opening/Closing Scenes
Opening Scene: Martha and George come in their house to get it ready for their company.

Closing Scene:

George has just murdered his own son, because his wife was treating him so badly and that she was cheating on him behind his back. He warned her that there would be consequences for doing things he warned her not to do.

Memorable Quotes
“Who’s afraid of Virginia Woolf, Virginia Woolf?”