Who's Afraid Of Virginia Woolf Essay

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In Edward Albee’s tragic play, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, each of his characters show different struggles between each other and the basic rules of society as a whole. George, Martha, Nick, and Honey, the four main characters of the play, all have backgrounds that contradict with each other in more ways than one. Each of them violate the laws of society, yet two of these characters make you feel sympathy for them. George and Martha, the elder of the two couples, go through a deeper struggle than Nick and Honey are able to comprehend. Throughout the story, the struggle is mostly anonymous to the reader as well as Nick and Honey, and is not revealed until the end of the play. This hidden secret turns out to be the largest violence of George …show more content…

Honey is our comedic character in the play, since she is mostly drunk throughout the play. She has no idea that her husband tries to cheat on her, making her a very oblivious character as well. Since she is so drunk, she says silly lines that do not exactly make sense with the ongoing conflicts around her. Honey seems to be there as another filler, except this time she is there for the comedy. Yet, she has a symbol of importance. Honey portrays the blind obliviousness of the people of America, thinking that the American Dream truly is important. In truth, the American Dream, which George and Martha symbolize, has a darker background than America really thinks. Honey seems to be the dark comedy in Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, showing that there are bad things in the world, although we never look for them. This play is a rollercoaster of emotions, throwing the reader from left to right on who to believe, or what to believe. Edward Albee is certainly an amazing character designer, giving each of his characters a life behind the one they live now. All four characters symbolize different things in society, especially the violation of the basic rules of societal living. Whether you feel sympathy for empathy for these characters, one thing is clear. Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? is a classic unlike any other, and an amazing play worth reading and

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