Engl 209: Contemporary British and American Literature
Initial Reading Questions for Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Look at the list of players at the beginning. Think about what kind of people George and Martha are and what kind of people Nick and Honey are. What associations do their names evoke?
How does George and Martha's entrance into the house establish an initial sense of their characters?
What is the point of Martha's "name that movie" game? What is she implicitly telling
George and how does she want him to react?
What do George's comments about Martha reveal about his vision/opinion of her?
What do Martha's comments about George show about how she sees him?
What is Martha's attitude about her father? How does this reflect on George?
What kind of a response do George and Nick have towards one another?
What is the symbolic significance of the fact that George is in History and Nick is in Biology?
Notice all references to "the kid" or their son. What does George's attitude towards him seem to be? Later, what do you think about the argument over the color of his eyes?
What is Martha's attitude towards Nick?
What is the significance of the stories about boxing and the game with the pop-gun?
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