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The Game Of Life : Who 's Afraid Of Virginia Woolf?

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The Game of Life in Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? Edward Franklin Albee, is an American playwright known for his works such as The Zoo Story, The Sandbox and Who 's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? He had an unpleasant childhood as he had a challenging relationship with his adoptive parents; especially his mother who was distant and unloving. Among Albee’s one-act plays, The Zoo Story, The Sandbox and The American Dream were the most successful, but his first full-length play, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? remains his most important work. In Who’s afraid of Virginia Woolf? a professor, his wife, and a young couple spend a night of unrestrained drinking in which many malicious games are played and truths about their life and relationships …show more content…

For him, games are a part of the artistic process from creation to interpretation. It may be repeated infinitely and is a strategy, a process, and a goal. Among Albee’s central messages in the play, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? is the idea that life is ultimately a game to be played; this is demonstrated by the false pregnancy motif, the paradigms of George and Nick, and the symbolism of George and Martha’s illusory son. From the day of birth till death, life can be considered a game. When playing a game such as golf or chess, an individual feels superior and satisfaction when they win. In the play, the characters hide behind illusions instead of facing the truth because that makes them feel satisfying and acceptable. Honey plays a deceitful game with Nick; Honey experiences physical symptoms which make her seem as though she might be pregnant, but in reality these symptoms are fake. The only reason Nick decides to marry Honey is due to her pregnancy before their marriage. This is shown when George shares the story of a young couple in the game called “Get the Guests”: “How They Got Married. Well, how they got married is this… The Mouse got all puffed up one day, and she went over to the Blondie’s house, and she stuck out her puff, and she said…look at me” (Albee 162). The character George refers to Honey as a mouse due to her small skinny build and her sneaky

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