Procreation is the basic essence of human life. It is for this reason that all human go through all the traverties of life,
in hope that when they are no longer in the world, somebody will be there to carry on their legacy forward. But, what happens to a
couple who does not have a child ? With what hope should the couple, when the very essence of their being is refused to them. It is this theme which the play “ Who’s afraid of Virginnia Woolfe” by the American writer Edward Albee deals with.
The play revolves around a childless couple Martha and Nick who are of diametrically opposite nature. Martha is aggressive, dominant and of bullying nature while Nick is timid and passive. They are a middle aged couple who do not have any child . This creates an emptiness in their life, which they try to fill in by playing mind games. They create a dream situation around themselves where they keep arguing about their non-existent son. Their prime target in this drama are their neighbours whom they try to fool by creating make-believe situations about their son. The crux of the play comes when Nick puts an end to all this by announcing the death of their son.
The play is deeply psychological in nature. The title of the play is symbolic. It says who’s afraid of Virginnia Woolfe? Virginnia Woolfe was a writer whose writings were based on the Stream of
consciousness theme. It is as if the characters were trying to say that they are not scared not scared of the new stream of consciousness wave that had swept the society at that time.
In all, Who’s afraid of Virginnia Woolfe is a compelling piece of literature.