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Martha is the daughter of the president of the college where George and Nick are professors. She is middle-aged, large and boisterous, and is married to George in an intense and acrimonious relationship. She admits to a history of infidelity and flirts with Nick throughout the play, ultimately seducing him into kissing her, and perhaps more. Her constant nagging of George about his lack of ambition suggests that she may be insecure about her own professional situation.
Martha Quotes in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf
The Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf quotes below are all either spoken by Martha or refer to Martha. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Act 1
Quotes
Ha, ha, ha, HA! Make the kids a drink, George. What do you want, kids? What do you want to drink, hunh?
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He was going to be groomed. He’d take over someday…until [Daddy] watched for a couple of years and started thinking maybe it wasn’t such a good idea after all…that maybe Georgie boy didn’t have the stuff…that he didn’t have it in him!
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Act 2
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Our son ran away from home all the time because Martha here used to corner him.
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You told them! OOOOHHHH! OH, no, no, no, no! You couldn’t have told them…
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I’m loud, and I’m vulgar, and I wear the pants in this house because somebody’s got to, but I am not a monster. I am not.
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Act 3
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I cry all the time too, Daddy. I cry allllll the time; but deep inside, so no one can see me. I cry all the time. And George cries all the time, too.
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George who is out somewhere there in the dark…George who is good to me, and whom I revile; who understands me, and whom I push off.
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I’M RUNNING THE SHOW! (To MARTHA) Sweetheart, I’m afraid I’ve got some bad news for you…for us, of course. Some rather sad news.
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I FORGET! Sometimes…sometimes when it’s night, when it’s late, and…and everybody else is…talking…I forget and I…want to mention him…but I…HOLD ON…I hold on…but I’ve wanted to…so often…oh, George, you’ve pushed it…there was no need….there was not need for this. I mentioned him…all right…but you didn’t have to push it over the EDGE. You didn’t have to…kill him.
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Martha Quotes in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf
The Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf quotes below are all either spoken by Martha or refer to Martha. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Act 1
Quotes
Ha, ha, ha, HA! Make the kids a drink, George. What do you want, kids? What do you want to drink, hunh?
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Explanation and Analysis:
He was going to be groomed. He’d take over someday…until [Daddy] watched for a couple of years and started thinking maybe it wasn’t such a good idea after all…that maybe Georgie boy didn’t have the stuff…that he didn’t have it in him!
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Act 2
Quotes
Our son ran away from home all the time because Martha here used to corner him.
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You told them! OOOOHHHH! OH, no, no, no, no! You couldn’t have told them…
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I’m loud, and I’m vulgar, and I wear the pants in this house because somebody’s got to, but I am not a monster. I am not.
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Act 3
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I cry all the time too, Daddy. I cry allllll the time; but deep inside, so no one can see me. I cry all the time. And George cries all the time, too.
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George who is out somewhere there in the dark…George who is good to me, and whom I revile; who understands me, and whom I push off.
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I’M RUNNING THE SHOW! (To MARTHA) Sweetheart, I’m afraid I’ve got some bad news for you…for us, of course. Some rather sad news.
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I FORGET! Sometimes…sometimes when it’s night, when it’s late, and…and everybody else is…talking…I forget and I…want to mention him…but I…HOLD ON…I hold on…but I’ve wanted to…so often…oh, George, you’ve pushed it…there was no need….there was not need for this. I mentioned him…all right…but you didn’t have to push it over the EDGE. You didn’t have to…kill him.
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