Virginia Woolf was an acclaimed modernist novelist of the 20th century. Her novels—Mrs. Dalloway in particular—depict family society life in all of its banality and darkness. When the characters of Albee’s play sing “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf,” they appear to be expressing a fear of confronting their realities. The song additionally suggests that even respected professors like George and Nick might secretly be afraid of the difficulty of some of their academic subjects—such as the notoriously difficult work of Virginia Woolf—but are too ashamed to admit their fear except in a childish song.