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Good writers define reality; bad ones merely restate it.

Edward Albee

Who’s afraid of Virginia Woolf means who’s afraid of the big bad wolf, who’s afraid of living life without false illusions.
EDWARD ALBEE

Afraid Fake Illusion Life Live
Martha: Truth or illusion, George; you don’t know the difference. George: No, but we must carry on as though we did. Martha: Amen.
EDWARD ALBEE

Carry Difference Illusion Truth Yourself
I am sick of the disparity between things as they are and as they should be. I’m tired.I’m tired of the truth and I’m tired of lying about the truth.
EDWARD ALBEE

Lying Myself Sick Tired Truth
It is a lazy public which promotes a slothful and irresponsible theater.
EDWARD ALBEE

Promote Public Responsibility Theatre
I find relatively little relationship between the work of art and the immediate critical response it gets.
EDWARD ALBEE

Art Criticism Finding Myself Relative Response Work
I am pleased and reassured by the fact that a lot of younger playwrights seem to pay me some attention and gain some nourishment from what I do.
EDWARD ALBEE

Attention Fact Myself Nourishment Pay Play Please Reassurance Young
All serious art is being destroyed by commerce. Most people don’t want art to be disturbing. They want it to be escapist. I don’t think art should be escapist. That’s a waste of time.
EDWARD ALBEE

Art Commerce Destroy Disturbance Escape People Serious Wasted Time
There are only two things to write about: life and death.
EDWARD ALBEE

Death Life Poet Writing
Very few people who met my adoptive mother in the last 20 years of her life could abide her, while many people who have seen my play find her fascinating. Heavens, what have I done?!
EDWARD ALBEE

Adoption Fascinate Mom Myself People Play
I have been both overpraised and under praised. I assume by the time I finish writing — and I plan to go on writing until I’m 90 or gaga it will all equal itself out.
EDWARD ALBEE

Equality Myself Praise Time Writing
Musical beds is the faculty sport around here.
EDWARD ALBEE

Bed Music Sports
Anything you put in a play – any speech – has got to do one of two things: either define character or push the action of the play along.
EDWARD ALBEE

Action Definition Oneself Play
If you’re willing to fail interestingly, you tend to succeed interestingly.
EDWARD ALBEE

Failure Inspirational Success Willing Yourself
Your source material is the people you know, not those you don’t know, but every character is an extension of the author’s own personality.
EDWARD ALBEE

Author Character Extension Material People Personality Source Yourself
That’s the happiest moment. When it’s all done. When we stop. When we can stop.
EDWARD ALBEE

Happiness Moments Stop
American critics are like American universities. They both have dull and half-dead faculties.
EDWARD ALBEE

Criticism Death Facility
A lot interests me – but nothing surprises me particularly.
EDWARD ALBEE

Interest Myself Surprise
A writer is a controlled schizophrenic.
EDWARD ALBEE

Control Perspective Writing
There are always going to be more actors than anybody can ever use.
EDWARD ALBEE

Actor Population
I write to find out what I’m talking about.
EDWARD ALBEE

Finding Myself Talk Writing
I don’t feel that catharsis in a play necessarily takes place during the course of a play. Often it should take place afterward.
EDWARD ALBEE

Feeling Myself Necessary Place Play
I don’t like symbolism that hits you over the head. A symbol should not be a cymbal.
EDWARD ALBEE

Head Hit Symbol Yourself
If you have no wounds, how can you know if you’re alive?
EDWARD ALBEE

Alive Life Wound Yourself
Writing has got to be an act of discovery, I write to find out what I’m thinking about.
EDWARD ALBEE

Act Discover Myself Thinking Writing
I suppose, writing a play is finding out what the play is.
EDWARD ALBEE

Finding Play Writing
Martha: Oh, I like your anger. I think that’s what I like about you most. Your anger.
EDWARD ALBEE

Angry Myself Thinking Yourself
What I mean by an educated taste is someone who has the same tastes that I have.
EDWARD ALBEE

Education Myself Preference Taste

Good writers define reality; bad ones merely restate it.

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Good writers define reality; bad ones merely restate it.

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