The title of The Virgin Suicides is figurative; the girls aren't necessarily virgins, but the term can refer to their youth and innocence. Call us morbid, but it reminds Shmoop of virgins being sacrificed to please the gods. The title comes up in the story with a made-up song called "Virgin Suicide" that Lux listens to. Some characters consider the song the reason for the girls' deaths, but the narrators know that it's not a good enough explanation. Eugenides himself thought the title was ambiguous. He said he was thinking about the Virgin Mary, and that the title referred more to suffering and religious imagery. He thought that if the events of the book had really happened, "The Virgin Suicides" would have probably been the tabloid headline (source).