Scarica Virginia Woolf (vita e opere) e più Appunti in PDF di Inglese solo su Docsity! VIRGINIA WOOLF LIFE She was born in London in 1882, Virginia Woolf grew up in a distinguished and highly intellectual environment. - She and her sister, Vanessa, were educated at home but came into contact with many young intellectuals through their two brothers, who had attended Cambridge University. - This group of intellectuals became known as the Bloomsbury group - They were no ordinary group of friends, however, as when they met, they discussed aesthetics and philosophical questions. Their meetings were comparable to an artistic experimentation. - It was here that they took the name ‘the Bloomsbury group’ as they usually met at Virginia Woolf’s house or at the house of Clive and Vanessa Bell (Virginia’s sister) in the area in London known as Bloomsbury - They were disliked by many people who saw them as elitists and exclusionary and their openness to homosexuality and bisexuality also led to accusations of immorality. Virginia herself was dedicated to the feminist movement, campaigning for votes for women, writing about the women’s cause and giving lectures. Virginia Woolf had su ered from periods of depression for most of her life, beginning with her mother’s death. - Twice in her life she had been forced to spend some time in private rest homes for her depression and attempts at suicide. In 1941, perhaps as a result of a more severe breakdown, Virginia Woolf committed suicide by drowning. Virginia Woolf also wrote literary criticism and essays JACOB’S ROOM It centres on the character of Jacob Flanders, a lonely young man unable to combine his love of Classical culture and the chaotic reality of contemporary society, notably the turbulence of World War I. Jacob does not have a chance to get rid of his lovesickness, for soon enough the war breaks out and Jacob joins the army. - The man is killed during one of the numerous battles. The book is an elegy for Woolf’s brother Thoby, and all the young men killed in World War I. Jacob cannot cope with the idea of war which is destroying all his conventions and education in his society. - War has been introduced to the very ending of the novel and it is the culmination of all Jacob’s struggles MRS DALLOWAY All the events in this short novel take place in one single day in June 1923. It is the narrative of a particular day in the life of Mrs Clarissa Dalloway, which begins with the purchase of flowers for the party planned for the evening. - Waiting for the party amplifies Clarissa's emotions, brings back memories of her youth and makes her relive a forgotten past that seems to come alive again on that day. As she enters the flower shop, Clarissa sees Septimus Smith, a World War I veteran, and his wife - Septimus is mentally ill (shell shock victim, post-traumatic stress disorder) as a result of the war and is forced by his wife to have sessions with the psychiatrist William Bradshaw. - After yet another session Septimus is locked up in a clinic, but the same evening he throws himself out of the window in front of his wife. Clarissa returns home and begins preparations for the party, receiving an unexpected visit from Peter Walsh, her suitor, whom she had rejected for the wealthy Richard Dalloway. A few hours later the party begins. - The family of psychologist William Bradshaw arrives late, bringing Clarissa the news of Septimus' suicide. - Although Clarissa did not know him, she feels a strong empathy for the suicide, seeing in his decision to take his own life a certain dignity and courage. NARRATIVE TECNICHE Woolf’s writing does not centre around a complex plot but captures on the page flashes of reality. - Perceptions, thoughts, memories and feelings of the main characters are expressed in her own original use of the stream of consciousness. There is also an omniscient narrator who acts as a link between the characters to guide the reader. No judgement is given and the reader is left to make up his/her own mind about characters and events.
