Adeline Virginia Stephen (Virginia Woolf)

 1882- 1941; born into an artistic family London, England; father: Leslie Stephen, a well-known editor
and biographer; mother, Julia Jackson Stephen good-natured woman, known for her beauty and
modeling for pre-Raphaelite painters; began writing at an early age, spearheading a family newspaper,
the Hyde Park Gate News, with her older sister Vanessa, a painter & her younger brother, Adrian
 Every summer the family vacationed on the Cornwall coast; 1895: mother died; Shortly after Julia
Stephen's death, suffered her first nervous breakdown; stopped writing; her half-sister, Stella
Duckworth (1897); her father died (1904); suffered another nervous breakdown.
 Moved to the Bloomsbury section of London; wrote three novels; called the St. Ives trilogy, inspired by
her childhood summers in Cornwall: Jacob's Room (1922), To the Lighthouse (1927), and The
Waves (1931);
 Haunted by her mother's absence, wanted to write about her mother's life and death within the context of
family summer; The idea for To the Lighthouse came while she was strolling in Tavistock Square in
Bloomsbury; drafted the book in an "involuntary rush." After completing it Woolf declared she was no
longer obsessed by her mother.
 1905: Woolf and her family returned to Cornwall after an absence of 11 years, inspiring the third section
of To the Lighthouse;
 Between 1907 and 1930 the Bells and the Stephens hosted meetings of young artists and intellectuals;
Inspired by the works of G.E. Moore, A.N. Whitehead, and Bertrand Russell, the Bloomsbury group,
discussed subjects related to art, literature, and philosophy; were interested in the meanings of goodness,
truth, and beauty, and questioned conventional thinking; These meetings of the minds inspired Woolf to
write both critically and creatively; Political theorist and writer Leonard Woolf, writer and critic Lytton
Strachey, and novelist E.M. Forster were among their guests; Writers T.S. Eliot and Aldous Huxley also
were associated with the group.
 In 1911: married Leonard Woolf ; Plagued by loss and lack of confidence in her work, Virginia Woolf
suffered bouts of depression throughout her life and attempted suicide multiple times; While working
on Between the Acts, her final novel, despondent and unable to write, Virginia Woolf filled her pockets
with stones and drowned herself in the River Ouse on March 28, 1941.

To the Lighthouse
 Published: 1927; Novel of Consciousness; Semi-autobiography: shares many similarities with
Woolf’s own biography (family rented a summerhouse on the Hebrides in view of a lighthouse; Woolf’s
father could be stifling; mother and sister died when she was young) but Woolf insisted that the novel
should not be read as a straightforward autobiography; third-person omniscient narrator, with shifting
points of view;
 Sigmund Freud: psychoanalysis (the treatment of mental illness through dialogue); the idea of the
Oedipus complex; not identifying with the same-sex parent may cause infantile neurosis; can be
brought on by a parent's death or an unloving environment, may cause similar reactions to the
same-sex parent in adulthood; At the novel's beginning, the Ramsays' son James feels murderous
toward his father for demanding his mother's attention and for thwarting a trip to the lighthouse;
Mrs. Ramsay's death and its unresolved issues inflict trauma on her family and friends; James's
development is complicated; His love for his mother is frozen in time, and his conflict with his father
continues; When his father finally compliments James's sailing as they reach the previously inaccessible
lighthouse, his sister Cam thinks he has finally received what he has desired—his father's approval—
suggesting resolution, growth, and development.
 Summary: divided into three parts; further broken down into numbered chapters; Virginia
Woolf described the division as an H shape, the longer first and third "vertical" sections taking place
 during single days; the shorter "horizontal" connecting second part taking place over 10 years. These
divisions illustrate the extension and contraction of time.
 The Window: The story begins in early 1900s Scotland, just before World War I, as the Ramsays and
company travel to their vacation home in the Hebrides. "The Window" covers about seven hours
during an afternoon and evening but spans nearly half the novel. Mrs. Ramsay tells her six-year-old
son, James, he can go to the lighthouse if the weather permits. Her husband, a metaphysician who
made a significant contribution to the field early in his career, and his brash "admirer" Charles Tansley
extinguish James's hopes by saying the weather will make it impossible. Later in the afternoon the
Ramsays argue over the weather.
Family friend Lily Briscoe is attempting to paint a portrait of Mrs. Ramsay and James. William Bankes,
another friend, living in the village, has agreed to stay for dinner. Mrs. Ramsay dedicates much of the
day to protecting James's "fleeting" innocence and arranging a dinner party. Mr. Ramsay behaves
boorishly, demanding female praise and reassurance. Throughout the day Mrs. Ramsay worries over
the whereabouts of her daughter Nancy (who she thinks may be out walking with Minta Doyle, Paul
Rayley, and Andrew Ramsay) and thinks about matchmaking and domestic issues like the greenhouse
repair bill. Intermittently posing for Lily Briscoe's painting, Mrs. Ramsay devotes most of her time to
ensuring the comfort of others, particularly her husband, within the house and in the community (the
lighthouse keeper's ill son and poor Elsie in town).
The day culminates in the bœuf en daube supper for a group of 15 that includes newly engaged Minta
Doyle and Paul Rayley. Mrs. Ramsay dedicates great effort to create a peaceful meal and thinks the
event memorable, with Mr. Ramsay, despite his earlier ill temper, reciting a poem for her. This first part
of the novel ends with Mr. and Mrs. Ramsay reading and talking quietly. She tells him he was right
about the weather, her way of affirming her love.
 Time Passes: The second part, "Time Passes," covers about 10 years in the span of a mere 10 to 20
pages or so. Willim Bankes, Lily Briscoe, Augustus Carmichael, and Andrew and Prue Ramsay arrive
somberly at the summer house, as war begins across Europe. During one night Mrs. Ramsay dies
unexpectedly. Prue Ramsay marries and dies from childbirth complications. At war, Andrew
Ramsay is killed instantly by a shell.
The house sits abandoned. Mrs. McNab cleans and tends to the house but during World War I closes it.
After a decade the Ramsays write Mrs. McNab asking her to ready the house. She, along with Mrs. Bast,
her son, and contractors, restore the summer home in time for the guests' arrival.
 The Lighthouse: "The Lighthouse" covers only a few hours in one morning, focusing on the home's
current state after a tumultuous decade. Lily Briscoe is unable to process all that has happened. Mr.
Ramsay has planned a trip to the lighthouse and is angry his children have made them late for the
trip. Lily recalls the painting of Mrs. Ramsay and James and decides to paint the scene again. When she
sets up her easel outside, Mr. Ramsay interrupts her, seeking sympathy. Unable to comfort him, she
remains silent until she notices his shoes. James and Cam Ramsay arrive, and the family leaves, while
Lily feels remorse.
In the boat James and Cam are forced to confront their anger with Mr. Ramsay. On the lawn Lily is
forced to confront her repressed emotions over the loss of her friend. After intense introspection, and
Cam's change of heart, Cam and James reach the lighthouse together with their father; Lily finishes her
painting
 Symbols: Lighthouse; Painting; Tree
 Themes: Love and loss; Internal Life; Reality VS Ideal