Political and social change during Woolf's lifetime led her to address the role of the state and the individual. Michael H. Whitworth shows how ideas and images from contemporary novelists, philosophers, theorists, and scientists fuelled her writing, and how critics, film-makers, and novelists have reinterpreted her work for later generations. - ;During Virginia Woolf's lifetime Britain's position in the world changed, and so did the outlook of its people. The Boer War and the First World War forced politicians and citizens alike to ask how far the power of the state extended into the lives of individuals; the rise of fascism provided one menacing answer. Woolf's experiments in fiction, and her unique position in the publishing world, allowed her to address such intersections of the public and the private. Michael H. Whitworth shows how ideas and images from contemporary novelists, philosophers, theorists, and scientists fuelled her writing, and how critics, film-makers, and novelists have reinterpreted her work for later generations. The book includes a chronology of Virginia Woolf's life and times, suggestions for further reading, websites, illustrations, and a comprehensive index. - ;this fine study...produces a fresh portrait of Woolf and her multi-faceted contributions to English letters. The book's presentation of modern British literary and cultural history makes it a rich resource for Woolf scholars and an illuminating introduction for students - Woolf Studies Annual, Volume 12 d

This biography tells the story of Virginia Woolf's last ten years, from the creation of her great visionary novel, The Waves, to her suicide in 1941. Herbert Marder looks closely at Woolf's views on totalitarianism and her depictions of Britain under siege to create a remarkable portrait of a mature and renowned writer during a time of rising fascist violence. The Measure of Life suggests that Woolf anticipated her suicide, and indeed enacted it symbolically many times before the event. Marder's account of her death emphasizes the importance of her relationship with her doctor and distant cousin, Octavia Wilberforce. Wilberforce's letters about Woolf's last months, including some previously unpublished passages, appear in the appendix. Staying close to the spirit of Woolf's own writing, Marder traces her evolving social consciousness in the 1930s, connecting her growing concern with politics and social history with the facts of her daily life. He stresses her endurance as a working writer, and explores her friendships, her complex relations with servants, and her activities at the Hogarth Press.

Ò . . . essential reading for anyone intrigued by the narrative craft and social impact of the novels of Toni Morrison, Alice Walker, and Gayl Jones.Ó ÑClaudia Tate Drawing upon Black feminist theory, Madhu Dubey analyzes the marginalization of the Black woman in Black nationalist discourse. The Black Aesthetic movement, celebrated as the Òsecond renaissanceÓ of African American cultural history, radically redefined ÒBlacknessÓ and catalyzed an explosion in Black literature. But this discourse centered on the Black man, leaving the Black woman liberated racially, yet still confined by traditional gender definitions. In response, writers such as Toni Morrison, Gayl Jones, and Alice Walker challenged traditional models of Black female identity and generated their own visions of identity, community, and historical change.