The author often questions the place of women in society. In his day, the Suffragettes fought for the right to vote. In 1929, Woolf published the essay A room of your own (or A place of your own according to the translation of Marie Darrieussecq in 2016) which is surely her most feminist work. Taken from a series of lectures given in universities, the book starts from an observation: the voices of women writers have been silenced in history. Woolf wants to create a literary legacy that includes as many women known as Jane Austen as the invisible ones that the patriarchy has silenced. Long relegated to the status of an object in literature, women must regain their authority. But how ? Thanks to an economic independence which will bring an intellectual independence. A phrase from this essay is often repeated and sums up his thoughts well: “A woman must have money and a place of her own if she is to write fiction. »
This feminist thought, Virginia Woolf continues it in Three Guineas, another essay released at the dawn of World War II (1938). In the latter, the Briton responds to a letter from a man who asks a simple question: how to stop the war? Woolf takes advantage of this correspondence to develop a formidable critique of patriarchal society. She writes : “Behind us lies the patriarchal system with its nullity, its amorality, its hypocrisy, its servility. Before us extend public life, the professional system, with their passivity, their jealousy, their aggressiveness, their greed. “
These two essays are the author’s most feminist and are still considered references. Free in her writing, Virginia Woolf was also free in her private life. In 1922, she met Vita Sackville-West with which she develops a romantic relationship. She considers that sexuality and gender are fluid and that no one has to tell her how to live her life. Even though feminism has evolved, 80 years after her death, Virginia Woolf’s way of thinking is still relevant today.
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