Reviews tagging 'Forced institutionalization'

Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf

18 reviews

waytoomanybooks's review against another edition

challenging emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I’m glad I gave this book a second chance! While it is often difficult keeping track of whose head we’re in, I got used to the style/flow after a while. It helped me to note down in the margin who was thinking or speaking. It’s difficulty, I think, is part of its charm. It kept me on my toes, revealing just enough to keep me guessing, but in a good way. Most of the characters felt very distinct from each other, but some of the one-line characters didn’t stick out to me...but then again, they weren’t supposed to. There is so much contained within the 24 hours over which the book takes place that it would be impossible to become familiar with every single person in much the same way it would be for you or me in my day-to-day life.

Why I’m giving it a 3 out of 5 comes down to the fact that this worth a read if you have the time and brain power to dedicate to following along with it. And there are no chapter breaks. And there are a lot of trigger warnings to be wary of!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness, Colonisation, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Forced institutionalization, Medical trauma, War, Abandonment, Death, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Classism, Sexism, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, and Terminal illness

hjb_128's review against another edition

challenging reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Mental illness, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Moderate: Forced institutionalization

ez_heath's review against another edition

emotional reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Medical content, Mental illness, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Colonisation and Forced institutionalization

gillian_aftanas's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide attempt, Mental illness, Suicide, Colonisation, Classism, Death, Grief, and Suicidal thoughts

Moderate: Forced institutionalization

Minor: Racial slurs, Misogyny, Racism, and Sexism

joensign's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Suicide

Moderate: Forced institutionalization, Racism, Sexism, War, and Misogyny

_marco_'s review against another edition

lighthearted reflective relaxing medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I quite enjoyed this story!

Mrs. Dalloway follows a small cast of characters as they go about their summer day in 1923. Virginia Woolf’s meandering style of writing really captures the wandering monologues of her characters, painting them in a dreamy and feathery light, and creating a snapshot of English society after the First World War. Each of the characters were brilliantly contrived with their own diverse psychologies and convictions. However, Woolf’s brilliance lies in the moments where she moves from one stream of consciousness to another, executed as masterfully and seamlessly as one would weave fabric together to create an intricately detailed tapestry. 

Did it matter that she must inevitably cease completely; all this must go on without her; did she resent it; did it not become consoling to believe that death ended absolutely? But that somehow in the streets of London, on the ebb and flow of things, here, there, she survived…

I loved the way the themes and ideas that united each of the characters—the individuality of the mortal soul against the “proportion” of English society—were expressed: in small moments, a little thought here or there, a distraction; while occasionally exploding in a soliloquy dripping with the poetics of the English language. I also found Woolf’s contemplation of death wildly fascinating.

I only give the story four out of five stars, not by fault of the author, but because it lacks that nameless thing that I usually gravitate towards in literature (Drama? Angst?). I did, however, find the characters of Septimus and Lucrezia fantastic. I could read volumes about their history, their dynamic, their psychologies. 

Overall, a great read! Especially for book clubs or group reads, where a little discussion is involved. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicidal thoughts and Suicide

Moderate: Forced institutionalization

toffishay's review against another edition

dark emotional funny reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Classism, Death, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide

Moderate: Sexism, Toxic relationship, Confinement, and Forced institutionalization

Minor: Cursing, Grief, Fatphobia, Lesbophobia, Colonisation, Murder, Sexual harassment, Stalking, Violence, War, and Xenophobia

grereads's review against another edition

challenging emotional inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I absolutely loved the book. The -0.5 stars is just because it was sometimes difficult to keep up with the narration, since it was my first time reading something written in stream of consciousness. I loved how the narration is presented through the thoughts of the different characters and how there are many different points of view. I also liked how the characters' personalities can be understood both through their own analysis of themselves and through what the other characters think of them. Septimus and Peter were characters that particularly impressed me. The passage about Sir. William Bradshaw and his love of proportion/conversion is one of the greatest pieces of writing I've ever read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Mental illness, Medical trauma, Death, and Suicide

Moderate: Colonisation, War, and Forced institutionalization

kers_tin's review against another edition

hopeful lighthearted reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Suicide, Racism, Xenophobia, Suicide attempt, Forced institutionalization, Suicidal thoughts, Medical trauma, War, Classism, Ableism, Colonisation, and Mental illness

Moderate: Gun violence and Grief

samarakroeger's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

this is one of those books where I just knew it would be a new favorite from the first chapter. I flew through this in one sitting, despite the slow pace and utter lack of plot. I personally am fascinated by free indirect discourse and have recently been converted to being a fan of stream of consciousness narration. I also am not usually a big fan of books set over the span of only one day, but here I am with a huge exception. 

I was surprised at how familiar this book felt, and then I remembered I read The Hours five and a half years ago. I had forgotten the sapphic element (a welcome surprise!) and mistakenly thought that Clarissa was going to kill herself. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Self harm