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3.84 AVERAGE
3.84 AVERAGE
slow-paced
slow-paced
It is a good thing for a middle aged white male to be reminded of the struggles behind us and still ahead of us with respect to equality. And this book certainly lays those out for all to see. Though the classist viewpoint is a little tough to get around today.
A friend told me this book had a huge impact on her life when she read it many years ago, so I thought I should too. But, I have to say it was a slog to get through, right minded though it was.
A friend told me this book had a huge impact on her life when she read it many years ago, so I thought I should too. But, I have to say it was a slog to get through, right minded though it was.
hopeful
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
Woolf makes the case for pacifism and also takes a jab at the then current state of education and professions while she's at it. Blistering, incisive, and thorough.
slow-paced
Wow, a Virginia Woolf writing I didn't hate/get sick of/couldn't wait to put down!
I can stand back and appreciate just how special this letter of hers is, how forward and modern it is given when it was written, how relevant it was not only to her age, but well into our own as well. In fact, if not for the reasons I will shortly give, I would probably give this 5 stars.
For me though, this was not the right time to read it; often while reading it in the tram I found myself needing to doze off, and when I was fully awake for it, my mind was not able to keep it all together. The reading of it came in bits and pieces, without a solid flow to her words despite there definitely being a steady flow and logic from one part, one paragraph, to the next. I was reading it to finish it, not to linger over her observations and her reasoning. Yet for once, this is a piece of hers that I would re-read, and would like to do so with taking time to really digest what she is saying, make the connections between her time and mine, and ideally have it be a buddy-read with someone so we could talk about it piece by piece as we went over it slowly and carefully. Three Guineas merits such a close, involved reading.
I read a pdf copy of this provided by my professor. In addition to the letter itself, there were also extensive notes comprising probably 1/3 of the entire length of the story, which for the above-mentioned reasons, I did not take the time to read, except for one, which was an interesting and informative note (note #19 for the second part of the letter).
I can stand back and appreciate just how special this letter of hers is, how forward and modern it is given when it was written, how relevant it was not only to her age, but well into our own as well. In fact, if not for the reasons I will shortly give, I would probably give this 5 stars.
For me though, this was not the right time to read it; often while reading it in the tram I found myself needing to doze off, and when I was fully awake for it, my mind was not able to keep it all together. The reading of it came in bits and pieces, without a solid flow to her words despite there definitely being a steady flow and logic from one part, one paragraph, to the next. I was reading it to finish it, not to linger over her observations and her reasoning. Yet for once, this is a piece of hers that I would re-read, and would like to do so with taking time to really digest what she is saying, make the connections between her time and mine, and ideally have it be a buddy-read with someone so we could talk about it piece by piece as we went over it slowly and carefully. Three Guineas merits such a close, involved reading.
I read a pdf copy of this provided by my professor. In addition to the letter itself, there were also extensive notes comprising probably 1/3 of the entire length of the story, which for the above-mentioned reasons, I did not take the time to read, except for one, which was an interesting and informative note (note #19 for the second part of the letter).
reflective
slow-paced
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
In this essay, originally published in 1938, Virginia Woolf replies to a man's letter asking for her support in preventing the looming war in Europe. She responds by reflecting on how she might use three guineas for this purpose, hence the title.
The first guinea goes to rebuilding a university for girls. Indeed, the first part of the book deals with the inequalities in the education of young women and men. The author doesn't seem to believe that academic institutions have the intrinsic power to prevent war or inculcate rejection of it, but “the influence that an independent opinion based on an independence of income can have” must pass through study, then through professional activity, which is the subject of the second part. This second part discusses the advantages and disadvantages of professional activity, and concludes that the second guinea will be given to a society whose vocation is to help women enter the workforce.
In the third part, Virginia Woolf considers how protecting culture and intellectual freedom could help prevent war. She ends by attributing her third guinea to the association of the author of the letter to which she is replying, before explaining why she does not, however, wish to become a member.
Nearly a century after this book was written, most of the subjects are still sadly relevant nowadays, and Virginia Woolf's treatment of them is as interesting as ever for today's readers. Sophie Chiari's new French translation, published by Le Livre de Poche and which I was lucky enough to read via Netgalley, brilliantly brings the author's voice back to life, with all her characteristic wit.
Content Warnings
Minor: Sexism, War