To the Lighthouse

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It's a hit!

I hesitate to say anything other than, “read it,” for fear of contaminating anyone’s impression or interpretation. But I will say I’m glad I waited... (show more)

I hesitate to say anything other than, “read it,” for fear of contaminating anyone’s impression or interpretation. But I will say I’m glad I waited until now to read it. I doubt I would have had the patience to stay with it when I was younger, nor do I think it would have been as meaningful at 20 or 30 as it is at mid-life. Woolf describes the complexity of human perception of self and others so simply that it’s as if someone, in one concise sentence, explained some concept considered too complicated to even discuss; and left you thinking, “Yes, yes, of course, that’s exactly how it is. Why didn’t I see that before?” Then, just as she’s lulled you into thinking you understand what this novel is, with one sentence she pulls the rug from beneath you and leaves you, for the remainder, groping to try to re-establish meaning. (show less)

 

 

by Facebook User

No, it's a flop!

I seem to be in the minority on this book. This book is so bad that it boggles the mind how this is considered great literature. Woolf's stream o... (show more)

I seem to be in the minority on this book. This book is so bad that it boggles the mind how this is considered great literature. Woolf's stream of consciousness writing is so confusing and annoying, it's nearly impossible to get through. If I hadn't had to read this for a class, I would have put it down and never looked at it again. This is the 3rd book of Woolf's that I've either read or attempted to read. In all her books, the characters are shallow and pretentious. It's impossible to care about any of these characters. If I could have given this book zero stars, I would have. So it's get 1/2 a star. (show less)

 

 

by Sandi Smith

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  Woolf's writing is made so fascinating by her attempts to describe or somehow grasp all of life's moments. It really seems that she is painstakingly trying to deconstruct every wisp of feeling that passes through a person as they watch someone else from across a lawn, or try to read someone else's face from across a dinner table, or try to figure out the nuanced emotions experienced by simply standing next to another person. She seems like an explorer of the inner mind; the part that only... (show more)

  Woolf's writing is made so fascinating by her attempts to describe or somehow grasp all of life's moments. It really seems that she is painstakingly trying to deconstruct every wisp of feeling that passes through a person as they watch someone else from across a lawn, or try to read someone else's face from across a dinner table, or try to figure out the nuanced emotions experienced by simply standing next to another person. She seems like an explorer of the inner mind; the part that only comes out when we are deeply pensive. What makes Woolf unique is her ability to eloquently translate those abstract thoughts into words on a page. Though, even she isn't capable of putting the totality of emotions into words; yet she tries so earnestly, and it comes off completely genuine. She doesn't need plot points to push a story along. She could write a 500 page novel about a person sitting in a room staring out a window, and it might be spellbinding. Maybe that is her genius. (show less)

   

   

  by Facebook User on Apr 08, 2009 at 01:22AM

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  Perhaps one of Virginia Woolf's most famous books (the category of 'novel' is, I think, too narrow), To the lighthouse has the merit of not falling back on a strong narrative line in order to constitute a literary work of great significance. The plot is, indeed, simple: a trip to lighthouse, a family and its acquaintances on summer holiday, time passing by, a return to the summer house.

  However, the fact is that the Ramsays, Lily Briscoe, William Bankes, Minta Doyle and Paul Rayley, Mr Carm... (show more)

  Perhaps one of Virginia Woolf's most famous books (the category of 'novel' is, I think, too narrow), To the lighthouse has the merit of not falling back on a strong narrative line in order to constitute a literary work of great significance. The plot is, indeed, simple: a trip to lighthouse, a family and its acquaintances on summer holiday, time passing by, a return to the summer house.

  However, the fact is that the Ramsays, Lily Briscoe, William Bankes, Minta Doyle and Paul Rayley, Mr Carmichael, and Charles Tansley all constitute the materials with wich Woolf develops not only a remarkable literary (and hence, rhetorical) technique; also, they provide for the raw substance of one of the cultural landmarks of modernist times. The text works, therefore, as a showpiece of modernist literature. Managing a sharp dialectics between the character's psyche and the unfolding of moments which take up pages and pages, Virgnia Woolf certainly makes for a worth read not only for people with a love of literature, but also for those of us with an interest in the cultural artefacts of modernity. (show less)

   

   

  by Matías Marambio on Jan 03, 2010 at 04:30AM

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