A room of One's Own ~ Virginia Wolf (99 of 2024)

Kazhcha from MT Vasudevan Nair’s 'Manorathangal ', talks about a woman who quietly but resolutely wins back her right to have a room of her own so that she can pursue her creative interests. Parvathy Thiruvothuer  is the Protogonist. This was a trigger for me wanting to read this book. 

The dramatic setting of A Room of One's Own is that Woolf has been invited to lecture on the topic of Women and Fiction. She advances the thesis that "a woman must have money and a room of her own if she is to write fiction." Her essay is constructed as a partly-fictionalized narrative of the thinking that led her to adopt this thesis. She dramatizes that mental process in the character of an imaginary narrator ("call me Mary Beton, Mary Seton, Mary Carmichael or by any name you please—it is not a matter of any importance") who is in her same position, wrestling with the same topic.

The narrator begins her investigation at Oxbridge College, where she reflects on the different educational experiences available to men and women as well as on more material differences in their lives. She then spends a day in the British Library perusing the scholarship on women, all of which has been written by men and all of which has been written in anger. Turning to history, she finds so little data about the everyday lives of women that she decides to reconstruct their existence imaginatively. The figure of Judith Shakespeare is generated as an example of the tragic fate a highly intelligent woman would have met with under those circumstances. In light of this background, she considers the achievements of the major women novelists of the nineteenth century and reflects on the importance of tradition to an aspiring writer. A survey of the current state of literature follows, conducted through a reading of the first novel of one of the narrator's contemporaries. Woolf closes the essay with an exhortation to her audience of women to take up the tradition that has been so hardly bequeathed to them, and to increase the endowment for their own daughters.

“So long as you write what you wish to write, that is all that matters; and whether it matters for ages or only for hours, nobody can say.”

It’s the 20th century and Virginia Woolf is invited to speak to a roomful of young writers at a few colleges. She left the room and society at large perplexed with the thoughts she raised. Would Shakespeare’s sisters be given the same room to flourish if she had his skill sets? Can a women flourish if given the physical space to be by herself and ideate? Can a woman find a professional identity if not infrastructurally empowered? As a society do we allow this?

This book, although a work of fiction with a fictitious narrator and setting, is inspired by the lectures delivered by Woolf. As a revolutionary work, it remains poignant and relevant even today as we seemingly progress to an equal society but struggle with conditionings of gender roles. Despite its heavy subject, it’s an enjoyable, funny, sarcastic, and sensitive read; like a conversation with a dear friend.

The work is based on two lectures Woolf delivered in October 1928 at Newnham College and Girton College, women's colleges at the University of Cambridge.

What Chat GPT say:

Each chapter explores various aspects of Woolf's arguments about women, fiction, and the social and economic factors affecting female writers. Here's a breakdown of the chapters:

Chapter 1:

Woolf begins by reflecting on her experience visiting two women's colleges at Cambridge University. She compares the wealth and resources available at the men's colleges to the lack of funding at the women's colleges, setting the stage for her argument that economic independence is essential for creative freedom.

Chapter 2:

In this chapter, Woolf critiques the patriarchal history of literature, questioning why there are so few female writers in the canon. She explores the systemic barriers that have historically kept women from pursuing education and intellectual development.

Chapter 3:

Woolf introduces the fictional character Judith Shakespeare, the imagined sister of William Shakespeare, to illustrate how women of talent were denied opportunities because of their gender. She highlights the absence of women in history due to social norms that confined them to domestic roles.

Chapter 4:

Here, Woolf discusses the works of past women writers, such as Aphra Behn, Jane Austen, and Charlotte Brontë, acknowledging their contributions to literature despite the challenges they faced. She emphasizes that these writers laid the foundation for future generations of women.

Chapter 5:

In this chapter, Woolf shifts her focus to modern fiction, exploring the idea that literature should transcend gender and that both men and women should write with an androgynous mind—free from the confines of gender stereotypes.

Chapter 6:

The final chapter concludes with Woolf’s plea for women to have “a room of their own”—a space for personal and intellectual freedom. She also calls for women to write about their own experiences and imagines a future where both men and women can write without societal restrictions.

Conclusion:

Each chapter builds on Woolf’s core argument that financial independence, intellectual freedom, and personal space are critical for women to succeed as writers. Woolf’s examination of history, society, and gender remains a foundational text in feminist literary criticism.

This structure allows Woolf to critique the gender inequalities of her time and advocate for the rights of women writers.

https://www.ottplay.com/news/parvathy-in-kazhcha-relevant-segment-mt-manorathangal-women/6d452f81f7793

Before letting us into the world of Parvathy Thiruvothu-starrer Kazhcha, iconic actor Kamal Haasan, the narrator of the anthology series Manorathangal, reminds viewers about the matrilineal system that existed among certain communities in Kerala when women enjoyed more freedom. However, this freedom did not last long as ‘modern’ ways crept in and women had to play along with the whims and fancies of the society that then became largely patriarchal. Legendary writer MT Vasudevan Nair’s Kazhcha (vision) talks about a woman who quietly but resolutely wins back her right to have a room of her own so that she can pursue her creative interests.