Violet Trefusis: An Intimate Biography of Her Scandalous Love Affair with Vita Sackville-West and Their Enduring Bond

by John Phillips, Philippe Jullian

A remarkable woman in her own right and a highly gifted writer, Violet Trefusis is especially remembered for her scandalous affair with Vita Sackville-West, first disclosed in Portrait of a Marriage. After their abortive flight from their husbands in 1920, Vita returned to England and her writing, and Violet became an expatriate, immersing herself in international society and the world of art. This intriguing biography traces her life from a romantic childhood-when her mother, Alice Keppel, was the mistress of King Edward VII-to her death in Florence in 1972. A supplement of correspondence between Violet and Vita Sackville-West provides further insights into their relationship. The letters from Violet reveal, as nowhere else in her writing, the depth of her feelings for Vita. Those from Vita, written years later, attest that their love for one another never really ended.

Genres: Literature, Lesbian, Biography Memoir, Biography

288 pages, Paperback

First published March 29, 1985

Reviews

[Adrianna · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is refreshing to read a biography that is more sympathetic to Violet Trefusis; Violet is often portrayed a manipulative, flighty, shallow, and no more than a pseudo-intellectual (Virginia Woolf, Mitchell A. Leaska, Hermoine Lee, Victoria Glenndinning). After reading this biography, I learned some new facts--that as a teenager she was very gifted as a poet and actually had several publications. Her family and society put down her work though, but she kept writing. In fact, her writing is witty, charming, observant and definitely deserves some sort of 21st century re-release. She also was very involved in the music and writing scenes in Paris in the 1920s and 1930s, and was close friends with Colette and other famous writers. Her writing was encouraged and supported by her new friends, and she seemed to find the peace she craved. Her escape from France in WWII was really interesting and I knew little about it. Unfortunately, this biography is much too "breezy"--it lacks depth and rigor, failing to explore large swaths of her life and writing talent. It also breezes over family members, her relationships with other women and men , and also her marriage. It relies on a lot of first-hand anecdotal evidence from interviewers of elderly people who knew her decades previously. Which is interesting and valuable, but Trefusis has left behind so many diaries, letters, and writing that these should have been the primary consultation for drawing conclusions of her life. Plus, the authors still descended into painting her as a "spoiled child" during her affair with Vita, breezed over the obvious physical and mental abuse she was suffering from her mother and Denys (the authors were way too sympathetic towards them) as stated in her letters. They imply that she ultimately worshiped her mother, though her letters and behavior seem otherwise. I thinks her mother was the ultimate narcissist and Violet struggled to find a way to develop her own identity--when she did, her mother bullied her. The saddest part was when she was in Scotland in her home and her mother bullied her in front of guests near constantly. Of course, this biography does little to explore the psychological nuance here. The biggest fail in the Vita-Violet affair depiction is not mentioning that Vita's husband cheated on her repeatedly, in secret and gave her an STD, which nearly destroyed their marriage. Vita re-connected with Violet when she found out about the affair (Violet was already corresponding with her future husband Denys) and their love took off; Violet obviously changed her mind about the marriage but was essentially forced to marry Denys anyway sparking tumultuous heartaches. The real gem in this book are the photographs and the letters at the end. Overall, it was interesting and we learned the basic "facts" of her life, but she definitely deserves a much more in-depth biography with a better 21st century perspective on feminism and sexuality.

[Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

this is a very good book describing an older Violet, but it failed in get a glimpse of the young, wild and free Lushka, as Vita called her.