Virginia Woolf

by Ira B. Nadel (Yazar), Öykü Gizem Gökgül (Çevirmen)

Virginia Woolf, yirminci yüzyılın en önemli edebî şahsiyetlerinden biriydi ve öldüğünde belki de döneminin en tanınmış kadın romancısıydı. Kendine özgü stiliyle yeni bir yazar nesline ilham veren Woolf, Bayan Dalloway, Deniz Feneri ve Orlando gibi duygu yüklü romanlarıyla etkisini günümüzde de sürdürmeye devam ediyor.

Ira Nadel’ın biyografisi Woolf’un mektuplarından, günlüklerinden, denemelerinden ve kurgularından yararlanarak kasvetli Hyde Park Gate’ten geniş ve ferah Bloomsbury’ye kadar yazarın yaşadığı yerlerin, hayatı ile eserlerine etkisini inceliyor. Woolf’un romanlarında kullandığı tekniği ve tarihe, sanata, dostluğa verdiği önemi vurgulayan Nadel, aynı zamanda yazarın ünlü Bloomsbury Grubu’ndaki yerini, Vita Sackville-West ile Leydi Ottoline Morrel gibi isimlerle ilişkisini, cinselliğe ve evliliğe karşı tutumunu, toplumsal konulara dair görüşlerini ve ruhsal durumunun eserlerindeki yankısını ele alıyor. Anlaşılır, kısa fakat yine de kapsamlı Virginia Woolf, değerli yazarın tüm hayranlarının beğenisini toplayacaktır.

“Ira Nadel’ın Virginia Woolf'u, Woolf'un hayatını yazarın mektuplarda, denemelerde, kurgusal yazılarda anımsadığı hâliyle, kısa ve öz şekilde ele alıyor. Woolf'un yetiştirilme tarzını, aile hayatını, evliliğini, dostluklarını, ilişkilerini, zorluklarla dolu tıbbi geçmişini ve tarihi olaylara bakış açısını kapsamlıca işliyor.”
— Alan Friedman, Austin Teksas Üniversitesi İngiliz ve Karşılaştırmalı Edebiyat Profesörü

Genres: Biography, Nonfiction

Paperback

First published January 1, 2016

Reviews

[Kristi Hovington · Rating 4.5 out of 5]

This is a new (to me) biography of Woolf, organized by her places of residence, which works. If Hermione Lee's lengthy (and, for me, best in class) biography of Woolf is off-putting for some due to the size of the book, this might be the biography I'd recommend next.

[Ruth Brumby · Rating 3 out of 5]

The focus on places she lived as a way of structuring the information works well and, given the subject matter, this book could hardly fail to be interesting. Some very odd writing though. For example:
"In Jane Austen's 'Emma', Mr and Mrs John Knightley make their residence in Brunswick Square. Woolf moved there with her brother Adrian on 20 November 1911, shortly after attending a performance of Diaghilev's radical Ballets Russes in their first London season. The company would revolutionise ballet with its original choreography, remarkable dancers and avant-garde music. Soon, John Maynard Keynes, Duncan Grant and then Leonard Woolf would join them, all living communally."
What have Jane Austen's characters got to do with it? Did she move there because inspired to do so by the ballet? Did these 'Bloomsberries' join the Ballets Russes?
It reads like a poor translation: "make their residence" "original choreography".

[Bookthesp1 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Putting aside Hermoine Lee's doorstep biography of Woolf, this is one of the best things I have read on her mainly due to its clarity and care in guiding the reader through Woolfs writing life against the background of her personal circumstances- addressed here by having chapters based on her.... addresses!! Nadal's crystal clear prose supported by plenty of quotes and references guides us through her life at all the places lived in as she struggled to retain her mental health and build a reputation as a writer of note. Hence we have chapters that see her writing almost continuously whilst establishing herself in a new home or place of residence, eventually marrying Leonard and setting up the Hogarth Press whilst also encompassing the "Bloomsberries" such as Strachey, Roger Fry, Ottoline and others. The story is familiar and tragic but doesn't sidestep Woolfs mental breakdowns or periods of lucid and successful authorship. A nicely produced book with excellent but not intrusive photos. Woolfs interest in photography is noted as is her enthusiastic ownership of motor cars that gave her some freedom to visit and explore. Overall an enervating and fascinating look at a familiar story well told. Recommended both for its literary analysis and its clarity!

[Joseph Spuckler · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid biography -- factual, readable, and without sensationalism.

[ND · Rating 4 out of 5]

Helpful, if not anything particularly new.