A Room of One's Own

Chapters 5 and 6 focus heavily on the representation of women in fiction. This representation, Woolf argues, is not only inadequate in terms of how few women authors there are (as she illustrates in Chapters 3 and 4) but also how women characters are portrayed in fiction. Using the Chloe and Olivia example from the fictitious Life’s Adventures, Woolf illustrates how women characters in fiction are represented by their relationships to men, just as like women are in real life (consider again the example of Judith Shakespeare and the anchoring relationships she experiences with her father and the “actor-manager” who impregnates her). Historically, women have been defined by their relationships to their fathers and husbands because women lack the autonomy to determine their own marriages, social roles, and futures. This is reflected in the English literary canon wherein most women characters in fiction before the 20th century were defined also based upon these relationships, even in books written by women. Also consider the modern day “Bechdel test,” a measure of the representation of women in a work of art. The test was developed by the American cartoonist Alison Bechdel, who cited Woolf as an influence. To pass, a work of fiction must depict two women characters talking to each other about something other than a man. Both Bechdel and Woolf imply that depicting conversations and relationships between women creates a more authentic and equitable representation of women in fiction, reflecting the reality of their experiences.

These two chapters also surface a queer perspective. Woolf had several romantic relationships with women throughout her life (see also the Virginia Woolf entry in the Key Figures section of this guide). The most salient example of the underlying discussion about the normalization of queerness is linked to the line “Chloe liked Olivia” (97): Woolf uses semi-coded language to imply that Chloe likes Olivia romantically. The queer reading of this example harkens to one of Woolf’s central ideas: Men might hold sociopolitical and financial power over women, but they do not truly know them. The queer narrative continues in Chapter 6 with Woolf’s discussion of the “unity of the mind” and Coleridge’s androgynous mind (112). Her idea that there are masculine elements in women and vice versa adds nuance to her previously broad dichotomous structuring of sex.

A Room of One’s Own emerged from the first-wave feminist movement that spanned from the mid-19th to early 20th centuries in the United Kingdom, Europe, and the Americas. A primary aim of first-wave feminism was to secure equal legal rights for women, especially the right to vote, to add women representatives to governments, and to work in the same fields as men. Woolf largely believes that the young women of 1928 have not done enough to take advantage of their newly gained rights. Some critics note that first-wave feminists often place the burden of change on women themselves in their attempts to carve an equitable place for women in society. Newer feminist theories have shifted focus from placing the blame of oppression on the oppressed, making Woolf’s criticism of other women occasionally appear outdated. However, Woolf’s criticisms are intended as calls to action, and many of Woolf’s arguments are precursors to the modern argument that sexism is a systemic issue, not a matter of individual failing.

Some of the main criticisms of A Room of One’s Own are that Woolf’s conclusions are ultimately simplistic and Eurocentric. Her lack of acknowledgement of her position of social and racial privilege and her oversimplification in describing women’s experiences directly relate to these criticisms. Woolf advocates for greater education opportunities that would vastly increase the average woman’s ability to write, but some might argue that women writers who are part of other marginalized communities (women of color, queer women, neurodivergent women, etc.) face additional obstacles that demand attention. Further, there are cultures outside of the European context that with values that might negate the need for a private writing room or a fixed income. For example, women who are part of a culture that emphasizes communal values or speak a language that lacks a formalized writing system might not benefit at all from Woolf’s suggestions. Ultimately, however, the continued relevance of A Room of One’s Own is rooted in Woolf’s incisive assessments of her own time, which can be used as a springboard to understand the persistence of contemporary sexism and intersectional oppression.