Virginia Woolf: Thinking Back Through Our Mothers

Abstract

In this paper, I explore the complexities of Virginia Woolf's ongoing internal relationship with her mother, Julia Stephen, who had died when her daughter was 13. I draw on Woolf's memoirs, one written when she was 25 and the other toward the end of her life; on her autobiographical novel, To the Lighthouse; on her early essays and book reviews; and on A Room of One's Own. I conclude by considering some writings of Julia Stephen's—writings overlooked by her daughter.