“A Room of One’s Own” by Virginia Woolf, Woolf stated that ” here then was I (call me Mary Beton, Mary Setion, Mary Carmichael or by any name you please – it is not a matter of any importance)” in the chapter one. (340) It showed the readers that the narrator was a fictionalized character instead that she was not her. The lack of identity of narrator gave the readers that everyone could be the narrator. It also made the narrator more convincing. By using “I”, Woolf emphasized the fact that women were not treated equally as men were which due to the sexism and traditional bonds.
In the chapter one, the narrator had two expulsions because of the sexism in Oxbridge College. When the narrator was warned off the university lawn, instantly a man intercepted her. After she realized that the man intercepted her only because she was a woman. The man said that “Only the Fellows and Scholars are allowed here; the gravel is the place for me [narrator]” (341) In addition, she was forbidden to enter the library. “he waved me back that ladies are only admitted to the library if accompanied by a fellow of the College or furnished with a letter of introduction.” (342) Two expulsions could explain to the readers that the narrator was treated unequally just because of her sex; It also was a symbol of education culture which was a invasion to the women’s mind. After that, Woolf used personification to describe the library which slept forever, moreover, the narrator made decision that she would not come back to the library at all in order to show how angry she was. (342) In the of period time, Woolf described the sound of music was sorrowful to set off the emotion of narrator because she was not treated as the same as men.
Woolf was carefully not to blame men for the unequal treatments towards women in the chapter two. Instead, she considered the reasons caused the gender inequality, such as women were not independent in finance. The narrator got five hundred pounds a year by her aunt, as a result, she did not need to do hard works to earn money and survive her life. Instead, she thought that “I need not hate any men, he can not hurt me.”(360) She forgave men for their injustices to women when she was independent in her finance. She claimed that when she enjoyed the luxury of finance, she also got freedom. On the other hand, she thought that it was a reason for a woman why they could not write well because of lack of independent finance.
Woolf also found that how unequally women were treated in history. First of all, she stated that “Wife beating” was a right for men; then what effect was when a daughter refused to marry the man of her parents’ choice. Even though women who lived in upper class family, they rarely were allowed to choose their husbands by themselves.(362) She thought that women were considered as the property of their families or husbands. How could they have ability to write well in the situation?
She conjured the imaginary character of Shakespeare’s sister to show that women could not be as well as men because they were treated in two different ways. Both Shakespeare and his sister lived in the same background. For Shakespeare, he could do what he wanted to do and people would support him. Compare to Shakespeare, the sister could not get education. Even though she read books, her mother would ask her to change her mind, instead of caring about housework. Woolf also described how other people reacted when they knew that a woman wanted to be a player in order to explain why a woman could not have the same achievement in any areas.
Do you agree or disagree that a woman has to be independently wealthy in order to write well?why?