Virginia Woolf

Date of Birth: January 25, 1882

Zodiac Sign: Aquarius

Date of Death: March 28, 1941

Biography

Virginia Woolf was a prominent English writer, regarded as one of the foremost modernists of the 20th century. Born Adeline Virginia Stephen on January 25, 1882, in London, England, Woolf became an integral part of the literary and artistic Bloomsbury Group. Her parents, Sir Leslie Stephen and Julia Prinsep Stephen, were well-connected in literary circles, which exposed Woolf to a vibrant intellectual environment from a young age. Woolf’s career began with the publication of her first novel, “The Voyage Out,” in 1915. She went on to write several influential works, including “Mrs Dalloway” (1925), “To the Lighthouse” (1927), and “Orlando” (1928). Her innovative narrative techniques, particularly her use of stream-of-consciousness, have left a lasting impact on literature. Woolf was also a notable essayist and feminist, best known for her works “A Room of One’s Own” (1929) and “Three Guineas” (1938). Woolf’s life was marked by struggles with mental illness, which culminated in her tragic death by suicide on March 28, 1941. Despite her personal battles, her literary legacy continues to influence and inspire writers and readers around the world.

5 Interesting Facts about Virginia Woolf

1. Virginia Woolf co-founded the Hogarth Press in 1917 with her husband, Leonard Woolf, which published many of her works and those of other prominent authors.

2. Woolf’s novel “Orlando” was inspired by her close friend and lover, Vita Sackville-West.

3. She was a key figure in the Bloomsbury Group, which included other notable members like E.M. Forster, John Maynard Keynes, and Lytton Strachey.

4. Woolf experienced her first major mental breakdown after the death of her mother in 1895, followed by her father’s death in 1904.

5. Her essay “A Room of One’s Own” is often cited as an important feminist text, advocating for both literal and figurative space for women in literature.

5 Most Interesting Quotes from Virginia Woolf

1. “A woman must have money and a room of her own if she is to write fiction.”

2. “Lock up your libraries if you like; but there is no gate, no lock, no bolt that you can set upon the freedom of my mind.”

3. “I can only note that the past is beautiful because one never realises an emotion at the time. It expands later, and thus we don’t have complete emotions about the present, only about the past.”

4. “For most of history, Anonymous was a woman.”

5. “I am rooted, but I flow.”

Highest Net Worth Achieved

Virginia Woolf’s highest net worth is difficult to determine, but she was successful enough in her lifetime to manage a comfortable living, largely through her writing and the Hogarth Press.