51 pages • 1 hour read
Virginia WoolfTo the Lighthouse
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 1927A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Themes
Impermanence and the Uncertainty of Life
The interior monologues that make up the bulk of the novel emphasize the changeability of an individual’s thoughts and emotions. This impermanence that characterizes the inner workings of the human psyche emphasize that life itself is impermanent and uncertain. Various symbols in the novel, like the sea and the boar’s skull in the children’s room, also draw attention to this theme, as well as all the foreboding events in the novel that remind the reader that death can interrupt life at any point.
For example, Mrs. Ramsay’s feelings towards her husband are highly changeable; at one moment, she adores his genius, only to feel impatient with his frustrated ambition a few moments later. Tansley’s changing emotions are influenced by his lower middle-class upbringing as the son of a chemist and shopkeeper; at any moment, he may undergo an invisible change as a result of being reminded of where he comes from. Lily’s reflections on art and ambition demonstrate that her self-doubt is always at war with her impulse to paint and to create something she likes; her changed attitude towards Tansley reflects her sensitivity. Mr. Ramsay’s irrational fury at Augustus Carmichael’s request for another bowl of soup at the dinner party captures his emotional volatility, which coexists with his exceptionally rational approach to metaphysical philosophy and his interactions with his children. The acknowledgement of the impermanence of emotions and thoughts come as a reassurance to some characters and as a destabilizing influence to others; regardless of how a character might feel about such fluctuations in thoughts and feelings, their existence is proof of that person’s humanity.
Impermanence and uncertainty also play a role in the more philosophical moments of the novel. When Lily and Andrew talk about Mr. Ramsay’s work, Andrew offers Lily the example of the kitchen table to explain his point; the state of the kitchen table when the kitchen is empty of observers illustrates the unknowable quality of Mr. Ramsay’s work and his genius. He questions whether the kitchen table continue to exist with certainty, or if it ceases to exist. That the question has no answer foreshadows other unknowable uncertainties, like the reason for Mrs. Ramsay’s death and the moment in time at which other characters in the novel will die.
In Part 2, the deaths of Mrs. Ramsay, Prue, and Andrew are mentioned in brackets, as if they are much less momentous than they might seem. In some ways, their deaths are unremarkable; Mrs. Ramsay’s death is sudden, but she is past youth; childbirth and its complications are a leading cause of maternal deaths, even when the mother is as undeserving as Prue; and war is known to kill soldiers like Andrew. The remarkability of their deaths has most to do with the impact their deaths have on the people who love them. Ironically, their deaths, which are documented for eternity in the novel, inspire shows of grief that signify the potential of love to be permanent.
Masculinity, Femininity, and Gender Role Reversals
One important theme that appears throughout the novel relates to the values and qualities associated with masculinity and femininity. In some situations, traditional gender roles are reversed and denied; in other cases, they are upheld, revealing the tension that exists within the Ramsay family unit and their circle of friends.
At many points, the male capacity for strength and vigor are on display, but just as often, this capacity is contrasted with displays of male egotism and weakness. Mr. Ramsay is described as youthful in his demeanor and energy when he moves his body, but these stereotypically manly qualities are juxtaposed against his desperate, almost childish need for approval and sympathy. Moreover, his dependence on his wife suggests that he defers to her in their relationship, despite his certainty that she has little intellectual power when compared to his own prodigious genius.
Even young Andrew understands enough about male expectations of strength and vigor to feel exasperated with the more hesitant Nancy and Minta during their cliffside walk. Later in the walk, Paul’s decision to either find or replace Minta’s brooch with a more expensive jewel reflects an arrogant confidence regarding his position in the world; if he cannot find the brooch that has significant sentimental value to his beloved, he will simply replace it with something costly as a display of his wealth and a masculine impulse to rescue Minta from her sadness. Paul’s traditional masculinity continues to play out, and later in the novel, Lily reveals that their marriage is unsuccessful, as evidenced by a traditional marital cliché: Paul has proven to be a philanderer, complete with a mistress.
The character of Mrs. Ramsay is similarly complex in her traditionally feminine role as mother and nurturer and her untraditional refusal to yield to her husband’s many demands. For example, she consistently displays a lack of sympathy for her own husband, who has a wife and children and therefore, in her mind, lacks for nothing of real significance. Simultaneously, she feels pity for Bankes who is widowed and has no children. This sense of pity could explain Mrs. Ramsay’s matchmaking, which implies that she believes in traditional relationships, but the reasons behind her matchmaking impulse have little to do with romance or love. Rather, she desires marriages because they lead to the procreation of children, who are the only beings on earth who can be truly happy. The existence of children guarantee the value and importance of mothers, and Mrs. Ramsay, a mother, is the most revered individual in the entire novel.
Lily Briscoe, the unmarried painter, also defies traditional attitudes towards marriage by deciding never to marry; instead, she chooses to explore the fertile ground of a creative life as an artist. Lily does so despite the traditional view, as expressed by Charles Tansley, that women cannot paint nor write, demonstrating a courage and commitment not deemed possible by the more traditionally-minded men in her circle. On a more traditional level, despite her determination to avoid marriage, Lily is curious about love, sensitive to rejection by the male sex, and kindhearted to men whom she observes are suffering in some way. Lily’s decision to rescue Charles Tansley from his foul mood at dinner originates in her understanding that women have a duty to help men, which is a reversal of the traditional role of men who believe themselves saviors of women.
The Subjectivity of Experience
Woolf’s adaptation of the stream of consciousness technique ensures that the reader’s attention is drawn to the internal lives of the characters and the details of their individual experiences. The focus on the subjectivity of experience rather than a series of events makes To the Lighthouse a seminal Modernist text.
Although the inner lives of Mrs. Ramsay and Lily Briscoe are the focus of the novel, Woolf explores even the thoughts and emotions of minor characters like Mrs. McNab, the cleaning lady. The older Ramsay children receive the same treatment by Woolf as many of the adult characters, while the experiences of the younger children are interpreted through the impressions of older characters. The effect of these rich and detailed literary portraits encourages readers to understand that any ordinary-seeming life is, in reality, deeply complex and potentially extraordinary.
The depth of Woolf’s psychological and emotional portraits also invite the reader to participate in the tension and the insight that can result from various interactions amongst the characters; for example, emotions like love and resentment are two or three-sided. The characters in To the Lighthouse experience events in a multi-faceted way, but to others, the events may appear merely one-sided.
For example, during the dinner party in Part 1, Lily Briscoe displays kindness towards Charles Tansley after deliberately mocking him in a subtle, nearly unnoticeable manner. To an outside observer, Lily’s kindness is simply a nice gesture that might suggest future friendship. Thanks to Woolf’s descriptions of both Lily’s inner workings and Tansley’s reaction to Lily, however, the reader learns that friendship will never take place; in fact, sometimes, being nice can guarantee that interpersonal intimacy will never take place. The reader understands that Lily shows kindness to Tansley as a way to ensure that he keeps his distance and that he understands her gesture for how she intends it. The reader can appreciate the complex subjectivity of this interaction thanks to Lily and Tansley’s inner monologues.
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By Virginia Woolf
