On Being Ill

ON BEING ILL

The essay seeks to establish illness as a serious subject of literature along the lines of love, jealousy and battle. Woolf writes, "Considering how common illness is, how tremendous the spiritual change that it brings, how astonishing, when the lights of health go down, the undiscovered countries that are then disclosed, what wastes and deserts of the soul a slight attack of influenza brings to light...it becomes strange indeed that illness has not taken its place with love, battle, and jealousy among the prime themes of literature." Adeline Virginia Woolf (25 January 1882 – 28 March 1941) was an English writer, and one of the foremost modernists of the twentieth century. During the interwar period, Woolf was a significant figure in London literary society and a central figure in the influential Bloomsbury Group of intellectuals.

On Being Ill

In "On Being Ill," Virginia Woolf eloquently explores the complexities of illness and its effects on the human experience. Written in a lyrical, stream-of-consciousness style typical of her early modernist works, Woolf delves into the relationship between physical suffering and the mind's responses to it. This essay, deeply intertwined with her own experiences of frailty, reflects her engagement with contemporary discussions on mental and physical health, challenging the Victorian norms that often marginalized women's perspectives on illness. Virginia Woolf, a leading figure of the modernist literary movement, drew from her own battles with health anxieties and a battle against societal expectations when crafting this profound meditation. Woolf's background, rooted in a family of intellectuals, and her exposure to the Bloomsbury Group's avant-garde philosophies pushed her to delve deeper into personal narrative and subjective experience, allowing her to articulate the often-silenced voices surrounding illness. "On Being Ill" is highly recommended for readers seeking a nuanced understanding of illness beyond mere physical symptoms. Woolf'Äôs articulate reflections enrich not only the literary canon but also the discourse surrounding health, making this a vital read for anyone interested in the intersections of literature, psychology, and the human condition.

On being ill by Virginia Woolf