Who ISN'T Afraid of Virginia Woolf?

Virginia Woolf

Even her picture's a little scary: the face of a woman born to be a ghost.

"There was a star riding through clouds one night, and I said to the star, 'Consume me'." (Waves)

     How to describe Virginia Woolf? Once upon a time, beneath the shadow of war in a kingdom by the sea, an extraordinary woman was born. Bounded by illness to one shore and ill intent to another, she was chained six ways to earth from birth. "Become silence, let us bury you," said her demons, and those who would ward her soul could offer her only a letter more: "Become silenced, let us bury you," an offer that perhaps to them seemed an improvement. Faced with her fate, she became instead a ringing sword, cut through her bindings, and buried herself in history. Though one should remember fairytales are not histories, and in life and truth Woolf valued silence. In silence, thoughts and emotions too deep in the heart to be drawn up through the throat into speech can be heard, and it is because Woolf listened that she rang out so powerfully, every blow of her sword-soul struck resoundingly from one heart to another. Those thoughts she heard, too, were often women's thoughts, those hearts women's hearts.


"The truth is, I often like women. I like their unconventionality. I like their completeness. I like their anonymity." (Room ch. 6)

     Virginia Woolf was born in January of 1882. She walked the world 59 years, and then she filled her pockets with stones and walked into a river in March of 1941. For a majority of that span, she wrote.

"...she need not think of anybody. She could be herself, by herself. And that was what now she often felt the need of - to think; well not even to think. To be silent; to be alone. All the being and the doing, expansive, glittering, vocal, evaporated; and one shrunk, with a sense of solemnity, to being oneself, a wedge-shaped core of darkness, something invisible to others...and this self having shed its attachments was free for the strangest adventures." (Lighthouse ch. 1)

     She drew on silences and secrets and the buried and blasted things of her world, which was Britain, translating the experiences she associated with women, class, war, and the subtle movements of life into prose. She was concerned with the idea of Art as transmogrifying and elevating, with ideas of enlightenment and the ineffable sacredness of passing moments often associated with transcendentalism. And she was concerned with the world she lived in, and her place in it, and the place of other women like her. A warrior herself - against the depression and mania that haunted her, against a society that disregarded her - she did not glorify war and wrote often against it, directly, in condemnations public and private, and indirectly, by uplifting the everyday and bending all her fearsome brilliance to the illumination of how deep and rich even "ordinary" lives can become.


"Behind the cotton wool is hidden a pattern; that we—I mean all human beings—are connected with this; that the whole world is a work of art; that we are parts of the work of art. Hamlet or a Beethoven quartet is the truth about this vast mass that we call the world. But there is no Shakespeare, there is no Beethoven; certainly and emphatically there is no God; we are the words; we are the music; we are the thing itself." (House ch. 13)

     For feminism's purposes - and it is no stretch to say the name of Virginia Woolf might be found etched into a cornerstone of feminist criticism and the women's rights movement - you would perhaps be best obliged to seek out Three Guineas, an acidic satirical essay detailing her response to a gentleman asking (rhetorically, the unfortunate fellow) how best to prevent war and coupling this intended no-brainer to a request for a donation of three guineas to his society for doing so. Over the course of that essay, she lays bare to the bone the failures and frustrations of British society in terms of women's independence and education and then splits that bone to tear into the marrow: Woolf asserts in no uncertain terms that it is the structures of a patriarchal society, the obsessions with dominance and military honor and intellect without empathy, that breed not only war but the very same fascism against which that war is being made. Like the beast her name evokes she is everywhere, biting and tearing at every tendon by which society brings painful pressure against femininity and humanity, and when she is done only the clean white ruins of illusion remain.


"As a woman I have no country. As a woman I want no country. As a woman, my country is the whole world." (Guineas ch. 3)

     With a fluidity of thought, sharpness of wit, and depth of passion that will be as timeless as literature and our appreciation for the beauty of a mind in motion, Woolf pierces to the heart of ideas about how we shape our world and are shaped in turn, about what's meaningful within those confines. She touches the silences of the human heart with a kindness and eye to beautification that Midas might have envied, and she speaks a truth to power that resonates - horribly and with an awful volume- as much in 2017 as it did in the years leading up to World War II. She's a wonderful writer in addition to her talents in the art of thinking and feeling, so I feel safe in recommending that her works are just as approachable as they are of import, and in an age where the crumbling, crushing things she lashed out against are so prevalent and so dangerous, perhaps it can be hoped that modern readers will draw the blade she buried. Perhaps we may yet hope for new Pendragons stepping out from the mists of drowned Avalon, once more bringing sharpness to bear against national shadows, once more giving those darknesses something to be afraid of.

"I would venture to guess that Anon, who wrote so many poems without signing them, was often a woman." (Room ch. 3)

Works Cited

   
     Wikipedia Contributors. "Virginia Woolf." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia,  

               the Free Encyclopedia. 19 Sept. 2017. Web. 19 Sept. 2017.

     Lee, Hermione. Virginia Woolf. New York: Vintage, 1999. Print.
     Woolf, Virginia. To the Lighthouse. Adelaide: eBooks@Adelaide, 2015. EPUB file.
     Woolf, Virginia. A Room of One's Own. Adelaide:  eBooks@Adelaide, 2016. EPUB file.
     Woolf, Virginia. The Waves. Adelaide: eBooks@Adelaide, 2015. EPUB file.
     Woolf, Virginia. A Haunted House and other short stories. Adelaide: eBooks@Adelaide, 
               2015. EPUB file.

     Woolf, Virginia. Three Guineas. Adelaide: eBooks@Adelaide, 2015. EPUB file.

Helen Gurley Brown

Helen Gurley Brown 

  Helen Gurley Brown was born February 18, 1922, she died August 13, 2012. (Fox, 2012) Helen was an american author, publisher, and business women. She also was the editor and chief for Cosmopolitan magazine for 32 years.  ("Helen Gurley Brown" 2017) When she wrote the book "Sex and the Single Girl", about a single girl who thoroughly enjoyed sex, she shocked the world. Although Helen said things that was questioning to most she was an independent powerful woman in the publishing world. (Weigel, 2016) w\Warrior women come in all shapes sizes and what they do, i see Helen as a warrior women, because she wasn't afraid to ever speak her mind. she didn't care about what the readers thought she wrote about what she wanted to write about. She took a lot of crap from people about what she stood for. Even with that she never backed down. 

Helen published her book in 1962 and sold millions of copies because the topic was so shocking.  Her co-workers grumbled about the message in her book but it did not take long for her message to become main stream. "There is a catch to achieving single bliss" Brown stated to her 'Single Girl readers', "you have to work like a son of a bitch". (Weigel, 2016) Her message was clear to all women, you have to work hard to get anything you want done. Brown was a big fan of the statement "Do what you love, Love what you do." Any girl can exercise, flirt, shop, groom and sleep her way into having it all. Another phrase that Brown liked to say, was "work it" work to be sexy and work at being sexy, a saying both shocking and unexpected to many.  (Weigel, 2016) In a nut shell her book taught women how to look their best, have delicious affairs and ultimently bag men for all keeps.

Helen Brown without a doubt refers to herself as a feminist. Yet, it was debated until her death, whether or not her feminism helped or hindered the cause of women liberation. What is clear, is that she was a groundbreaking figure in women's history. There was a debate wether or not she was a feminist or not, some say she was a devout feminist and other say she was just spreading the wrong message to girls about their bodies. Although i don't agree with some of the things Mrs. Brown said such as " If your not a sex object, your in trouble."  (Fox, 2012) That is one thing that she said that i don't agree with. The reason for that is that i don't agree that women have to just have sex to have it. if women aren't comfortable having sex they shouldn't be lead to believe that they are in trouble if they don't wanna make their body a sex object.
Helen Brown did not marry until she was 37 years old, but by that time she had already made it up the ladder in her career, becoming a  secretary. She made it in the creative aspects of the world as the "highest paid female in the west coast". (Fox, 2012)
Although people blame her for the message she was spreading she was always faithful to her husband through out their whole marriage. Helen was 90 years old when she passed away. Just because she passed away doesn't mean everything about her died, everyone still talked about her and everything she stood for.

Works cited:

Fox, Margaltit. “Helen Gurley Brown, Cosmopolitan Editor, Dies at 90.” The New York Times, The       New York Times, 13 Aug. 2012, http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/14/business/media/helen-gurley-brown-who-gave-cosmopolitan-its-purr-is-dead-at-90.html

 Accessed 27 Sept. 2017

“Helen Gurley Brown” Biography.com, A&E Networks Television, 28 April 2017, https://www.biography.com/people/helen-gurley-brown-20929503

Accessed 27 Sept.  2017

Weigel, Moira. “Was She a Feminist? The Complicated Legacy of Helen Gurley Brown.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 14 July 2016, https://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/17/books/review/helen-gurley-brown-biographies-enter-helen-and-not-pretty-enough.html

Accessed 27 Sept. 2017

Ida B. Wells

         Ida B. Wells
At the age of 22, Ida B. Wells became a woman of color known to many across the country. She, along with many other people of color, were tired of the way they were being treated and demanded respect, or to at least be treated humanly. 

Her rise to activism for equality for women and people of color began with an incident on a train car. She had been asked to go to the back car which was full of smoke. Feeling perfectly comfortable where she was, she refused to move. The train conductor attempted to pull her out of her seat and so she bit his hand. Even though she was then kicked off the train, she didn't let what happened end there. This incident led her to pursue her passion to fight for equal rights for people of color.   









After the train car incident, she was devastated to learn that three of her friends had been lynched for becoming involved in a scuffle with other white men who had gotten injured. From the mass lynching in the south and now her friends losing their lives to lynching, she had to try and put an end to these injustices. She then turned to her writing to express her concerns and portray her message to people across the country. 

  







Wells wrote about lynching, injustice, and much more in newspapers and in her books. She used her skills in writing to broadcast not only what she saw happening around her but what she wanted to see. Wells was a feminist, a suffragist, journalist, and an early leader of the Civil Rights Movement. She viewed and experienced first hand what people of color and women of color were going through in the 1890's and wanted to put an end to it. Her courage led to the anti- lynching crusade and many other movements. 

I chose Ida B. Wells because what she fought for back in the late 1800's is still prevalent to today's issues. Wells viewed all the wrong around her and decided that enough was enough. She not only stood up for women of color, but for all people of color. She took an awful experience and turned it into a movement for people of color to have their civil rights. She used her writing to help spread not only her thoughts but most of everyone's thoughts around the country to help raise awareness and eventually put an end to the lynching and degrading of people of color. As we see today, it is not as bad as it was back in Wells's day. But women and people of color are still not treated equally, which is why her points and voice are still relevant to this day.






Works Cited:

1. “Ida B. Wells: Tell the Whole Truth.” Big Red Hair, www.bigredhair.com/blog/ida-b-wells-tell-the-whole-truth/. Accessed 21 Sept. 2017.2. Barnett, Ida Wells (1862-1931) | The Black Past: Remembered and Reclaimed, www.blackpast.org/aah/barnett-ida-wells-1862-1931. Accessed 21 Sept. 2017.
3. “Home.” Ida B. Wells-Barnett Museum, idabwellsmuseum.org/. Accessed 21 Sept. 2017.

She is Malala

Malala Yousafzai, is a 20 year old Pakistani activist who at the age of 11 started fighting for female education rights. Yousafzai got her claim to fame from her memoir I am Malala, which showcases her battle for education and how just one voice has the power to make a difference. In 2015, there was a documentary film He Named Me Malala of the Taliban's attack on Malala. According to www.malala.org, she was targeted specifically and shot in the head, neck and shoulder for speaking out on the prohibition on female education. 

After months of surgeries and rehabilitation Yousafzai recovered and she now travels the world as an advocate for women and children. She is the co-founder of the Malala Fund, an organization dedicated to giving girls access to education.   Yousafzai has written many articles, held press conferences and be a speaker on a number of news and talk shows.

Yousafzai is an inspiration to all women for her strength and devotion to education. She never let fear or hated control her but instead uses her to make a difference for millions of women and children. In He Named Me Malala, Yousafzai spoke about how she is not angry towards her attackers and how one day she would like to return to Pakistan to further fight for education regardless of the fact that the Taliban has said they will kill her. 

For myself personally, Malala is an inspiration because she uses she platform as a writer and a speaker to bring attention to something that everyone should be given access to, education. I find her to be an exceptional public speaker and writer which sets the bar for me as I continue to pursue a career in journalism and writing. Yousafzai and I are both twenty years old and because of that I use her as motivation and an example that no matter how old you are, you can change the world.  

Works Cited: 

“Malala Fund.” Malala Fund, blog.malala.org/. Accessed 19 Sept. 2017.

“Malala Yousafzai: All Girls Deserve Education Beyond Early Childhood.” Time, Time, time.com/3736611/malala-all-girls-deserve-education-beyond-early-childhood/. Accessed 19 Sept. 2017.

“He Named Me Malala - Now on Digital HD and DVD.” He Named Me Malala - Now on Digital HD and DVD., www.henamedmemalalamovie.com/. Accessed 19 Sept. 2017.

The Woman Who Created Frankenstein

Mary Wollenstonecraft Shelley

(Wikipedia)

 "I do not wish women to have power over men; but over themselves." (BrainyQuote)

Mary Wollenstonecraft said this.  I am currently enrolled in a British Literature class this semester, and have been learning much about the Enlightenment period that took place throughout Europe in the 19th century.  We started reading Frankenstein, and this being my first time reading the novel, it fascinated me that an eighteen year old female, Mary Shelley wrote it.  

Mary Wollenstonecraft Shelley was born August 30, 1797 in London, and unfortunately, eleven days after her birth her mother was sickened by an infection of the placenta and died.  This was quite common in this time period, but it greatly impacted the family all the same.  Born into a prominently progressive family, her mother was the famous Mary Wollenstonecraft, writer of ,"Inherent Rights of Woman and of Man,"("Mary Wollenstonecraft") and her father, a famous political philosopher by the name of William Godwin, was a strong advocate of, "intellectual self-development through the rule of reason,"("William Godwin") and many other radical ideas of the time.  It seemed clear both of her parents, even her deceased mother, had a profound affect on Mary.  Godwin had no discrimination when it came to education in his family, and had Mary placed in school "of considerable breadth,"("Mary Shelley") which made her very lucky compared to most women of this day.  Mary and her siblings were also frequently exposed to her father's acquaintance of "London intelligentsia,"("Mary Shelley") which included Samuel Taylor Coleridge.  Mary famously wrote, that she recalled hiding under the couch one evening, eavesdropping on her father and his company, and heard Coleridge recite his, "Rime of the Ancient Mariner," which became an instant classic and had largely inspired the young writer("Mary Shelley").

When Mary was just sixteen, she married one of her father's youthful admirers, Percy Bysshe Shelley.  Contrary to their well-respected parents, Percy and Mary were subjected to much scandalized gossip pertaining to their relationships and way of living.  This made things harder for them.  Struggling finding jobs and being taken seriously, both of them spent much of their adult life impoverished.  However, this didn't stop them from remaining activists and writers, and they became acquainted with other famous writers of the time, such as Lord Byron.  It was in the company of a group of poets including Byron and her husband, at an estate in Geneva, that Mary created the story of Frankenstein (Greenblatt et al, 982).

Mary Shelley's Frankenstein still has a profound affect on contemporary culture, and you can easily find numerous interpretations of her work.  Over a hundred years later, she still inspires women and young writers alike.  There are many more female authors in today's society, however, Shelley is a reminder of where our culture has come from and that we still have a ways to go.  She came from a time when women's education was unheard of and deemed unnecessary, or even burdensome.  She prevailed, and with the help of her friends and family wrote one of the world's most famous novels in history.  Whenever I read Shelley's writing I am reminded of the importance of having speakers from all walks of the earth heard.  Much of history is about the white male creators, musicians, poets, but it is immensely important to note the other voices too.  Without them, the whole picture is incomplete.

Works Cited

“Mary Shelley Quotes.” BrainyQuote, Xplore, www.brainyquote.com/authors/mary_shelley. Accessed 27 Sept. 2017.

“Mary Shelley.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 26 Sept. 2017, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Shelley. Accessed 27 Sept. 2017.

Mary Wollstonecraft, knarf.english.upenn.edu/Wollston/wollston.html. Accessed 27 Sept. 2017.

Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley -- Biography, knarf.english.upenn.edu/MShelley/bio.html. Accessed 27 Sept. 2017.

The Norton Anthology of English Literature. 9th ed. vol 2. Eds. Stephen Greenblatt et al.

William Godwin, knarf.english.upenn.edu/Godwin/godwin.html. Accessed 27 Sept. 2017.

When a Mononym gets a Last Name

Rihanna

So we all know Rihanna, international pop star, fashion and beauty icon, and now entrepreneur.
According to biography.com Robyn Rihanna Fenty moved to the United states of America from her home island Barbados at the age of 16. She moved in with music producer Evan Rodgers and his family in order to begin pursuing music. In 2005 Rodgers got Rihanna an audition with Jay Z, the then new president of Def Jam Records. From then on she became a household name, taking the music world by storm with her hits "Pon de Replay", "Unfaithful", and "SOS". Throughout her career her presence in the media has been prevalent; whether from her onslaught of awards she received, a new red carpet look wear she slayed in that classic Rihanna way, or in a bit of a darker light. In 2009 Rihanna and then boyfriend Chris Brown made headlines after he assaulted her before an awards ceremony. During the course of events that followed Rihanna became a spokesperson against domestic violence. In recent years Rihanna has even been awarded the Harvard Humanitarian awards for the efforts she has made towards helping student obtain education.

Rihanna has always been an advocate for women's right to dress however they want. Often seen on the red carpet in sheer and revealing ensembles she is has never allowed the public's opinion of an issue as small as some slightly exposed nipple slow her down. While she wouldn't be what many individuals would coin a "warrior woman" she has however pioneered one of the most inclusive steps for women. A make-up brand whose shades and products span the spectrum of ALL women! Fenty Beauty, named from the singer last name is the worlds first all inclusive make up brands containing the lightest lights and the darkest darks. The line launched in the recent weeks and already has beauty guru's going crazy.

Make up has long been a form of free self expression for women. The way that you apply your eyeliner, the color lipstick you wear, whether you take the time to contour or simply slap some mascara on you lashes is the morning says a lot about who you are and Rihanna realizes that. She sees that with out a platform available for all skin tones then how are you truly free to expressive yourself. I have always found it hard to find make up in shades flattering to my own, often making me feel locked out of an arena I should've felt welcomed in. Now with the Fenty Beauty I have the opportunity to go in a make up store and find not only foundation but a highlighter and a nude lipstick that is actually nude.

Eva Perón

Eva Perón was born of very humble beginnings. Though Eva's family was of the lower class her dreams were grand. At fifteen years old she moved from Los Toldos, Argentina to Buenos Aires with hopes of becoming an actress. Luck was on Perón's side as she was able to live her dream, performing at both theatre's and on the radio. What's more interesting, however, is that Eva began her very own radio show. 

Eva portrayed women such as Catherine the Great and Queen Elizabeth I

Eva Perón gained and kept the love of the Argentinian people as the First Lady. She truly cared for her people and was a true warrior woman. As First Lady Eva dedicated herself to increasing and bettering the life of the poor in Argentina. She did this by creating her own foundation, the Eva Perón Foundation. Eva was not only a figurehead, she made sure to be present at the foundation and even wrote the checks out herself. Not only did the foundation gift money, but, food and medicine as well. 

Eva Once said, "I am one of you, I know what it is to go hungry."

Eva was a feminist! Eva fought for equality and was also a symbol of what women were capable of. Eva served as the minister of health and labor. This showed other women that it was indeed possible to rise, not only that it'd be possible to one day vote and do other things that only men were "allowed" to do, but to one day be able to hold an important and prestigious position. Eva said, "“Here it is, my sisters, summarized in a short letter of cramped handwriting, a long history of struggles, setbacks and hopes, which is why there is frustrated anger and menacing shadows, but also the joyful possibility of a triumphant t Evatdawn; the a victory for women over the denial, misunderstanding and vested interests of the hierarchy, cast off by our national awakening.”

All of the hard work that Eva had done made the people of Argentina love and respect her. Her early death from cervical cancer caused a country-wide grief.

The crowd goes wild at Eva's final speech

Fun Fact:

Eva was later portrayed by Madonna in a movie

Works Cited

The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica. “Eva Perón.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia                         Britannica, inc., 29 Mar. 2017, www.britannica.com/biography/Eva-Peron. Accessed 21                       Sept. 2017.

“Eva Perón.” Biography.com, A&E Networks Television, 28 Apr. 2017,         
                 www.biography.com/people/eva-per%C3%B3n-9437976. Accessed 21 Sept. 2017.

YM-CS, teleSUR /. “Eva Peron at the Heart of Women’s Vote in Argentina.” TeleSUR,                                          www.telesurtv.net/english/analysis/Eva-Peron-at-the-Heart-of-Womens-Vote-in-Argentina-                  20141110- 0041.html. Accessed 21 Sept. 2017.