The Narrator
The unnamed female narrator is the only major character
in A Room of One's Own. She refers to herself only
as “I”; in chapter one of the text, she tells the reader to call
her “Mary Beton, Mary Seton, Mary Carmichael or any other name you
please . . . ” The narrator assumes each of these names at various
points throughout the text. The constantly shifting nature of her
identity complicates her narrative even more, since we must consider
carefully who she is at any given moment. However, her shifting
identity also gives her a more universal voice: by taking on different
names and identities, the narrator emphasizes that her words apply
to all women, not just herself.
The dramatic setting for A Room of One's Own is
Woolf's thought process in preparation for giving a lecture on the
topic “women and fiction.” But the fictionalized narrator is distinct
from the author Woolf. The narrator lends a storylike quality to
the text, and she often blends fact and fiction to prove her points.
Her liberty with factuality suggests that no irrefutable truth exists
in the world—all truth is relative and subjective.
The narrator is an erudite and engaging storyteller, and
she uses the book to explore the multifaceted and rather complicated
history of literary achievement. Her provocative inquiries into
the status quo of literature force readers to question the widely
held assumption that women are inferior writers, compared to men,
and this is why there is a dearth of memorable literary works by
women. This literary journey is highlighted by numerous actual journeys,
such as the journey around Oxbridge College and her tour of the
British library. She interweaves her journeys with her own theories
about the world—including the principle of “incandescence.” Woolf defines
incandescence as the state in which everything is personal burns
away and what is left is the “nugget of pure truth” in the art. This
is the ideal state in which everything is consumed in the intensity
and truth of one's art. The narrator skillfully leads the reader through
one of the most important works of feminist literary history to
date.
