Thank you for this post which brings the weight of that day in 1941 to March 28, 2025. Not only for the weight of sorrow I feel for all she suffered due to mental illness but gratitude for the love and clarity she embodied in her life, against all odds. Time for me to read Mrs. Dalloway and To the Lighthouse again, along with watching "The Hours" yet another time, and reading her writing that I've never gotten around to.
Thank you. Such a sensitive and thoughtful analyses of something too many still think of, but don’t say, is a selfish act. The poignant nature and superb writing here dissipates and reveals a deeper element of suffering which surpasses the life experience for so many people.
The sensitive, vulnerable, and caring souls are the ones who have a difficult time living in this world of suffering. A great loss of a beautiful human being. Very relatable. Suicide is an act of great courage. May she rest in Peace.
Horrific mental illness... still haven't made much progress for the sufferers and for those left behind when suicide is seemingly the only answer. Heart goes out to you all. 💔
We will achieve nothing by shaming the dead. Suicide is the most complex act a human can commit. To take one's own life takes a level of emotional distraught the living simply won't ever be able to relate to. If there is an afterlife, maybe then we'd have a chance in saying "I understand".
What we can do is to hear fully what the dead has said to us before passing. Virginia Woolf, like many others, left her final words on paper so that maybe, just maybe, she will be better understood, because somehow and for some reason, there was a breakdown in alignment between her voice and the world.
We can't bring them back, and we certainly shouldn't blame them or victimize anyone involved; what we can do, however, is listen attentively to others and show utmost patience, so that we can be better equipped in sympathizing at all future times.
Such a beautiful sentiment as testimony of one's heart and soul express grace and compassion human suffering. I found your insightful perspective admirable and inspiring. The very sad reality is that although mental illness is finally recognized as a detrimental suffering to the human experience.....
Honestly, we should have a much greater understanding psychological factors impacted by inconsistencies in the brains function.
Again.... I just wanted to give my appreciation for speaking your truth and also speaking out for those who cannot.
With what dignity and thoughtful grace Virginia Woolf left this life, though tortured with her terrible mental illness, and what a rich legacy of work. Thank you for sharing her immensely touching letter. It doesn't get more real than this.
After watching The Hours, I wondered how different it might have been for her if she'd have lived in a different time - a time when women had freedom to be free from social norms and expectations but enjoyed independence instead. My mother committed suicide when she was 48 in 1951 and I still wonder.
Thank you for giving me this pause today.
"...the beauty of the world which is so soon to perish, has two edges, one of laughter, one of anguish, cutting the heart asunder."
- Virginia Woolf
Beautiful
This was heartbreaking yet beautiful in it’s own way. “Virginia’s attitude to death was very different. It was always present to her” Very relatable
When we learn that others can be in such emotional distress we see how valuable compassion is. Thank you for putting this up.
Thank you for this post which brings the weight of that day in 1941 to March 28, 2025. Not only for the weight of sorrow I feel for all she suffered due to mental illness but gratitude for the love and clarity she embodied in her life, against all odds. Time for me to read Mrs. Dalloway and To the Lighthouse again, along with watching "The Hours" yet another time, and reading her writing that I've never gotten around to.
Thank you. Such a sensitive and thoughtful analyses of something too many still think of, but don’t say, is a selfish act. The poignant nature and superb writing here dissipates and reveals a deeper element of suffering which surpasses the life experience for so many people.
Reading Virginia Woolf's last letter... devastating.
How can we understand, nay, even live fully again, when a much loved one chooses death.
I have been trying to learn since October 13, 1970.
I hope you’ve gotten even an inch closer in your quest for understanding.
The love she tried to show him even while committing this act. 💔
Heartbreaking
The sensitive, vulnerable, and caring souls are the ones who have a difficult time living in this world of suffering. A great loss of a beautiful human being. Very relatable. Suicide is an act of great courage. May she rest in Peace.
Horrific mental illness... still haven't made much progress for the sufferers and for those left behind when suicide is seemingly the only answer. Heart goes out to you all. 💔
We will achieve nothing by shaming the dead. Suicide is the most complex act a human can commit. To take one's own life takes a level of emotional distraught the living simply won't ever be able to relate to. If there is an afterlife, maybe then we'd have a chance in saying "I understand".
What we can do is to hear fully what the dead has said to us before passing. Virginia Woolf, like many others, left her final words on paper so that maybe, just maybe, she will be better understood, because somehow and for some reason, there was a breakdown in alignment between her voice and the world.
We can't bring them back, and we certainly shouldn't blame them or victimize anyone involved; what we can do, however, is listen attentively to others and show utmost patience, so that we can be better equipped in sympathizing at all future times.
Such a beautiful sentiment as testimony of one's heart and soul express grace and compassion human suffering. I found your insightful perspective admirable and inspiring. The very sad reality is that although mental illness is finally recognized as a detrimental suffering to the human experience.....
Honestly, we should have a much greater understanding psychological factors impacted by inconsistencies in the brains function.
Again.... I just wanted to give my appreciation for speaking your truth and also speaking out for those who cannot.
With what dignity and thoughtful grace Virginia Woolf left this life, though tortured with her terrible mental illness, and what a rich legacy of work. Thank you for sharing her immensely touching letter. It doesn't get more real than this.
I read The Waves years ago---it was a fever dream that changed my consciousness. That's what the great books do. She was brilliant.
After watching The Hours, I wondered how different it might have been for her if she'd have lived in a different time - a time when women had freedom to be free from social norms and expectations but enjoyed independence instead. My mother committed suicide when she was 48 in 1951 and I still wonder.
What a story and how heartbreaking both the writing of and the reading of this letter for them both.