Where to start with Virginia woolf? Short stories? Novels? Essays? I arrived here after an argument in a YouTube comments section.For context I have struggled with mental illness since childhood (though never hospitalized) lately at 34 years old i've been a bit desperate to insights into the way I feel and how I see the world and such.Related but, anyone read "adeline" by that author norah Vincent who comitted suicide? Or any other of her works?
>>25423986A Room Of One's Own
>>25423989That's a nonfiction essay about feminism and stuff right? I remember being assigned some in college maybe? Is that really where one ought to begin?
>>25423986just plunge in to whatever appeals to you, dude. personally i started with mrs dalloway and then moved on to the waves. there's no such thing as the right place to start, people only fret over that question in order to procrastinate on actually reading.
Always chose what book you will read by either size, price, cover or some random youtuber tier list.
>>25423986I haven't read all of her work, but just based on To The Lighthouse and Mrs Dalloway she's probably my favorite author. I read To The Lighthouse first and it really captivated me, so starting there worked for me.
>>25423992>about feminism and stuff rightIt also applies to men with roommates. Truly, in order to not merely survive but to thrive, all of us require... a room of one's own.
>>25423986chatgpt the book summaries/topics and pick the one you are most interested in
Orlando
Don't start with Jacob's Room or The Waves, those are her most experimental and impenetrable books. For fiction, start with Dalloway or Lighthouse. If you want non-fiction, start with something general and basic like Death of the Moth or On Not Knowing Greek.
>>25424555>>25424316Thanks>>25424311Jesus why the fuck would I look at AI slop are you trolling?
>>25424906>Jesus why the fuck would I look at AI slop are you trolling?This is one of the legitimate use cases for it. Reactionaries are so boring and irrational.
>>25424918I'm not a reactionary and no reading an AI summarize books would>potentially bias me in favor of the training data bias>contain spoilers that might affect the experience>contain hallucinations and inaccuracies>erode my native capacity to gather information and solve problems.Any use of AI other than mathematical research or coding is generally retarded, it's lazy and potentially detrimental. The people who overpromote AI are iconoclasts who want to destroy art that they say is elitist.
>>25423986What was the youtube argument?
>>25424555>The Wavestrue that, she peaked with that one
>>25425301About Norah Vincent's political views and when and why she killed herself and what book she published soonest before her death.
>>25424555>trips Checked>>25423986OP, I agree with trips. I say start with Dalloway then Lighthouse. Don't skip the nonfiction, those two essays are great -- she also wrote a series of essays on books she admired called "The Common Reader," it was collected in a few volumes. Just pick whatever sounds interesting from that, if she's written about a writer you like. Really perceptive and joyous critic, makes her style really shine
>>25425991>Norah VincentOh shit I remember her. Why did she kill herself? Similar reason as Woolf?
>>25423986Orlando!
>>25426011>if she's written about a writer you like. Really perceptive and joyous critic, makes her style really shinenot OP but thanks for this info. There's a copy of this at my local used book store but I've never picked it up because I already have a handful of random things by her that I haven't gotten to yet, like "A Writer's Diary" etc. I'm going to snag that later today now. I heard that she was inspired by Proust so I've been working my way through "In Search of Lost Time" and I love seeing the moments in Proust that have a clear path towards Woolf. I'd love to see what else she praised.>Really perceptiveThis is no surprise, both Proust and Woolf seem to have a knack for accurately describing really low level subconscious stuff that I experience but would never even think to put to words. It's some of my favorite stuff to read desu
>>25426011I'm reading Ms. Dalloway and I love it, it's very refreshing and acessible and brisk, not overburdened. I waited too long to get into her!>>25428142Well both had either major depression or bipolar depression, both were gay and had some gender stuff going on, both had a long term struggle with seeking out mental health care and finding it unsatisfactory.Beyond that, much else is speculation. But Norah Vincent and her mental health/ suicide seems to be remembered by every online chuddy guy, who of course don't know anything close to the full story even as far as what is on Wikipedia.I ordered some of her books to find out for myself, but it looks like she was a famous gender critical "TERF," libertarian, anti multiculturalist lesbian. she assumed the identity of a man for 18 months in the early 2000s, wrote a book about it in 2006, and afterword said a bunch of pro mens rights things on TV. In 2008 she put out another book about her experiences seeking out psychiatric care, saying she had acquired a persistent identity disorder from the experience. In 2016, she wrote a novel about Virginia woolf, her last book, (which got good reviews) and committed doctor assisted suicide in 2022. It's quite ironic that men on the internet frame it as "she was a feminist who killed herself because being a man was too hard" when in reality she was a culturally conservative anti trans pro mens rights lesbian who, going from the surface level statements, killed herself in part because she liked living as a man so much she couldn't enjoy life afterword, and her anti trans views may have caused some self loathing.But i'll make a thread about it once i read her books.>>25429251>describing low level subconscious stuff that I experience but would never even think to put into words. I feel this way and i'm barely 30 pages in! Couldn't have said it better myself.>>25429062I did pick this up as well! The used paperbacks are so nice and cheap.
