Virginia Woolf
In Night and Day, Virginia Woolf delves into the lives of two women, Katharine Hilbery and Mary Datchet, as they navigate the complexities of love, ambition, and societal roles in early 20th-century England. The novel contrasts the inner lives of its characters with the external pressures of their environment, exploring the tension between personal desires and societal expectations. Katharine, a poet caught between her literary aspirations and the expectations of marriage, and Mary, a suffragist dedicated to social change, embody the struggles of women seeking autonomy in a patriarchal society. Woolf’s innovative narrative style, characterized by stream-of-consciousness techniques, allows readers to intimately experience the characters’ thoughts and emotions. Night and Day is a profound meditation on the nature of relationships, the pursuit of individuality, and the interplay between night and day as metaphors for the dualities of life.
