Was Woolfs literary modernism derived from Freuds theories?
Thesis: Virginia Woolfs texts The New Dress and Kew Garden use Freuds theory of unconsciousness to addresses modernism through the themes of insecurity, individuality, class, and alienation
Proposal Paragraph: Modernism broke away from traditional, rules, and current methods of writing before the 20th century. Modernism is a concept that provides more freedom for new ideas than as seen in realism. This concept incorporated individualism, experimentation, symbolism, formalism, and absurdity. Virginia Woolf’s short stories The New Dress and Kew Garden addresses modernism through the themes of insecurity, individuality, class, and alienation. Both texts dive into stream of consciousness thinking that relate to Freud’s theory of the unconscious argues that most of what goes on with humans is at an unconscious level. Diving deeper into the psychology of how the mind works while comparing it to both stories will answer the question of how accurate Freud’s theory through literary analysis in addition to how influential, if any, he was on Woolf’s work.I am interested in this topic because I think Freud was more on the misogynistic side whereas Woolf was more of a feminist. I want to see if he did have an influence on her work and to determine if that influence negates her feminist ideals. Taking the time to learn more about Woolf and Freud’s past while evaluating both texts through the lense of a psychologist and a feminist will tell more about the themes and messages of the work. Mainly I want to answer these questions: How do both stories prove Freud’s theories, did Woolf pull inspiration from his teachings despite his stance on equality for both genders, where in the texts does it prove his theory, where is stream of consciousness thinking seen, and why was it important?
