Books Quote by Virginia Woolf
““Nor praise the deep vermilion in the rose," she read, and so reading she was ascending, she felt, on to the top, on to the summit. How satisfying! How restful! All the odds and ends of the day stuck to this magnet; her mind felt swept, felt clean. And then there it was, suddenly entire; she held it in her hands, beautiful and reasonable, clear and complete, here--the sonnet. But she was becoming conscious of her husband looking at her. He was smiling at her, quizzically, as if he were ridiculing her gently for being asleep in broad daylight, but at the same time he was thinking, Go on reading. You don't look sad now, he thought. And he wondered what she was reading, and exaggerated her ignorance, her simplicity, for he liked to think that she was not clever, not book-learned at all. He wondered if she understood what she was reading. Probably not, he thought. She was astonishingly beautiful. Her beauty seemed to him, if that were possible, to increase.””
About This Quote
Source Novel: Mrs Dalloway, 1925 (excerpt)
Reading a sonnet brings the woman peace and clarity, while her husband watches, questioning her intellect.
In simple terms: A poem calms her; husband doubts her.
Appreciate art’s calming power.
Themes
Mood
Type
When to use this quote
- literature
- psychology
- social commentary
Key Concepts
Questions to Reflect On
- Does the husband’s attitude undermine her experience?
- How does literature provide refuge?
The husband’s condescension may reflect broader societal biases.