Virginia Woolf

Our adventure begins just outside Monk's House

Monk's House is an 18th century

cottage in the village of Rodmell,

England. It was the home of

Virginia and Leonard Woolf. Just

outside Monk's House runs the river

Ouse, where Virginia Woolf

tragically took her own life.

As we wait for the gates of Monk's House to open,

lets wander a bit. We can rest here, by the local

graveyard. The gravestones are so weathered, many of the names are unreadable, but there is something romantic about the quaint area. Close your eyes and listen to the children of the nearby school playing. The weather is brisk, but the warm sun feels nice as we pause to listen and reminisce on Virginia's life.

Let's sneak a look into the back of Monk's House, as the gates still have not opened.

Behind us are the fields Virginia liked to walk in. She generally traveled on foot over fences and through heavy grasses.

There are two options for our trip to the river Ouse. We can take the road traveled, or we may take Virginia's path through tall grasses and fences.

The downs are all around us.

As Dr. Sparks notes in her

article, "Woolf on the Downs,"

these slow rolling hills had

relaxing, restorative powers for

Virginia, especially in her

times of medical difficulties.

Dr. Sparks recognizes, "over and

over again, Woolf's diaries and

letter chant the restorative

effects of the South Downs." So,

as we walk through the same

Downs which Virginia loved,

try to absorb some of the calming,

sloping views. Do they, as they

reminded Virginia, make you

think of a calm, rolling sea?

So as we walk...

The grasses and flowers are so heavy, we could get lost in them. Virginia was clearly in wonderful physical health when she made this trek. It is a long journey over very uneven terrain. But during our walk, it is easy to see why Virginia Woolf was so keen to walk through the grasses. Wouldn't you say this is one of the most beautiful areas you have ever seen?

And then we encounter

our first fence. Dr. Sparks

climbs over the fence

with only slight trepidation,

even pausing to pose for a

picture. It is easy to imagine

Virginia in this same pose.

So upon our walk, we run into

some lovely British workmen. They

inform us they are "quite bored" with

their work (fixing fences along the river),

so they've paused to take a moment off.

Since the men are on a self

determined break, they are more than

happy to point out the area "where

Virginia Woolf bought it."

We struggle to keep from laughing

out loud as the river men take our picture

next to the river Ouse.

And of course, our

visit to the river would

not be complete if we

were to avoid filling our

pockets with stones, as

Virginia did before she

took her own life.

Interestingly enough,

only days before Virginia

killed herself, she returned

to Monk's House soaking

wet. When Leonard Woolf

asked about Virginia's wet

state, she informed him she

fell in one of the tidal rivers.

It is possible Virginia had

considered killing herself,

but the attempt had fallen

through.

The workers are even kind

enough to assist us with our

descent down the hill as we leave

the river.

And now Monk's House

is probably open to the

public, so we head back.

This time we take the road.

Fortunately the path is

almost as picturesque as our

previous trailblazing.

This walk has been exhausting, though

I am not sure what else we could have

expected. We know Virginia Woolf loved

walking through the rolling hills of the

countryside, which is why we decided to

make the trek through the high grasses. As

quoted in Dr. Elisa Spark's "Woolf on the Downs,"

Virginia commented, "Oh the joy of walking!

I've never felt it so strong in me!...

The trance like swimming, flying through

the air; the current of sensations and ideas;

and the slow but fresh change of the down,

of the road, of colour..."(D4 246). Thus, Virginia

was probably in awesome shape compared to

our little group!

And now we head

up the stairs at the

side of Monk's House...

Before we enter the house, note what was initially created as Virginia's bedroom but the Woolfs instead used as a guestroom/study. Visitors such as T.S. Eliot slept there on visits. The room is

off-limits to visitors, as the

tenants live there, but it is still

worth seeing from the outside.

And now upon entering Monk's House,

it is important that we note that the

entire home is decorated with artwork

from various members of the Bloomsbury

Group, including work by Roger Fry,

Vanessa Bell, and Duncan Grant.

This portrait of Virginia, painted

by her sister, Vanessa Bell, is one

of the few portraits that exists of

Virginia. One of the reasons there

are so few portraits is that

Virginia hated sitting still long

enough for someone to paint her.

This copy of the short story, "In the Orchard" has been rebound in a style similar to that which Virginia used to rebound books.

Through examining this painting

of the Woolf's cook (done by Trekkie)

we learn about Virginia's relationship

with her servants.

Virginia adored playing bowls in the yard,

so we need to make sure we take a close

look at where she played before we leave.

The living room of

the house features

Leonard's work desk.

The area serves as a

display with letters, files,

and a small cactus, offering

us a glimpse into the life

of Leonard Woolf.

As we continue our walk

through Monk's House, try

to note the beautiful decor.

To the right of the stairs, we

see an extravagant butterfly

collection. The collection was actually found in the attic of Monk's House. It remains unknown whether or not the collection was created by Virginia or one of her siblings.

It's hard to resist falling

in love with little pieces

of furniture, such as this

little green stove.

So, shall we head into the kitchen?

More Charlestonesque furniture...

• This one in
• particular is a sketch
• of the firescreen
• by Duncan Grant.

Here we see one of the eight bronze copies of Stephen Tomlin's bust of

Virginia Woolf. Other copies are

located in gardens of Tavistock Square, Charleston, and in the British Library

And now we'll venture to

Virginia's bedroom.

These books are Virginia's

rebound editions of Shakespeare's

works. Virginia rebound each

play by hand. The books actually

came back to Monk's House as a

recent donation from a family

living in the neighborhood. Many

artifacts from Virginia's life, such

as these priceless books, are being

returned to their home at Monk's

House through generous donations.

And FINALLY,

we can head to the

gardens of Monk's House

The flowers are so bright

and colorful, they seem

surreal. But things just grow

better in England. Certainly

the sun has not washed out

any of these plants.

When the Woolf family first moved

to Monk's House and began choosing

gardening tactics, they stayed, for the

most part, within the realm of traditional

gardening styles. Also, from 1919 to

1928, the Woolf's financial state kept

them from extraordinarily large changes

in the gardens. Eventually after the

publication of Orlando and the Leonard's

increased knowledge of botany, the garden

began to develop into more advanced stages.

After Virginia's Orlando (1928) eased some of the Woolf's financial strain, Leonard hired a gardener, made structural improvements to the gardens, and planted hedges, yews, and honeysuckles. In 1932, the Woolfs commissioned the creation of the dew pond.

World War II caused considerable change

in the production of Leonard's vegetable

garden. He increased the growth of onions,

honey, currants, apples, plums, pears, and

many more vegetables.

It is sometimes suggested that parts

of Virginia's final novel, Between

the Acts, incorporates images from

the Woolf's gardens at Monk's House.

In Dr. Elisa Sparks' "Bloomsbury in Bloom," she comments that Virginia Woolf actually maintained only a moderate knowledge of contemporary gardening styles. Many of Virginia's garden descriptions were actually metaphorical.

Leonard's vegetable garden

When Leonard began his relationship with

Trekkie Parsons after Virginia's death, the garden shifted to incorporate more exotic, oriental plant-life.

The Dew Pond

And so our journey now draws to a close.

With the end of our exploration of the river

Ouse, Monk's House, and the gardens of

Monk's House, we owe a special thanks to

our educational narrator, Dr. Elisa Sparks.

Also, thank you to the National Trust for

doing such a wonderful job preserving

Monk's House for all Woolf fans to visit.

Dr. Elisa Kay Sparks, Kew Gardens

Her essays, "Monk's House Garden," "Woolf on the Downs," and "Bloomsbury in Bloom" were essential in the making of this production.

Because you never know when a garden

might be behind

another Monk's

House.

So here's to those who,

like Virginia, see the whole

garden in everything they

look at... no matter how

eclectic the garden may be.

And of course, thank you Virginia, who sees the flowers in everything.

Note the wild orchids

Obviously we have chosen Virginia's path. And thus, the true adventure begins.

So the gates of Monk's House are still not open. Let's go ahead and take our trip to the river Ouse.

Or when a Monk's House

might hold another

Virginia Woolf.