Woolfian gender borders

The aim of this latest article by Marek Kucharski is to point out that the present-day discussion concerning the problem of gender identity is not a new phenomenon. Its beginnings can be traced as far back as antiquity. Throughout history it assumed various forms in numerous myths of different ethnic origins. As for modernist writers and thinkers, the idea of crossing gender borders was intriguingly explored by Virginia Woolf in her controversial novel ‘Orlando’. The book can be perceived as a farewell eulogy written to please Vita Sackville-West, whose long-lasting relationship with Woolf contributed considerably to her development as a writer.

‘Orlando’ is an experimental novel which spans a period of nearly four hundred years. During this time the eponymous hero undergoes a sexual transition from male to female, at the same time witnessing historical events and social transformations. In the course of the narrative Woolf ponders the issue of sexual identity as seen from a feminist perspective in the first part of the 20th century. Her ideas and concerns appear to be of a more universal character, a point later exemplified in the work of modern feminist writers like Angela Carter and Jeanette Winterson, both of whom enter into an intertextual dialogue with Woolf.

The article was published  in  "Perspectives on Past Achievements, Present Realities and Future Prospects", co-edited by Marcin Jaroszek - theAboutProject.com manager and reviewed by a champion of Poland’s English studies – Prof. dr hab. Teresa Bela.