Chelsea Swan

The characters in Night and Day by Virginia Woolf probe and push against social conventions. Kathrine allows herself to be pulled into the impossible task of assisting her flighty mother in the writing of her grandfather’s biography, and far from providing a stimulating diversion from boredom, this becomes a stone weighing her down and dragging her back into the past. She is afraid of the sacrifice’s marriage will entail, but she is also afraid of having to remain dependent on her parents forever. As a woman, what real choice does she have? Is there another way? Mary thinks she is in love, but she gradually learns that her work is the only thing that gives her true satisfaction. Able to channel her passion and talents into a fulfilling form of self-expression, Mary doesn’t necessarily need a husband; her work is sufficient, and this can be a legitimate way to live her life. This is a daring conclusion indeed for a novel written in 1919. Night and Day might be mainly about the difference between men and women, but it is also to a certain extent about the difference between the soul and society, and how we are often forced to behave in a way that is totally opposite to our desire to satisfy others and conform to the expectations of our peers. There is a darkness, an unfathomable depth within each of us that we are never permitted to expose to the light of day; how do we find happiness when so much of our true selves is forced to remain hidden?