Virginia Woolf in English

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isuhefu
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Virginia Woolf in English

Mensaje por isuhefu »

Have you ever read Virginia Woolf in English?

Which is the last novel in English you've read?


I have my English almost "out of service". Sometimes I read paragraphs from novels or short stories to check the traslation but I speak or write it very rarely.

Anyway, during the last weeks I've bought 4 books by Virginia Woolf in English because I love the way she writes:

- The Waves (already read in Spanish)
- Orlando. A biography
- To the Lighthouse (already read in Spanish)
- A Room Of One's Own & The Voyage Out
Non sopporto piú le persone che mi annoiano anche pochissimo e mi fanno perdere anche solo un secondo di vita. Goffredo Parise
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Jarg
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Re: Virginia Woolf in English

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Interesting choice. I've only read Mrs.Dalloway (in Spanish) and I loved it but I'm not sure I would have enjoyed in English (I think her style requires an extensive knowledge of vocabulary in order to appreciate the complexity of it). When I read in English I tend to choose easier writers such as Asimov, Agatha Christie, etc.

Let us know how it goes 🙂.
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isuhefu
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Re: Virginia Woolf in English

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You're right, @Jarg, reading Virginia Woolf is very complex, it requires a huge effort. But, in my opinion, there is not only joy with pleasure but also with effort.

My level is quite far from understand all the vocabulary and expressions she uses but I don't need to understand every single word because I also like to deduce it (or not :wink:). I don't stop the reading each time I have doubts, I continue and maybe search some of them later on.

By the way, my last novel in English was Oliver Twist, by Dickens. A true "brick" but I liked a lot during the whole month I needed to read it. I'm sure it would not be the same satisfaction in Spanish.

Which was your last novel in English?
Non sopporto piú le persone che mi annoiano anche pochissimo e mi fanno perdere anche solo un secondo di vita. Goffredo Parise
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Jarg
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Re: Virginia Woolf in English

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Wow, Oliver Twist must have been hard (but also fulfilling) to read :) .

My last novel in English was "A column of fire", by Ken Follet (the third volume of the Pillars of the Earth series).
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Yppe
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Re: Virginia Woolf in English

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Hi :hola: I am reading Mrs Dalloway right now. Before, I read A room of one's own, which I really love it and I found quite easy to read, so it's a good one to start in English with Woolf. Then I read Orlando, which I liked, but it was far more complex, the reading process was quite slow, and of course I didn't understand everything. However, in the end the experience was positive and that's why I am also reading in English Mrs Dalloway instead of a translation, I always try to read in the original language whenever I can. Now I am halfway throught the book and I am finding it slightly easier than Orlando.
Última edición por Yppe el 03 May 2022 20:20, editado 1 vez en total.
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isuhefu
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Re: Virginia Woolf in English

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Hi @Yppe and @Jarg, I'm glad to see you on this thread :D

Last weekend I started to read A Room Of One's Own, by V. Woolf. It's not that I aim to go through it until the end quickly but to read it in paralell with others. It's short and, as the other main books by Woolf, beautifully written. I plan to leave here my impressions and practice my writting in English.

In my bed table I have The Waves, which I've already read in Spanish, and from time to time I read some pages just to enjoy the marvellous poetry of every single part of it. An absolute masterpiece of literature!

I would love to keep on exchanging messages in English with you both and with everybody who join us.

:hola:
Non sopporto piú le persone che mi annoiano anche pochissimo e mi fanno perdere anche solo un secondo di vita. Goffredo Parise
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Jarg
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Re: Virginia Woolf in English

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@isuhefu there's a survey right now in the Reading club sub-forum to choose the book we'll read in July and Mrs Dalloway is one of them :)
Yo amo a la humanidad. Es la gente lo que no soporto.
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isuhefu
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Re: Virginia Woolf in English

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Hi @Jarg, thanks for the warning. I've already seen the Reading club thread but I read it in february 2022.

My next Woolf's novel will be Orlando: A Biography. But first I need to focus a little bit because I'm starting to read too many books just to take a glance and I don't continue with them until the end.

:hola:
Non sopporto piú le persone che mi annoiano anche pochissimo e mi fanno perdere anche solo un secondo di vita. Goffredo Parise
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isuhefu
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Re: Virginia Woolf in English

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I've just finished Chapter 1 of A Room of One's Own. Virginia is quite angry with the differences in any issue between men and women. Describing several examples she ends up concluding that women themselves are very guilty of their own destiny because of their wrong attitudes.

Keeping connected with the text is quite difficult in English due the complex vocabulary and expressions but, in my opinion, it worths the effort because you read it as it was written, with its huge load of poetry as usual with Virginia.
Non sopporto piú le persone che mi annoiano anche pochissimo e mi fanno perdere anche solo un secondo di vita. Goffredo Parise
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