Reviews tagging 'Colonisation'

Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf

12 reviews

toffishay's review against another edition

dark emotional funny reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Classism, Death, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide

Moderate: Sexism, Toxic relationship, Confinement, and Forced institutionalization

Minor: Cursing, Grief, Fatphobia, Lesbophobia, Colonisation, Murder, Sexual harassment, Stalking, Violence, War, and Xenophobia

grereads's review against another edition

challenging emotional inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I absolutely loved the book. The -0.5 stars is just because it was sometimes difficult to keep up with the narration, since it was my first time reading something written in stream of consciousness. I loved how the narration is presented through the thoughts of the different characters and how there are many different points of view. I also liked how the characters' personalities can be understood both through their own analysis of themselves and through what the other characters think of them. Septimus and Peter were characters that particularly impressed me. The passage about Sir. William Bradshaw and his love of proportion/conversion is one of the greatest pieces of writing I've ever read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Mental illness, Medical trauma, Death, and Suicide

Moderate: Colonisation, War, and Forced institutionalization

scmiller's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad slow-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Racial slurs, Suicidal thoughts, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicide attempt, Body shaming, Death, Mental illness, Racism, Suicide, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , War, Misogyny, Self harm, and Colonisation

Moderate: Grief, Homophobia, Medical content, Medical trauma, Racial slurs, Racism, and Lesbophobia

Minor: Slavery and Grief

annaki_laila's review against another edition

challenging reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness and Suicide

Minor: Colonisation and Racism

kers_tin's review against another edition

hopeful lighthearted reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Suicide, Racism, Xenophobia, Suicide attempt, Forced institutionalization, Suicidal thoughts, Medical trauma, War, Classism, Ableism, Colonisation, and Mental illness

Moderate: Gun violence and Grief

iridium's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness and Suicide

Moderate: War and Alcohol

Minor: Colonisation

edwardian_girl_next_door's review against another edition

challenging emotional inspiring reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This is my second time reading this book, and it is still one of my favourite reads of all time. Call me corny, but this is the book that changed how I look at expression and writing in fiction. The prose, almost water-like, flows through London over the course of one day, exploring lost loves, failures, mental illness, and the effects of colonialism and WWI. Each stream-of-conscious phrase is made with tenderly chosen words, full of Woolf's poigniant observance that makes the world almost painful to observe. It is a female-centred novel, with snippets of monologs from women of all different classes peppered throughout the unconventional narrative. I am forever impressed by how many threads Woolf manages to pack into one story, from the death of the old order to female agency in a metropolitan environment. There are so many little details to work out, and yet the whole thing glides so smoothly along that you don't want to stop reading! It's not for everyone, especially those who don't like the Modernists, but it takes my breath away every time I read it. I think if you're interested, give it a shot! It certainly can't hurt! (Check the content warnings though).

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Death, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Self harm

Moderate: Classism and Colonisation

Minor: War and Racism

grboph's review against another edition

reflective relaxing slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

I am very glad I read this book. While I did find large parts of it boring, since I have never been much of a fan of books without a lot of plot or character development, I really enjoyed the deep dives into each of the characters' histories and all of the messages contained in the story. I really liked how time and mental illness played a large role (especially since mental illness was something that was so stigmatized at the time this book was published) and I think it also has a lot of valuable things to say about the role of women in society, especially in relation to the roles of men. I also loved that since there was a very slow pace and no real plot, we got to spend a lot of time with each character and really find out what makes them tick, even if they only played a very minor role in the actual events of the story. Because of these things, I gave the book a fairly high rating even though I tend to prefer books that are faster-paced than this one and have more of a plot. Still, I am very happy to have read it and I would recommend it to anyone who is looking for something introspective or philosophical to read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Mental illness, and Suicide

Moderate: Classism, Colonisation, Racism, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Forced institutionalization, and War

Minor: Misogyny and Suicidal thoughts

One of the main plot points in this book is how one character (a World War I veteran) undergoes a failed psychiatric treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder and hallucinations and then commits suicide when people come to take him to a psychiatric hospital. There is also some general misogyny and racism (which were widespread in society during the time in which this book is set) and several mentions of British imperialism and the colonization of India.

heini's review against another edition

challenging reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Suicide, Mental illness, and Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Colonisation

abbysg808's review against another edition

reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Suicide, Mental illness, and Colonisation