2. Critiquing Society

Available for over a year

‘They make life intolerable, men like that.’ A century on from the publication of Mrs Dalloway, Fiona Shaw explores what Virginia Woolf has to say to us today. With Clarissa Dalloway as our guide, we discover how Woolf captured and critiqued a modern world that was transforming around her, treated mental health as a human experience rather than a medical condition, and challenged gender norms in ways that seem light years ahead of even our present day discourse. In this episode, Fiona Shaw speaks with authors, academics and artists inspired by Virginia Woolf, about how Woolf critiqued systems of power and privilege. Fiona hears from authors Alison Light, Danell Jones, Michelle de Kretser, Michael Cunningham, and Mark Haddon; Senior Lecture in Modern Literature, Dr Clara Jones; Professor of English, Mark Hussey; and artist Kabe Wilson. Extracts read by Gwendoline Christie. Produced by Ellie Richold for BBC Audio