Between the Acts - Softcover

Woolf, Virginia

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0199536570 ISBN 13: 9780199536573

Publisher: Oxford University Press España, S.A., 2008

Synopsis

The author's last novel, written during the early years of World War II, was completed just before her death. The action takes place on a single summer's day at a country house, Pointz Hall, in the heart of England. In the garden the villagers are presenting their annual pageant - on this occasion scenes from English history up to and including "ourselves, " the audience, in June 1939. During the interludes the inhabitants of Pointz Hall, the Olivers, their guests, and the villagers have tea, stroll, and talk. There is an intense interplay among the unhappy Isa Oliver, her handsome husband, Giles, whom she loves and hates, and a guest, Mrs. Manresa, who is pursuing him. A storm interrupts the final tableau, and the pageant comes to an end. The performers and the audience depart to resume their ordinary lives and Isa and Giles to confront each other.

About this title

Book Description:

Unlike most previous editions, the Cambridge edition returns to the final version of the novel as Woolf left it. With detailed explanatory notes, a chronology and an informative critical introduction, this volume will allow scholars to develop a fuller understanding of Woolf's last work.

From the Back Cover:

Initially overshadowed by Virginia Woolf's death and the Second World War, "Between the Acts" is now judged to be among the author's most challenging and subtle works. It is about many things, including marriage and jealousy, language and memory, artists, arts and audiences, and a society on the brink of war. In her early plans she called "Between the Acts" a medley. Included in the mix are literary genres she had written about throughout her career, echoes of her own works and allusions that range from the classics to popular songs. As the extensive notes to this edition show, in writing "Between the Acts "Woolf drew upon a capacious memory filled by a lifetime of reading, writing, listening and observing.

"Between the Acts" is both Woolf's last novel and the first of her works to be published posthumously. The first English edition was set from her final typescript, edited by Leonard Woolf for publication by the Hogarth Press soon after her death. The text of the Shakespeare Head Press edition is that of the first English edition emended on the basis of a comparison of it with her final typescript. The result is a text that is closer to "Between the Acts" as Virginia Woolf left it than are any earlier editions.

About this edition

• Publisher: Oxford University Press España, S.A.
• Publication date: 2008
• ISBN 10: 0199536570
• ISBN 13: 9780199536573
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 256