To the Lighthouse

“One of Woolf's most beloved novels, To the Lighthouse, finally gets a Norton Critical Edition. In Margaret Homans, To the Lighthouse has an ideal editor, for Homans brings her deep knowledge of the Victorian world Woolf portrays, her long admiration for Woolf, and her feminism to bear on the novel. The generous and welcoming introduction will help new and returning readers to explore the rich contextual and critical material that accompanies the text. The abundant and diverse materials here—from writings by Woolf’s parents and fairy tales, to physics and art, to early reviews and recent criticism—will all support a wide range of critical approaches and invite new readings. What a treat for readers!” —Anne Fernald, Fordham University

“Margaret Homans’ vision of To the Lighthouse is replete. A magnificent array of contexts complements the annotated text, including familial and literary sources for the novel; a chronology of its composition and reception; early reviews; and scholarly interpretations addressing gender, empire, and the role of the artist. The introduction considers the novel’s debt to philosophy, its structure and style, its revelation of the social changes wrought by World War I, and the effect of its Scottish setting. Having studied Woolf with Margaret Homans as an undergraduate, I am delighted that her thoughtful teaching is now widely available in this wonderful classroom edition.” —Emily Kopley, McGill University

“What excellent choices! This splendid edition of To the Lighthouse will make all the difference, thanks to its dynamic array of explanatory contexts, backgrounds, and sources—its ideal set of historical, political, theoretical, and biographical frameworks. The editor’s introduction is a marvelous crash course in the many points of interest that have made To the Lighthouse so essential, and the edition as a whole, with its authoritative text and diverse pathways for interpretation, is really perfect for everyone from general readers to students in courses at all levels to the most seasoned Woolfians. This Norton edition has it all. It’s the single best option for anyone who wants to know everything about To the Lighthouse.” —Jesse Matz, Kenyon College

This Norton Critical Edition includes:

• The American edition of the novel, first published by Harcourt Brace in 1927, introduced and annotated by Margaret Homans.
• A 1924-28 chronology of To the Lighthouse’s composition, revision, publication, and reception.
• A rich selection of background materials, thematically organized for ease of reference. Topics include: “Autobiographical Writings,” “Family and Other Contemporary Contexts and Sources,” “Essays by Virginia Woolf,” and “Literary Sources.”
• Nine critical assessments of To the Lighthouse, from publication to the present day, by Arthur Sydney McDowell, Louis Kronenberger, Mary Colum, Francis Brown, Erich Auerbach, Adrienne Rich, Rachel Bowlby, Pamela L. Caughie, and Urmila Seshagiri.
• A chronology and a selected bibliography