To the Lighthouse

A memento mori is a reminder that death is inevitable. Analyze the scene in Part 1 in which Mrs. Ramsay goes to check on her children after dinner and discuss the boar skull as a memento mori.

Vanessa Bell, Woolf’s artist sister, wrote a letter to Woolf on May 11, 1927 in which she states that Woolf’s portrayals of both Mrs. Ramsay, who represents their beloved mother, and Mr. Ramsay, who represents their father, are accurate. Bell goes on to say that the portrayal of Mr. Ramsay “isn’t quite so difficult,” implying that the portrayal of an individual with whom one had a challenging relationship is easier to accomplish than the opposite. From what you know about Mr. Ramsay, why might Bell have this opinion? Support your response with evidence from the text.

In To the Lighthouse, Woolf never refers to World War I by name, and she mentions war only briefly. What indirect references to the war are present in the novel, and what effect do they have on the atmosphere of Parts 2 and 3?