Significance of the journey To the Lighthouse

Answer

Critically analyze the significance of the journey to the Lighthouse. [NU: 2019]

Virginia Woolf’s (1882–1941) “To the Lighthouse” (1927) ends with a journey. Mr. Ramsay, James, and Cam go by boat to the Lighthouse. Lily Briscoe stays at the summer house. She finishes her painting. This journey looks simple, but it is very deep. It connects the past and the present. It heals old wounds. It shows love, art, time, and memory.

Fulfillment of James’s Childhood Dream: The novel begins with little James Ramsay looking at the Lighthouse from the summer house window. He wanted to visit it when he was six. His mother, Mrs. Ramsay, promised,

“Yes, of course, if it’s fine tomorrow”.

But his father, Mr. Ramsay, crushed the hope. He says,

“But, it won’t be fine.”

The journey, many years later, fulfills this dream. James now rows the boat. He is no longer a child. The dream comes true, though Mrs. Ramsay is dead. This shows how memory and time are joined through the Lighthouse.

Healing Father–Children Relationship: At the start, James hated his father’s harshness. Woolf says,

“Had there been an axe handy……would have gashed a hole in his father’s breast and killed him,”

Cam also feared her father’s temper. During the boat journey, both children feel angry. Mr. Ramsay is rude and demanding. But as they sail, change comes. Mr. Ramsay praises James. He says,

“Well done!” James had steered them like a born sailor”.

James feels recognized. Cam also feels love. Old bitterness melts away. The journey heals the broken family bond.

Mr. Ramsay’s Need for Love and Recognition: Mr. Ramsay’s whole life, he wanted sympathy. Mrs. Ramsay gave it. After her death, he still wants it. On the morning of the journey, he turns to Lily Briscoe. He looked at Lily Briscoe for sympathy. He hoped she would say kind words. But Lily could not speak. She felt pity, but stayed