Leonard and Virginia Woolf: A Literary Partnership

Admitting that he dislikes Virginia Woolf's novels, Alexander has written a strongly negative study of Woolf in the guise of exploring the Woolfs' influence on each other's writing. Presenting Virginia as a frigid, anti-Semitic snob who lacked domestic skills, Alexander holds her responsible for Leonard's alienation from his Jewishness (expressed in his second novel, The Wise Virgins ). Drawing on the Woolfs' diaries and letters, as well as on interviews with Trekkie Parsons (with whom Leonard had a romance after Virginia's death), Alexander asserts that Leonard's decision against allowing Virginia to have children was directly responsible for her literary work, as she subliminated her desire for babies by writing. He also credits Leonard for whatever feminist attitudes she expressed in her novels (which Alexander judges as lacking both characterization and plots). This polemical work is sure to be controversial in scholarly circles. Alexander is an associate professor of English in Australia. Photos not seen by PW. (Jan.)