FREE ESSAY ON A ROOM OF ONE'S OWN

A ROOM OF ONE'S OWN

Hundreds of years ago, an unconscious culture diseased the female population. Similar to
Shakespeare's sister, women were conditioned to conform to a feminine ideology. This
concept of femininity spread through out the country essentially defining the nature of a
woman and robbing them of their innate sense of self. While women may have dreamed about
the day when their creative spirit could be unleashed, those dreams were quickly
interrupted by the powerful grasp of male dominance. By repressing women, the feminine
role of dependency and obedience was maintained. In return, society's power structure
became refueled and the patriarchy was perpetuated. Through time the power structure has
broken down, however, I believe Shakespeare's sister continues to exist in many women,
still in search of a room of one's own. 
Virginia Woolf stressed the importance of having a room of one's own or a place to
discover and explore the creative self. She encourages the young women to develop the
habit of freedom and the courage to write exactly what they think. More than seventy
years later, Woolf's words remain applicable. Women are still struggling to confront the
courage and ...face the fact...that there is no arm to cling to.... For, while the
societal barriers have disappeared, the mental barriers have not. Though few women are
expected to be submissive and obedient, the ideology of the feminine role continues to
starve women's souls. The pressure to get married and have children while pushing one's
personal desires and passions aside persists. 
Thus, when a woman's soul is in a state of starvation, she becomes a walking skeleton,
merely existing through life. As the natural gifts she is born with stay buried and
unnourished, she becomes a complete stranger to herself. In order to reawaken the sense
of self, she must express her instinctive cravings. When this is accomplished
Shakespeare's sister will emerge and a room of one's own will be discovered.