What is the Bloomsbury Group?
A group of English artists, writers, and intellectuals associated with the Bloomsbury district of London in the early 20th century.
The Bloomsbury Group: A Blooming Intellect Hub
The Bloomsbury Group was a collective of artists, writers, and intellectuals that flourished in the early 20th century, centered in the Bloomsbury district of London. Led by the writers Virginia Woolf and E.M. Forster, the group included luminaries like John Maynard Keynes, Lytton Strachey, and Roger Fry.
They were known for their exploration of new ideas in literature, art, and philosophy, often defined by their rejection of Victorian conventions and their embrace of modernity. The group's members were particularly interested in the inner lives of their characters, and developed a new style of writing that emphasized psychological depth and introspection.
The Bloomsbury Group was also associated with the rise of English modernism, a cultural and artistic movement that sought to break with tradition and usher in a new era of creativity. Their influence can be seen in the work of later writers like T.S. Eliot, as well as in the broader cultural shifts of the 20th century.
The Bloomsbury Group has left a lasting impression on literature as well as the broader cultural landscape.
Mrs. Dalloway is one of Virginia Woolf's most famous novels and is an early masterpiece of the modernist movement. The novel chronicles a day in the life of Clarissa Dalloway, a well-to-do London socialite and her interactions with a variety of characters also in the Bloomsbury Group.
Forster's novel Howards End is an exploration of English society at the turn of the century, focusing on three families' intersecting lives. The novel explores the relationships among different social classes, and implicitly critiques distinctions between them. Many of the novel's characters are members of the Bloomsbury Group, and the novel captures the essence of their intellectual and artistic milieu while subtly critiquing it.