Kipling vs. Woolf essays

Kipling vs. Woolf essays Rudyard Kipling and Virginia Woolf, although both English writers, write from completely different perspectives and with completely different intentions. Kiplings book Kim does not tackle any specific social issues, but instead uses fiction to promote general themes of tolerance and the importance of education. Woolf, on the other hand, has the specific intention of showing the inferior role that women are forced to play in society and the effect that this role has on the aspiring female writer. She uses fiction to combat female inferiority and to prove that women can write just as well as men. Both Kipling and Woolf used fiction to describe the society in which they lived: Kipling wrote about India under British control and influence, and Woolf wrote about England during a time of male dominance and the suppression of female creativity. Overall, Kipling gives a more effective picture of society because he gives a more general depiction (while maintaining accuracy), he includes different perspectives of the society, and he places a larger emphasis on the importance and power of knowledge. Kiplings story starts out on the poor streets of an Indian city, where the reader encounters a wide range of personalities. As the book progresses, Kim comes in to contact with almost every different social class present in India. He sleeps in the stable of a horse trader, in the dorms of an English boarding school, in the house of a wealthy Indian widow, and even in a Hindu temple. Kipling does an excellent job of describing society on a large scale instead of focusing on a specific group, allowing the reader to gain a general understanding of different social groups and how they interact. Woolf, on the other hand, focuses on societys elite, the small percentage of English men and women who can afford a college education. She believes that one of the pre-requisites to becoming a writer is having money. To have ...