235:): "having been discouraged by Leonard, Aileen Pippett was befriended by Vita Sackville-West, who let her study all Virginia's letters to her". According to Woolf, he was promised a look at the first draft and completed typescript, but was only in fact sent the proofs of the book; he maintained he had not given permission for quotations from his wife's letters to Vita Sackville-West, which in any case he said he had never seen: "Perhaps he could not, in all fairness, insist that Pippett drop the letters from her soon-to-be-published volume, but as copyright holder he could, and did, refuse to allow an English edition of the biography." Leonard evidently had in mind his own publication of these letters; also in January 1955, he wrote to Vita on the subject of publishing Virginia's letters to her, but by April his enthusiasm had waned. Woolf was thanked in a letter by Pippett's husband for allowing the book to be published in the United States. Sackville-West, who "had formed a strong link" with Aileen Pippett, "fulminated against (Woolf) selling Virginia's manuscripts to America", writing "What an odd man he is. Well, they shan't have
290:; Parke notes the book was based on both access to private papers and interviews with "many of Woolf's friends". In 2007, the book was written of as "the first significant, now long-forgotten biography" of Woolf. Susan Braley, in a survey of biographical treatment of Virginia Woolf, considered that "early biographers of Woolf sought to establish a unitary identity for their subject", and that "Aileen Pippett begins this tradition by presenting Woolf as a literary icon to be worshipped from afar", resulting in Woolf's presentation in "hagiographic terms". Braley observes that the hagiographic treatment of early biographical accounts of Woolf derived from personal closeness to the subject and the trauma of her death, citing statements of this sort from Woolf's niece
302:, "designed to celebrate a lost loved one"; since Pippett only met Woolf on one occasion, her biography is not "driven by hyperbole because of recent grief or close ties to her subject", but is "necessarily governed by the personal impressions and selective memories" of Woolf's relatives and friends. Braley notes that "Woolf's five-volume diary, her complete letters and her essays were not yet available", and that the primary available sources of information-
247:; it would give me great pleasure to refuse some enormous offer, and tell Leonard that I had done so". Susan Hudson Fox suggests that Leonard Woolf "shaped his wife's authorial persona, her literary reputation, in a way that would bring her (and him) the most favor", noting in relation to this his disapproval of Pippett's quotation from the letters.
325:
deal with her subject through her own lamentable version of Woolf's sensibility", whilst noting Bell's considerable advantage over other biographers "as the son of Clive and
Vanessa Bell and the nephew of Virginia, Bell would seem to be the most qualified person to reveal the facts of her life." However, at around the same time, in
230:
was displeased at this disclosure of private discussion, and publication of the book was restricted to the United States. It was reported at the time that she had the "intelligent and affectionate cooperation of V.W.'s husband and of Vita
Sackville-West, good friend", indicating a change in Leonard
324:
review of
Quentin Bell's biography by Michael Rosenthal lambasted Pippett's work, by contrast, as "an indigestible concoction of biographical fact, sentimental appreciation and simplistic plot summary whose very title, in its precious metaphoric way, suggests the extent to which Pippett strained to
266:
observed "Virginia Woolf enthusiasts will be glad to know that the new biography about her, THE MOTH AND THE STAR, by Aileen
Pippett, is worthy of its subject", noting that its use of her letters to Sackville-West allows the reader to "listen in on the intimacies of one of the most esoteric circles
188:, that on the strength of "a brilliant first novel", "enjoyable and memorable", "Trend-watchers are advised to note the name of Muriel Spark. Before very long they may be able to boast that they read her when." She retained an interest in Spark's career, being "first out of the blocks" to review
273:
wrote "'Fragile as a moth and enduring as a star' is Mrs
Pippett's way of describing Virginia Woolf, and for that very insight she will endear herself to the many readers of V.W., who will welcome this first long biography of the writer who has enchanted and puzzled readers for many years". The
115:
in 2000. The extensive diaries written by her eldest sister, Ruby Alice Side (later
Thompson; 1884–1970)- an aspiring novelist and "an outspoken feminist" (writing, in 1939, "I find myself becoming more and more a feminist. I survey this world in which I have to live and I have no use for men's
278:
remarked on
Pippett's "conscientious effort 'to reconstruct this very elusive and complex personality'", noting the "advantages enjoyed by no earlier biographer of Virginia Woolf... Mrs Woolf's diary, a series of her letters to Vita Sackville-West, and... Leonard Woolf's casual advice."
255:
The book was welcomed as the first of its kind, although the more recent general consensus is that it was superseded by later in-depth biographical treatments based on fuller access to Woolf's personal papers and other resources, particularly the 1972 biography written by Woolf's nephew
339:
publication presented the writer's contention that "perhaps, and naturally enough, women critics are more sympathetic with
Virginia Woolf as feminist", opining that "many pages of Aileen Pippett's biography" were written with reference to feminism. The writer and performer
116:
politics or men's religion. I will not live by any man's rule") with "ideas on education, equality, and financial independence for women"- have been used in feminist studies, particularly illustrating independence within marriage and middle-class women's lives during the
309:
The writing style and tone of the book, despite some praise at the time of publication, was later criticised, as was what later assessments observed to be a lack of rigorous reference to materials and less-than-strict adherence to subsequently-established facts:
344:, feeling Virginia Woolf a kindred spirit as a "sensitive writer", with "similarities between the way the two women lived and worked... choosing to remain childless, both (maintaining) disciplined work habits amid environments often disordered", used
231:
Woolf's view of the book following its publication. Her relationship with
Leonard Woolf however began somewhat poorly, in light of her goal of producing the book (she had received a similarly unenthusiastic response from Virginia's sister
320:, contrasting it with Quentin Bell's 1972 biography, "purely historical", criticised its "sometimes numinous sentimentality" and "admitted disregard for what called 'literal facts'". The
908:
306:(prior to publication), letters to Vita Sackville-West, and discussions with friends- were not representative, resulting in the necessity of Pippett resorting to speculation.
286:(2020), Catherine N. Parke observes "Aileen Pippett's The Moth and the Star... proposes a metaphorical thesis about Woolf's personality", referring to the same image as the
913:
329:(1972) it was observed that "Aileen Pippett... did an amazing job in the face of many obstacles. She did not have access to Virginia's diaries (or) Leonard's papers..."
882:
Howard Coster's
Celebrity Portraits: 101 Photographs of Personalities in Literature and the Arts, Howard Coster, Terence Pepper, National Portrait Gallery, 1985, p. 109
733:
Choice: Publication of the Association of College and Research Libraries, a Division of the American Library Association, Volume 9, collected issues 7-12, 1972, p. 1586
948:
938:
802:
630:
507:
Women Imagine Change- A Global Anthology of Women's Resistance from 600 B.C.E. to Present, Eugenia C. DeLamotte, Taylor & Francis, 1997, p. 296
933:
743:
489:
To Understand and to Help: The Life and Work of Susan Isaacs (1885-1948), Lydia A. H. Smith, Fairleigh Dickinson University Press, 1985, p. 169
715:
Two Stories- Katherine Mansfield, Virginia Woolf and their literary otherness, Susan Hudson Fox, University of California, Davis, 1999, p. 210
551:
World War II London Blitz Diary: a woman's revelations enduring war and marriage, Ruby Alice Side Thompson, ed. Victoria Aldridge Washuk, 2011
196:
recalled the "companionable" Pippett as "very encouraging to (her) writing" when they met in New York in the late 1950s whilst staying at the
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59:. The Side family had intellectual interests, with the children raised attending political meetings, and having the opportunity to meet
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Report and Transactions of the Devonshire Association for the Advancement of Science, Literature and Art, vol. 116, 1985, pg 260
153:
125:
587:
Imagining Shakespeare's Wife: The Afterlife of Anne Hathaway, Katherine West Scheil, Cambridge University Press, 2018, p. 142
373:
782:
Virginia Woolf As Subject In Biography And Autobiography, Susan Rita Braley, University of Western Ontario, 1994, pp. iii, 3
612:
386:
918:
397:
52:
837:
Uncommon Eloquence- A Biography of Angna Enters: Writer, Dance-mime, Artist, Dorothy Mandel, Arden Press, 1986, p. 275
357:
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Research Guide to Biography and Criticism, vol. II, Lang- Z, ed. Walton Beacham, Research Publishing, 1985, p. 1296
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The third of four daughters (there being also sons) of railway official Charles Henry Side (1859-1928), of
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and became headmistress of a school in India educating the children of civil servants, later teaching at
91:, a metal merchant and educational psychologist whose first wife was the psychologist and psychoanalyst
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128:. The youngest sister, Joan (1903-1976), a nurse, was sister-in-law of the engineer and archaeologist
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112:
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873:
Who was who Among English and European Authors, 1931-1949: N-Z, Gale Research Company, 1974, p. 1128
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Virginia Woolf- Interpreting the Modernist Text, J. Haule, J. Stape, Palgrave Macmillan, 2016, p. 11
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during the Second World War. They subsequently went to the United States, where they lived on West
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44:
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Contemporary Authors, vol. 127, ed. Susan M. Trosky, Gale Research International Ltd, 1989, p. 487
477:
381:
218:, the first full-length biographical treatment of Virginia Woolf, was first published in 1953 by
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108:
19:
née Side (9 July 1895–4 January 1974) was a British journalist and biographer resident in the
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226:, she had access to personal letters and other resources which were referenced in the book.
159:
117:
773:
Palgrave Advances in Virginia Woolf Studies, ed. A. Snaith, Palgrave Macmillan, 2007, p. 86
855:
The British Imperial Calendar and Civil Service List, H.M. Stationery Office, 1952, p. 445
648:
269:
706:
Leonard Woolf- A Biography, Victoria Glendinning, Simon & Schuster, 2006, pp. 380-381
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Virginia Woolf Quarterly, vol. 1, no. 1, California State University Press, 1972, p. 56
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Biography- Writing Lives, Catherine N. Parke, Taylor & Francis, 2020, pp. 80-81
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Studies in Literature, collected volumes 10-12, Univ. of Hartford, 1978, p. 49
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Feminist Bookstore News, vol. 17, issue 1, May–June, Carol Seajay, 1994, p. 97
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The Author's and Writer's Who's Who, vol. 5, Burke's Peerage Ltd, 1963, p. 390
84:
48:
828:
Kwansei Gakuin University Annual Studies, Kwansei Gakuin Daigaku, 1965, p. 65
460:"Geograph:: Goldfield Mill House, Miswell Lane © Chris Reynolds cc-by-sa/2.0"
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Aileen Side married firstly, in 1918, William Harry Brice Mears (1888-1965),
697:
Virginia Woolf Miscellany, number 3, Spring 1975, Sonoma State College, p. 1
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100:
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The United States Quarterly Book Review, Rutgers University Press, 1956, p.
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observed it to be "beautifully written but sometimes sparsely documented";
528:
Ruby: An Ordinary Woman, Bonnie Thompson Glaser, Faber & Faber, 1995
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560:
University of London Calendar 1911, University of London, pp. 530, 650
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67:. Her brother, Charles Eric Side, of Goldfield Mill House (next to
670:
The Library Journal, vol. 80, issue 2, R. R. Bowker, 1955, p. 1686
72:
631:"Muriel Spark: child writer, childhood writer, children's writer"
864:
The Accountant, vol. 156, Lafferty Publications Ltd, 1967, p. 59
480:, Itzhak J. Carmin, Pitman Publishing Corporation, 1965, p. 441
120:. The second sister, Gladys (1889-1974), was educated at the
380:. Her second husband, Roger Samuel Pippett (1895-1962), of
846:
The London Gazette, 2 June 1950, supplement 38929, p. 2792
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from 1925 to 1938, and on the staff of Picture News, the
182:, she observed in a 1957 review of Spark's first novel,
569:
Engineering Monthly Notes, vol. 23, no. 2, 1985, pg 33
442:"Pi - New General Catalog of Old Books & Authors"
679:
Vanessa Bell, Frances Spalding, Tempus, 2007, p. 322
43:, and his wife Eliza Alice (1862-1942), daughter of
47:inspector John Searle, of Hammersmith, formerly of
348:as the basis for her exploration of Woolf's life.
103:. Charles and Malvin Side's grandson, philosopher
175:, amongst others, primarily as a book reviewer.
909:People educated at Godolphin and Latymer School
222:. Through friendship with Woolf's close friend
23:, author of the first full-length biography of
384:, was a literary critic, journalist (with the
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332:A 1965 discussion of Virginia Woolf in the
539:"Ruby Side Thompson and the London Blitz"
914:Alumni of the London School of Economics
746:, Curtis Publishing Company, 1956, p. 17
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742:The Ladies' Home Journal, vol. 73, ed.
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276:United States Quarterly Book Review
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803:"The high priestess of Bloomsbury"
476:Who's Who in World Jewry, vol. 2,
396:Sunday magazine) and clerk at the
51:, Aileen Side was educated at the
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178:An early advocate of the work of
145:Pippett was a contributor to the
141:Journalism and literary criticism
939:20th-century British journalists
126:Devonport High School for Girls
934:British women literary critics
744:Bruce Gould and Beatrice Gould
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398:Royal Institute of Chemistry
192:(1968). The poet and writer
53:Godolphin and Latymer School
31:, first published in 1953.
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148:New York Times Book Review
93:Susan Sutherland Fairhurst
79:, a quantity surveyor and
57:London School of Economics
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924:British women biographers
602:. Retrieved 23 March 2023
446:www.authorandbookinfo.com
335:Kwansei Gakuin University
220:Little, Brown and Company
17:(Winifred) Aileen Pippett
929:British literary critics
809:– via NYTimes.com.
400:who had served with the
327:Virginia Woolf Quarterly
284:Biography- Writing Lives
597:Elizabeth's Finest Hour
402:Friends' Ambulance Unit
81:Civil Engineer in Chief
172:Collier's Encyclopedia
346:The Moth and the Star
312:Studies in Literature
216:The Moth and the Star
205:The Moth and the Star
29:The Moth and the Star
370:chartered accountant
263:Ladies' Home Journal
122:University of London
113:University of Oxford
97:Malting House School
65:William Butler Yeats
919:British biographers
635:Scottish Book Trust
617:archive.nytimes.com
541:. 20 November 2011.
464:www.geograph.org.uk
224:Vita Sackville-West
190:The Very Fine Clock
130:Leslie R. H. Willis
61:George Bernard Shaw
45:Metropolitan Police
807:The New York Times
653:thehotelalbert.com
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251:Assessments
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893:Categories
412:References
406:8th Street
85:Royal Navy
49:Kensington
35:Early life
613:"Reviews"
101:Cambridge
374:Grade 3
362:Pyrford
244:Orlando
166:Horizon
83:in the
366:Surrey
298:, and
260:. The
169:, and
136:Career
360:, of
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