Elizabeth Barrett was already a writer — and an invalid — when she got her cocker spaniel, Flush. Virginia Woolf’s Flush (published 1933) is a mock-biography of that pet dog. It is both a story of a dog’s life but also a commentary on the life of Elizabeth Barrett Browning (EBB) before and after her elopement with the famous writer Robert Browning.
I really enjoyed the strange combination of doggie biography and EBB’s life story. It prompted me to read up on the actual history! Beginning with Flush’s puppyhood in the country, his life is then restricted to the back parlor room where Elizabeth recuperates. It shows a contrast between the free life in the country and the moped-up existence in London, which is also shows what Miss Barrett’s limited life as the child of an overprotective father may have been.
The story follows Flush as he watches Miss Barrett’s courtship to Robert Browning. Flush does not seem to understand at first that Browning is a friend, and nips at his feet. Apparently Woolf wrote this based on the letters and poems of EBB, so these little facts are realistic to history. Once when EBB does take Flush into the crowded city streets, Flush is kidnapped (dog-napped), and it shows a horrible contrast once again to the free life Flush enjoyed before in the countryside. Truly, London seems to have been awful in the 1840s. Again, this is consistent with history.
I hadn’t realized that EBB had eloped but I loved reading about it from Flush’s perspective. The contrast between scenes in London and then in Italy is sharp, which is just as Virginia Woolf must have intended. Flush is an adorable dog, although he did not always understand what was happening, we got just enough from his perspective that we could know what is going on. I really liked reading up on EBB and revisiting her poetry too.
If you are interested in EBB, dogs, or Woolf’s always unique writing perspective, I’d suggest Flush: A Biography. It is just short of funny but is definitively a refreshing short read.
Get the kindle ebook at Amazon.
