63rd Annual Conference

Saturday, February 25

Morning Workshops

8:45 A.M.-12:00 Noon

Workshop 85

Virginia Stephens Woolf: 1882-1941: Finding One’s Own Sense of Agency Through Groups: Who Do You Think You Are???

Chair:         

Joyce Dagnal Shields, APRN, BC, CGP, Private Practice, Individual, Couples Group Therapist, Belmont, Massachusetts

Virginia Woolf's life and literary accomplishments reflected a continuous search for the meaning of unconscious process in the development of the self.  Her revolutionary ideas and the cascading series of epiphanies of the characters in her novels inspired women to seek a sense of personal agency and creativity.  In this workshop, we will explore her example and its application in our lives as group members.

Didactic-experiential-sharing of work experiences-demonstration

Learning Objectives:

The attendee will be able to:

1. Describe how V.W. involvement in the Bloomsbury Group led to the development of her capacity for creative self-expression and personal agency.

2. Cite how Woolf's experience in her family of origin shaped her thinking about woman's role in society and led to her active self expression.

3. Discuss how memories and unconscious processes as explored in a group context may lead to the development of an individual's sense of personal agency.

4. Apply principles learned from the example of V.W.'s creative development to one's own clinical work.

Course References:

1. Lee, H. (1996). Virginia Woolf. New York, NY: Vintage Books.

2. Woolf, V. (1927). To the Lighthouse. San Diego, New York & London: Harcourt, Inc.

3. Woolf, V. (1954). Virginia Woolf: A writer's diary. San Diego, New York & London, Harcourt, Inc.