Structure

The structure of "Craftsmanship" is one of its most compelling attributes, as Woolf begins the essay by defying reader expectations for what is to come. "We must suppose," she says, "that the talker is meant to discuss the craft of words – the craftsmanship of the writer" (1). She goes on to say, however, that this task is impossible due to the incongruity between words and the meaning of "craft." By setting her talk up in this way, Woolf effectively turns the genre of her lecture on its head. Furthermore, she addresses her own destabilization of her audience, saying, "...to talk of craft in connection with words is to bring together two incongruous ideas, which if they mate can only give birth to some monster fir for a glass case in a museum. Instantly, therefore, the title of the talk must be changed, and for it substituted another – A...