How would one describe Virginia Woolf's writing style in The Voyage Out?

Woolf writes in a very soft way regarding physicality. Her language is impressionistic and ambiguous. This creates a kind of surreal image as we imagine the actions of the characters. For example, in the scene where Helen comes across Hewet and Rachel embracing in the woods, you can barely tell what is happening. Some critics have even gone so far as to suggest the couple was having sex before they were discovered - the exact nature of the physicality in the scene is ambiguous, though likely not explicitly sexual.

A lot of the important, revelatory moments in the text come from conversations the characters have with each other. Woolf favors direct character revelations through dialogue rather than implying her characterization through their actions or expressions. Instead of having the reader infer the deeper thoughts of characters, they instead have direct conversations about their deep thoughts. They discuss literature, life, love - their perspectives are revealed in the stances they take in lively debates and intimate conversations between characters. For this reason, Woolf is more direct about her meaning while indirect about the direct physical manifestations of meaning.

Woolf's dialogue-centric characterization also bolsters her theme that her characters are starved for meaningful connection and self-knowledge. They try, in the course of many seemingly interminable conversations about life and themselves, to determine who they are and what their significance is. Rachel struggles with defining her religious convictions and literary tastes. Hirst constantly debates his future career. Evelyn tries to figure out what it will take to really "do something." This explicit searching and dialogue about meaning lays bare the lack of certainty the characters are feeling in themselves and their place in the world.