Even -with the passage of time and all of the imaginative experiments in form, style, language, and subject that have occurred through the twentieth century, "The Mark on the Wall" still feels fresh and vibrant, supporting Woolf's exuberant recollection "I shall never forget the day I wrote The Mark on the Wall—all in a flash, as if flying, after being kept stone breaking for months." To Roger Fry, who admired its utilization of post-impressionist techniques, it displayed "The power of artistic detachment from life."

One might argue, however, that it shows a different kind of artist involvement with life. One of Woolf's better biographers, Panthea Reid, suggested that the story "contrasts holistic meditation with purposeful activity," but that too could be challenged. Perhaps the meditative qualities are a demonstration of a different kind of purposeful activity. In her excellent biography of Woolf, Hermione Lee...