In my thesis I shall elaborate on how the self is constructed in Modernism. Based on Virginia Woolf’s novel The Waves my inquiry adresses the question: according to Woolf, is there a coherent Modern identity or, instead of complete structures, we should rather search for deconstructed, constantly fluctuating and dissipating ones? Drawing upon Bataille’s notion of eroticism, I will investigate in Woolf’s novel the primordial forces from which the self originates and I will also examine how the self is modulated in relation with ’the other’. Mainly through an examination of Bernard’s inner voice, sensations and impressions will lead us to explore Woolf’s concept of the world, its layered existence and the motif of ’singularity’ versus ’alterity’. Besides the question of an autonomous self, the book makes us focus on the notion of human relationships and on how identity is modulated along and together with them. Woolf applies several metaphors throught the narrative, from among which I will look at only the most prominent ones. Apart from the motif of the sea, the fish, the drop and the waves, Woolf’s colour-symbolism and recurring passages also provide us with an insight into her vision of the self. Finally, to give a clearer understanding of Woolf’s notion of the self as presented in The Waves I will also juxtapose Woolf’s approach with Georges Bataille’s theory of closure, T. S. Eliot’s concept of tradition and with J. Hillis Miller’s image of anastomosis.