Each character in the story seems deeply engrossed in their own memories. Even while strolling through Kew Gardens with someone else, the narrator emphasizes that each person's thoughts remain private. Some characters are simply lost in contemplation, like the first couple, who reflect individually before sharing their memories. Others, like William and the "ponderous woman," seem isolated. They walk with companions who appear unaware of their presence. Ultimately, the man and the "ponderous woman" might not just feel lonely but are also disconnected from those around them. The strange behavior of the old man keeps him trapped in his own world, unable to interact with others nearby.

By setting the story in a garden, Woolf alludes to the biblical Garden of Eden, from which Adam and Eve were banished. Woolf's narrative suggests that the language humans use to connect is not only full of misunderstandings but can also serve as an obstacle to true communication.

The final paragraph of the story situates "Kew Gardens" in an intimidating and oppressive world, overshadowed by the machinery and systems of industrial production that fueled World War I. The elderly man attempting to listen to the voices of deceased husbands could represent a wider experience in which war and industry collaborate to dismantle families. The device he tentatively mentions acts as an ambiguous symbol, representing both a way to reconnect with the departed and, paradoxically, his own disconnection from William, who walks beside him.

Each couple strolling through the garden seems to represent societal norms for men and women. The husband and wife move in quiet harmony, reflecting with a hint of melancholy on their youthful days when life seemed full of limitless opportunities. The elderly man and William allude to the challenges men face in forming connections, even on profound subjects like the loss of life in war. The "lower middle class women" illustrate the apparent futility and emptiness of working as servants; their conversation acts as a mere distraction from the reality that they seem to have little to celebrate in life. The last couple, a young man and woman, are just beginning to grasp the roles they are expected to play. As the young man takes charge of Trissie, leading her towards tea, which he will pay for with a coin in his pocket, there is hope that she, or they, might find a way to explore those intriguing garden paths.

Overall, Woolf seems to emphasize how women often rely on complementing men. However, marriage does not appear to bring happiness or a sense of connection. Instead, it suggests a loneliness linked to motherhood, the eventual solitude of widowhood, or the stigma of being seen as a lower-class spinster. Woolf also highlights the pressure on young men to take control, which stifles efforts to be open and honest with both women and other men. As life continues its unyielding pace outside the garden, men seem called to fulfill roles within a system that ultimately drains them.

Though a garden often symbolizes vitality, life, and the purity of nature, Kew Gardens is portrayed with an emphasis on the formal effects of color and the angular patterns of light. The narrative tone highlights geometric forms, distinct objects, and the routes characters navigate as they move through the garden. This emphasis links the garden to the "vast nest of Chinese boxes all of wrought steel turning ceaselessly" found in the city beyond its borders. It's crucial to note that Kew Gardens is not a random outcome of natural forces but a space intentionally designed and constructed, with its flowers, trees, and grass meticulously planted...

In her fiction, Woolf aimed to capture an aspect of the elusive reality she believed was missing from much of British literature, even in the works of her contemporaries like E. M. Forster and the early writings of James Joyce, whom she admired. In her well-known essay "The Common Reader" (1925), she questioned the traditional techniques of British storytelling by asking, "Is life like this? Must the novel be like this?" Woolf proposed that life might be imagined as "a luminous halo, a semi-transparent envelope surrounding us from the beginning of consciousness to the end." In "Kew Gardens," she attempted to convey this reality by giving the natural world equal importance to the human domain, highlighting the significance of the countless phenomena of the universe as a continual source of inspiration for human thought and emotion.

By briefly focusing on the people who strolled through the gardens, she aimed to show how each couple's reality was distinct and separate from the others, yet equally valid as a measure of existence. Her ultimate, though unstated and perhaps unclear even to herself, objective was to create a more truthful depiction of the present. This would provide a foundation for envisioning a future that preserved the aspects of English life she cherished while embracing her vision of a society free from the constraints of the Victorian era, which she criticized.

"Kew Gardens" takes place during World War I, a deeply traumatic era for Woolf, whose novels frequently reflect the war's grim effects on people's lives and mental health. In the second vignette, an elderly man mentions "the spirits of the dead" and refers to "Women! Widows! Women in black," emphasizing a significant element of the landscape. Despite the threatening and unsettling backdrop of widespread destruction, Woolf vividly depicts the garden in full summer bloom, using imagery of fertility, vibrant colors, and brilliant light to counterbalance the darkness of war. This portrayal suggests nature's resilience against the lethal influence of those in power.

At the core of the story, a snail moves with unyielding slowness, but unlike the "men and women [who] straggled past," the snail's journey seems purposeful, "It appeared to have a definite goal in front of it." Woolf implies that the chaotic and frantic actions of individuals and nations are often futile and destructive, while the hidden patterns of nature, though slower, align with a mysterious cosmic order that is challenging to perceive.

The seemingly chaotic and spontaneous presence of the four groups of people "strolling carelessly" through the gardens contrasts with the corridors of power, where determined individuals act with purpose and strategy. Nonetheless, each group embodies a vivid intensity of existence that Woolf considers an essential component of reality. Eleanor and Simon, accompanied by their children, symbolize a stable, middle-class family—an idealized household often praised as a model of Victorian virtue. Yet, Woolf adeptly points out that such families rely as much on luck and chance for their formation as on any intentional social planning. The older man in the next pair, who is speaking, appears to be ranting and teetering on the edge of sanity. Woolf seeks to convey the unsettling and disorienting impacts of war and change in the modern era, while also highlighting the oddly charming nature of eccentricity—the unique quirks of English character that Imperial literature often overlooked but have always been integral to life in Great Britain.

Trailing close enough to question whether the man's gestures are "merely eccentric or genuinely mad" are two women engaged in a "very complicated dialogue" that seems nonsensical to outsiders. However, it actually represents a private language and dialect developed over generations within a close-knit community. Here, Woolf is emphasizing the diverse small units within the larger flow of London life. The final pair, "a young man and a young woman . . . in the prime of youth," are overwhelmed by a shared passion that surpasses their limited language's ability to express. Woolf's introduction of the young couple serves as a reflection on the mysteries and joys of love and its power to alter perception. The couple is visibly consumed by emotion, but in another commentary on the supposedly rational thinking of men, Woolf seems to suggest that a deeper truth may be accessible to those who allow passion to guide their lives.