Term Paper on "Mrs. Dalloway"

Term Paper 7 pages (2288 words) Sources: 1+

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Mrs. Dalloway: Emotional Themes

Virginia Woolf's "Mrs. Dalloway" (1990) takes place in the course of a single day, spanning back and forth between the past and the present. The story is basically a look at Clarissa Dalloway's life decisions as she prepares to host a party and Septimus Smith's post-WWII nightmare as he considers suicide. The book's major themes are emotional by nature, and include sanity, isolation and community, as well as the possibilities and limits of communicativeness, as evidenced by the characters' sense of being alone and concerns about the meaning of life.

Clarissa is portrayed as a "perfect hostess" in her early fifties, who is now regretting many of the decisions she made when she was young. Septimus, who Woolf positions as Clarissa's "double," is the distraught war veteran who suffers flashbacks over his friend's death, which happened in the war.

By portraying the two main characters as opposites, Woolf introduces the theme of sanity and how it relates to human life. As Clarissa gets ready for her party, she reminisces about the past, mostly about Peter Walsh, whom she broke up with many years ago to marry Richard Dalloway (CliffNotes, 2004). After Woolf paints a picture of Clarissa as a perfect lady and hostess, the author introduces Septimus, who seems to be the complete opposite of Clarissa. He has difficulty dealing with everyday life and feels that life and everything in it is meaningless.

The scene featuring Clarissa's feelings about her past and preparations for her party is followed immediately by the introduction of Septimus, whom Woolf paints as an emotionally unstable veteran on the verge of a nervous breakdown. Septimus and Rezia both see a motorcar carrying members of the royal family down the street, at the same time as Clarissa does. Woolf describes the motorcar as "a face of the very greatest importance against the dove-grey upholstery." Septimus views it as a frivolous symbol of status that is strictly used for showing off. To him, the car is an oppressive thing, while Clarissa holds great respect and curiosity for it. By using Septimus as a direct contrast to Clarissa, Woolf points out the materialistic values of society.

Septimus feels like he no can no longer communicate. "Communication is health; communication is happiness. Communication, he muttered." "What are you saying, Septimus?" Rezia (his wife) asked, wild with terror, for he was talking to himself. . This loss of communication with the world outside of him is emphasized by his inability to distinguish between the voices of the factual world and those in his head (CliffNotes, 2004). With this description of Septimus, it appears that he is the opposite of Clarissa, as he is insane and she is very sane.

While it may appear that the two main characters are opposites, Woolf implies through her story that the sane socialite Clarissa and the insane war veteran Septimus are actually opposite sides of the same coin, two fragile human beings who struggle with the meaning of life.

Even though they are very different, Woolf shows her readers how Clarissa and Septimus share very similar concerns about life, Life seems meaningless to both Septimus and Clarissa, yet neither understand when this feeling came. They are suddenly alone; and the people who love them are alone. They exist in a place outside, though really the same, as the rest of society. They feel like outsiders in their own lives.

According to Ruotolo (1980): "Clarissa is the vehicle for her reproof in criticizing the social system." Woolf demonstrates Clarissa's dissatisfaction with society through her sympathy over a shop girl's life. Like Septimus, Clarissa often questions if life has any meaning at all. Clarissa's "willingness to question the given ... calls for ever-renewed acts of re-creation."

According to Maze (1997), Mrs. Dalloway is a study of sanity vs. insanity, which are key themes in the story. Maze writes, "if Clarissa represents sanity and Septimus insanity, then her 'sanity' is the death of the soul; she remains sane by giving herself over to the morality of power," and losing her soul. What society perceives as Septimus's insanity, Maze argues, is actually an act of sanity: an attempt to save his soul.

Woolf's novel follows parallel stories of Clarissa and Septimus, although the two never actually meet. Their lives are connected through events, such as Clarissa's evening party, a motorcar passing both of them on the street, and other events. The only direct connection between Clarissa and Septimus occurs when Septimus' doctor arrives at Clarissa' party late because of Septimus' suicide. Septimus and Clarissa are also similar in many aspects of characterization, such as their emotional problems, their troubled marriages, their suicidal tendencies and their personal relationships. However, Clarissa is very different from Septimus, who fails to confront the requirements of society, committing suicide the night of Clarissa's party.

In the beginning of the story, both Clarissa and Septimus walk down the same street in London. Both note the city's beauty, but "Clarissa does not weep at what she sees and hears and feels. She does not release and exude her excitement. Her reactions and Septimus' are similar but Septimus' are far more intense."

Both Septimus and Clarissa feel like outsiders, yet at the same time live life. They share similar emotions. They are both alternately very happy, then worried and fearful. Woolf demonstrates the moment of terror in Septimus' heart and relates it to what really matters to Clarissa. To her, what really matters is what one "feels" -- and what Septimus fears is the fact that he cannot "feel."

Still, despite their many similarities, Clarissa and Septimus differ in many ways. Septimus fears that he is unable to feel and care for another person. Clarissa is afraid of "feeling too completely." In her life, she cannot give herself to anything with abandon.

Thoughts of death lurk constantly under the surface of everyday life in the novel, and this awareness makes even mundane events and interactions meaningful, often even threatening. For Septimus, death is the only way that his soul, his essence, can remain "untainted." His heroism and sensitivity are the cause of his supposed insanity, because no one will validate his mental illness. The doctors blame his problems on lack of proportion and control.

Clarissa's love for flowers is her attempt to beautify the world- the "ugly, evil dungeon" of Septimus's existence, and the deterioration of his mind. Clarissa and Septimus are different because she can distinguish between the internal and external world. She is extremely proportionate, while Septimus views the outside world as a nuisance and an intrusion of his private thoughts.

Clarissa and Septimus both think of death frequently, and both see death as "defiance." Through these general beliefs and mannerisms, Clarissa and Septimus, even though they do not know each other, portray one another in their thoughts and actions. Clarissa feels death and sorrow everywhere she goes. Although her life is very structured and organized, she is discontent and considers death as a way out. She feels that she is now "...Mrs. Dalloway; not even Clarissa any inside Mrs. Dalloway's soul, lies her belief character, the side that she never reveals. Clarissa expresses her belief in reincarnation. That her inner-communicating self, if not revealed in this body, may be revealed in the next. The belief that that everything will work out, eventually. Mrs. Dalloway before the party remarks that, 'If it were now to die, 'twere now be most happy.'"

Septimus sees beauty in the little things in life. In the story, he reveals his need to be nurtured. He pulls away from society when he falls ill and has trouble dealing with reality. Septimus and Clarissa in this way are very similar. Septimus fears the reality around him, "He began to open his eyes, to see whether a gramophone was really there. But real things were too exciting. He must be cautious. He would not go mad."

Septimus faces death most directly. Though he is afraid of it, he finally chooses it over what seems to him a worse alternative -- living another day. Jensen's (1983) article points out that Clarissa is strongly linked to Septimus by his suicide. By denying herself the life that love for Sally Seton, a woman whom she once had romantic feelings for, may have give her, Clarissa chose destruction in place of her true desires. According to Jensen, Mrs. Dalloway's "fear of interruption is the most important feature of her personality." When Sally kissed her at Bourton, Peter Walsh interrupted the kiss. Clarissa's thoughts of marrying Peter were interrupted by her decision to marry Richard. The link between Clarissa and Septimus is strong: his life is interrupted by a plunge, as is his attraction to Evans, his war buddy, was interrupted by the war.

The frequent appearances of Shakespeare suggest hopefulness, the possibility of finding comfort in art, and the survival of the soul in Mrs. Dalloway. Clarissa quotes Shakespeare's plays many times throughout the story. Woolf uses quotes from Shakespeare's Cymbeline… READ MORE

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