Mrs Dalloway Analyzation - Madden Still
Hello Everyone, I recently finished Mrs. Dalloway, as I'm sure almost all of you did as well, and I would like to talk about it more in this blog post
Mrs Dalloway is in a sense a novel about an everyday day that has more significance than initially apparent. Clarissa Dalloway is preparing for a party that she is hosting in London. She goes about purchasing flowers and arranging for the event. However throughout this she also reflects on her own history especially on her relationships and decisions that she made in her earlier life. I found the way this novel shows the significance of the every day life very intriguing.
I also found the focus on inner thoughts within this novel to be highly significant. Rather than just focusing on the action occurring within the novel Woolf highlights the emotions and thoughts of the characters within the action. For instance Clarissa may be interacting with another person whilst simultaneously reflecting on an event that occurred many years previously. This creates a feel to the novel that is hard to explain. However this may also create a confusing feel since the narrative also shifts between different characters and also between time.
Septimus Smith is a veteran of the first world war. He is also experiencing post-traumatic stress following the war (at the time known as Shell Shock). His plot is far darker than that of Clarissa. However there is also a link between the two characters even though they have very little interaction. Both characters are reflecting on the concepts of life, death and connection to the world around them. Also Septimus's experiences highlight the problems that can arise when a person is suffering and their suffering is not fully understood.
I found Mrs Dalloway to be significant due to the extension of an everyday event into something more substantial than it initially appears. There are conversations, walks in London, parties and many other everyday events present in the novel however the characters are also reflecting on their connections with other people, their regrets, their relationships and their history. Although at times the novel can be slow Mrs Dalloway is also highly modern due to the focus on the internal thoughts of the characters.
I really like your point about how Woolf takes an ordinary day and turns it into something much more meaningful. I also found it interesting how Clarissa and Septimus have such different experiences but both still struggle with similar questions about life and death. I also believe their connection is through their internal struggles despite their social differences. Do you think the novel would have had the same impact if Woolf had focused only on Clarissa's perspective?
ReplyDeletehi madden. Good post! I liked how you focused on how Woolf writes the novel more than the actual character/plot of the story. I personally struggled at first following along with the readings with all the sudden character switches, however as I got used to it, I began to enjoy it because of how it gives us as readers to see many different mini-stories that connect to show the bigger picture of London depicted by Woolf. I did find the introduction of Septimus a little confusing in your post, but I think he is a good example of how Woolf’s writing allows us to see both Mrs. Dalloway and Septimus having similar experiences without ever making them come in contact with each other. Overall, I think this was a pretty nice post. bye madden.
ReplyDeleteHi Madden, great post! When you say that you were intrigued by how the novel depicts the significance of everyday life, it made me think about The Mezzanine, where the book also attempts to show what makes everyday life interesting. Although the books do it in very different ways, I couldn't help but make this connection when reading your blog! Septimus was a very interesting character in the book that for me personally really showed how the different levels of medical knowledge changed the way characters in the book saw Septimus. Great Blog!
ReplyDeleteHey Madden, Great post. I like how you explained Mrs. Dalloway as an everyday event that ends up carrying much more significance than it seems. I agree that Woolf has a writing style that is unique to her novels. I was also a little disoriented when she would jump back and forth but it gives almost a representation of how our minds think and formulate thoughts. Overall, Great blog post!
ReplyDeleteHi Madden, this is great blog post! I sometimes prefer understanding emotions and thoughts of the characters than the plot because you get reasoning and what's going in their headspace. Your point about the deep, unspoken connection between Clarissa and Septimus is spot on, especially since they never actually interact.
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