Mrs Dalloway

Mrs. Dalloway covers one day from morning to night in one womans life.
Clarissa Dalloway
Sir William does not listen to what Septimus says and diagnoses a lack of
proportion.
Clarissa traieste in prezentul continuu al tineretei sale petrecute la
Bourton, iar Septimus Warren Smith traieste prezentul continuu al anilor
petrecuti pe front ca soldat. Ambele personaje se aga de perioada de
glorie din viaa lor n care aleg s i sfreasc.
Sindrofia Clarissei pare o scuz pentru a aduce n prim plan amintiri i
oameni care nu i mai au locul n prezentul femeii de 52 de ani care a
devenit
London novel
Richard Dalloway shows the terrible traffic at Piccadilly Circus, and in doing so,
he records an ongoing London problem of the time. Carts, carrieges, pedestrians
all competed to cross streets at a time when traffic signals still had to be
changed manually by a traffic officer. Traffic in Piccadilly especially was the
subject of many newspaper articles and resulted in multiple government
committees, studies and reports during the early 1920scommittees of just the
kind that Richard, as a Member of Parliament might sit on.

Big Ben is a major London monument, but its role in the novel is complex. It not
only suggests tradition, but it also (with its constant gonging) doesnt let anyone
forget about the passage of time. With Big Ben, Woolf signals to the reader how
important punctuality, schedules, and daily rhythms are to the tradition of
English life.
You cant help but notice the important role that time plays in the lives of all
these characters. This is particularly true when we hear their memories both
beautiful and haunting. Peter cant forget the days of Bourton and his love for
Clarissa; Clarissa fears the passage of time and the inevitability of death;
Septimus suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, which prevents him from
forgetting what he experienced and, in a sense, robs him of his future.
Big Ben is a big physical and aural (sound) reminder of all of these issues
surrounding time. Clarissa has lived so long with the clock that she anticipates its
"leaden circles dissolv[ing] in the air" (1.5). Big Ben is almost like a character
with a personality: "The sound of Big Ben striking the half-hour struck out
between them with extraordinary vigour, as if a young man, strong, indifferent,
inconsiderate, were swinging dumb-bells this way and that" (2.92). And like a
character, Big Ben seems almost to interrupt the people of London intentionally.
Meanie.

London Calling
Virginia Woolf does not use London in any passive way; instead, the backdrop
serves the important purpose of creating context. Woolf mentions many
important sites throughout the course of the story: Buckingham Palace, the
Houses of Parliament, and Westminster Abbey all define the British way of life.
It's not just a matter of reminding the reader where these characters are located.
Each of the landmarks represent a particular aspect of the novel. For example,
the statues of famous generals and leaders in Trafalgar Square suggest the
importance of patriotism to the British way of life, and Big Bens hourly chiming
serves as a constant reminder of lifes passage.
Lucrezia takes Septimus to Regents Park
In addition Mrs Dalloway and Septimus are characters in Woolf's novel who
capture the passing moments of their lives in a city. Both of these characters are
shown to be walking through the city and feeling the liveliness of London. Their
responses to the same city symbols vary from one another. Septimus Smith says
"everything had come to a standstill" [9] whereas Mrs Dalloway shows us she is
amused by the noise and high energy of the city life.

War novel
Mrs Dalloway, which takes place on one day in June 1923, shows how the First
World War continued to affect those who had lived through it, five years after it
ended.

the sound of the plane, bring to mind the German planes that had
attacked the capital so terrifyingly during the war.
Many people had championed the war as a way to uphold the ideals of the
British Empire and a way to make men out of boys. But with all of the life
wasted, the feeling that the war was fought for all of the ideals of England
becomes somewhat absurd. Septimus is the most damaged, since he
fought in the trenches and lost his good friend and officer, Evans. He
represents what happened to these young men who fought for the queen
and for abstract ideas of duty. Septimus shell-shock is a shameful
expression of how soldiers can become damaged from warfare and return
as madmen instead of heroes.
Septimus comes in as a contrasting and somewhat existential twin of the
character of Mrs. Dalloway. They never meet in the story, but his
experiences metaphysically affect Mrs. Dalloway and her questions about

life, choices, and fate. his partial insanity helps him see life the way that it
really is.
Conclusively, the importance of War in the novel is that it serves as the
conduit through which the character of Septimus develops philosophically
and psychologically. His traumatic emotions and constant reminders of
death are juxtaposed to Mrs. Dalloway's questions about the meaning of
life. However, when Mrs. Dalloway hears about his death she finally
recognizes the reality of it, and therefore the importance of valuing life the
way it comes our way, regardless of what we expect it to be like.
Therefore, war is the agent of change in the main characters of the story

Mrs Dalloway "dramatic mixing of autobiography and history" (Lee

Set on a fine June day in 1923, the novel, which tells a woman's whole life in one
single day, is underlied by the dark idea of the War. There are no direct images,
Woolf does not place her protagonists on some battlefield, yet it is crystal clear
that the War plays a significant part in the story. It lives in dreams, madness and
memories.
The book is a strong criticism of the contemporary English society and tells a
sad story about how the War can influence (and ruin) young lives. The
characters can be grouped on the basis of their relationship to the War. "We see
society devided between those who have profited from the war and those who,
like Septimus Smith, have been destroyed by it" (Lee 342)
The first group, the ones who profited from the Great War, are the members of
the governing class that controls society. Clarissa and Richard Dalloway, the
"admirable Hugh", Lady Bruton, and even Peter Walsh belong here. They are all
"living on borrowed time".
They are clearly living in the past, they are crying over their long lost youths,
loves and dreams uselessly. All these personal "tragedies" seem ridiculous and
petite in comparison with the loss of hundreds of thousands young lives during
the four years of the War. Besides being unable to communicate their feelings
(for example, at one point of the story Richard Dalloway cannot even say he
loves his wife), the governing class is also "incapable of reacting appropriatly to
the critical events of their times" (Zwerdling 122). It seems they are not aware of
the real significance of what had happened.
They try to ignore the problems of the real word, wrap themselves up in oblivion
and memories, they only care about their "little jobs at Court", their trivial,

everyday problems. For instance, Clarissa Dalloway is fully preoccupied with

organizing her party, exaggerating its significance.
When Clarissa takes a walk on a fine June morning - a walk, which (according to
Lee 353) Virginia Woolf took herself during the War -, she is overwhelmed with
the beautiful, lively city full of "whirling young men and laughing girls" (Woolf 9).
Peter Walsh, freshly arrived from colonial India only sees the last five years' fast
growth of culture: "Never had he seen London look so enchanting" (Woolf 78).
The only character in the novel who had experienced the real horrors of the
meaningless slaughter is Septimus Warren Smith, and he is the only one who had
met death face to face. He has an important role in the story because it is
through his character that the author can convey her message and draw
attention to the unalterable and gruesome consequences of the War on every
single individual. Through Septimus' character "she studies the effect of four
years of brutalization on an individual soldier. Septimus can be seen as the
model of all those young, talented men whose lives had been taken or ruined for
ever by the War.
Septimus started off as a promising, smart, idealistic young poet who was among
the firsts to volunteer. However, his sentimentalism and the bright future ahead
of him were shattered at once when he experienced the inhuman destruction
and the loss of a friend which affected his whole personality. "The last shells
missed him" (Woolf 94) and he was sentenced to live. He lost faith in mankind as
a whole. This utter disappointment in the world surrounding him and absolute
hopelessness entails the gradual loss of his sanity.
Gordon sees the main source of Septimus' insanity in "his inability to respond to
the death of a person whom he had loved most in the world" (46), Evans, his
senior officer. Septimus and Evans had an extraordinary bond between each
other, a comradeship that can only be born under special circumstances, under
the persistent threath of death, of being killed, of being lost and forgotten. The
death of Evans made Septimus vulnerable and defenceless, his fragile mind was
not able to take the pressure and finally wrecked. He becomes paranoid, he
suffers from severe hallucinations in which his long lost friend visits him
the people whose task would be to help the tormented soul were the ones to
force Septimus into giving up his own life and jump out of a window. When it
comes to the fall of Septimus, Woolf puts at least half of the blame on society
The car and plane also serve as a reference to the recently ended war. The
backfiring of the car sounds like a pistol being fired and frightens everyone
around. The plane is also a reminder of the war: World War I was the first time
that planes played a big role in modern warfare. Basically, in Mrs Dalloway, the
war is always around even in the form of a car driving down the street.
In conclusion, we could say that one of the greatest strenghts of Woolf's Mrs
Dalloway is that by merging autobiographical and historical elements, she
managed to criticise contemporary British society in a very subtle way,

A one day novel

Mrs. Dalloway is a unique novel in that it takes place in a single day a
Wednesday in mid-June 1923.
SYMBOLYSM
1. FLOWERS and TREES
Clarissas first action in the story is to buy flowers; as she enters the flower shop.
After this moment, flowers continue to appear throughout the entire novel. Most
importantly, they are an enormous source of joy for Clarissa, who cherishes the
beauty of everyday life. Flowers are also important as symbols of love. Clarissa's
daughter, Elizabeth, is often compared to a flower and Richard brings roses to
Clarissa, a gesture that replaces saying "I love you." The beauty of the roses
seems to get the point across. Flowers are also a crucial aspect of Clarissa's
memories.
Tree and flower images abound in Mrs. Dalloway. The color, variety, and beauty
of flowers suggest feeling and emotion, and those characters who are
comfortable with flowers, such as Clarissa, have distinctly different personalities
than those characters who are not, such as Richard and Lady Bruton. The first
time we see Clarissa, a deep thinker, she is on her way to the flower shop, where
she will revel in the flowers she sees.
Trees, with their extensive root systems, suggest the vast reach of the human
soul, and Clarissa and Septimus, who both struggle to protect their souls, revere
them. Clarissa believes souls survive in trees after death, and Septimus, who has
turned his back on patriarchal society, feels that cutting down a tree is the
equivalent of committing murder.
2. WAVES AND WATER
Waves and water regularly wash over events and thoughts in Mrs. Dalloway and
nearly always suggest the possibility of extinction or death. The narrative
structure of the novel itself also suggests fluidity. One characters thoughts
appear, intensify, then fade into anothers, much like waves that collect then fall.
Septimus is also sucked under societys pressures. Earlier in the day, before he
kills himself, he looks out the window and sees everything as though it is
underwater.
PETER WALSHS POCKETKNIFE
Peter Walsh plays constantly with his pocketknife suggesting his inability to
make decisions. He cannot decide what he feels and doesnt know whether he
abhors ( =uraste) English tradition and wants to fight it, or whether he
accepts English civilization just as it is.

The pocketknife reveals Peters defensiveness. He is armed with the knife, in

a sense, when he pays an unexpected visit to Clarissa, while she herself is
armed with her sewing scissors. Their weapons make them equal
competitors. Knives and weapons are also phallic symbols, hinting at
sexuality and power.
THE OLD WOMAN IN THE WINDOW
The old woman in the window across from Clarissas house represents the
privacy of the soul and the loneliness that goes with it, both of which will
increase as Clarissa grows older. Clarissa sees the future in the old woman:
She herself will grow old and become more and more alone, since that is the
nature of life. As Clarissa grows older, she reflects more but communicates
less. Instead, she keeps her feelings locked inside the private rooms of her
own soul, just as the old woman rattles alone around the rooms of her house.
Nevertheless, the old woman also represents serenity and the purity of the
soul. Clarissa respects the womans private reflections
THE OLD WOMAN SINGING AN ANCIENT SONG
Opposite the Regents Park Tube station, an old woman sings an ancient song
that celebrates life, endurance, and continuity. She is oblivious to everyone
around her as she sings, beyond caring what the world thinks. The narrator
explains that no matter what happens in the world, the old woman will still be
there, even in ten million years,
This womans song touches everyone who hears it in some way. Peter hears
the song first and he doesnt catch her triumphant message and feels only
pity for her, giving her a coin before stepping into a taxi.
Rezia, however, finds strength in the old womans words, and the song
makes her feel as though all will be okay in her life

THEMES
DEATH
At the very start of her day, when she goes out to buy flowers for her party,
Clarissa remembers a moment in her youth when she suspected a terrible
event would occur. Big Ben tolls out the hour, and Clarissa repeats a line from
Shakespeares Cymbeline. The line is from a funeral song that celebrates
death as a comfort after a difficult life. Middle-aged Clarissa has experienced
the deaths of her father, mother, and sister and has lived through the
calamity of war, and she has grown to believe that living even one day is
dangerous. Death is very naturally in her thoughts,
Peter Walsh, so insecure in his identity, grows frantic at the idea of death and
follows an anonymous young woman through London to forget about it.

Septimus faces death most directly. Though he fears it, he finally chooses it
over what seems to him a direr alternativeliving another day.
TIME
One of the amazing things about Mrs Dalloway is the creative use of time. The
novel starts in an early morning in June 1923 and ends the next day at 3am;
that means fewer than twenty-four hours pass during the course of the story.
This compact use of time means that you have to read closely
because every moment counts. Because of this, a lot happens in the course
of just a few minutes (usually in thoughts more than in actions). For example,
characters will flash back to the past at Bourton, and recall elaborate stories,
while in present time only a few minutes have passed. We (and the
characters) are constantly reminded of time by Big Ben, Londons giant clock
tower, which is sounding off the hours through the entire novel. This is
particularly poignant for Clarissa whose preoccupation with time relates to
her fear of death. Shes deeply aware that as time passes, she gets closer to
death, and she feels odd that life will go on just the same without her. Just as
she knows that time existed long before her, shes aware that it will go on
long after her bones have turned to dust.
MEMORY AND THE PAST
Clarissas party stirs up memories for many of the characters, and memories
are constantly woven into the present-day thoughts of the characters. The
past affects each character differently in Mrs Dalloway. Certain memories are
very keen (and much happier) for Clarissa, such as getting a kiss from Sally
Seton. She cherishes these moments as the best of her life. For Peter, the
past is mostly just painful: he still cant get over his love for Clarissa and so
he constantly returns to the summers at Bourton in order to make sense of
what happened. For Septimus, memories are haunting and painful. He
continues to hallucinate that hes seeing Evans get killed, and memories of
the war dominate his mind. Though he struggles to see beauty, the present is
constantly interrupted by gruesome visions of the past.
MADNESS- Septimus
REPRESSION
Mrs Dalloway is filled with repression. Our title character, Clarissa, is
constantly holding in emotion so she can conform to English social standards.
What she feels on the inside and what she projects to the outside world are
very different. Inside, she has deep feelings of anxiety and a big fear of death.
Woolf suggests that British society expects and almost demands that people
repress emotion, so that someone like Septimus must hold in his madness
because it wouldnt reflect well upon society to have a soldier act in an
unmanly way; British society places great pressure on the soldiers to behave
like heroes. Sexual repression is also a huge issue in this novel; Clarissa must
repress her sexual feelings toward Sally, and we get the idea that Septimus

was hiding a sexual interest in Evans before his death. Talking about these
kinds of sexual issues was new in Woolf's time, and she treats the subject
beautifully.

Subjectivity and stream of consciousness

Intertextuality
Perhaps the most widely usedor easily identifiedform of intertextuality is
the use of direct quotations from, or references to, other texts. Mrs
Dalloway contains repeated references to Shakespeares Cymbeline, which
highlights the theme of death and provides a sense of connection between
the psyches of Clarissa, Septimus and Peter.
Septimus and his similarities to Dostoevskys Stavrogin, writing that both
protagonists are closely associated with the idea of madness (1084) and that
Septimus is not merely an updated and modified Stavrogin, but rather a
creative transposition of Dostoevskys protagonist (1089). This is a subtle
form of covert intertextuality that Woolf perhaps did not employ consciously.
Parody is another form of intertextuality that is present within Mrs Dalloway,
particularly parody of James Joyces Ulysses, which in turn references The
Odyssey as a key intertext. Hoff contends that as a parody
of Ulysses [], Mrs Dalloway attacks Joyces methods by appropriating his
arcane sources (187). Intertextuality in the modernist era was thus a means
of both contextualising a work within a network of other texts, but also of
critiquing the work of ones peers. In this sense, intertextuality is a form of
covert metafiction, raising the observant readers awareness of the texts
status as a fictional work within a literary discourse.