Examples Of Figurative Language In Mrs Dalloway

Throughout her essay, Woolf never once describes to us her immediate surroundings. By describing only what is outside, Woolf isolates herself from the rest of the world, instead of embracing it as Dillard did. She is chiefly concerned with describing where she isn't. Her focus is on the world outside of her window. She describes the field that is being plowed, the black, net-like flock of birds flying together. These images engender a rather unpleasant feeling of dreariness.

Moreover, the fluidity, represented by the thoughts of the characters, is enhanced by the form of the novel: Mrs Dalloway is not divided into chapters; thus, it does not leave behind a sense of completeness. It is largely intertwined with the narration of Clarissa and that of the other characters and the action largely takes place in the mind. This is presented in form of free indirect discourse: the narrative conveys the thoughts of the selected character. This leaves the readers with an impressionistic story. To demonstrate how different characters bring about unequal messages, here is an illustration from the work: when Clarissa is strolling the streets of London, she and Septimus both see the same car. The vehicle leads them to different thoughts: for Septimus it is seeing in it the power of the modern world, which “was about to burst into flames” (13) or rather the oppressive relationship of technology and war, which ultimately leads to his suicide. He is bound by the internal, his suffering thoughts cannot help but to be captured in the memories of the World War I he fought in. For Clarissa, hearing the noise of the car provokes her to think she has heard “a pistol shot in the street” (12) (which later turns out to be true). By using such a form of representation, Woolf points to the invisible connections of people in a dehumanised, yet technology-bound, world, which create between them a form of interaction that serves as compensation for what Septimus (and

Woolf begins her speech by immediately acknowledging the reasons she was invited to speak for the Society. Through the use of anaphora, she is able to contest that she does, indeed, meet the criteria, as it is true she is an employed woman. However, Woolf shrouds a bit of doubt on her credibility with the addition of the rhetorical question, “but what professional experiences have I had?” (1). Nevertheless, she quickly recovers by stating that though she was a woman pursuing a career in literature, a profession in which “there are fewer experiences for women than any other” (1), she was able to make a name for herself like those who had paved the road before her. Woolf admits that her experience was not as rough as the women who preceded her because they “ma[de] the path smooth, and regulat[ed] [her] steps”. As a result, she had “very few material obstacles in her way” (1). Woolf incorporates the subtle use of a metonym when she states, “no demand was made upon the family purse” (1), in order to establish that her family suffered no economic strife through her writing.

‘Mrs. Dalloway’, by Virginia Woolf is a derivative text of ‘The Hours’, written by Michael Cunningham. The novels both share an important theme of mental health. The circumstances of mental health are commonly sympathetic, and empathetic. The characters Septimus and Clarissa in ‘Mrs. Dalloway’ and Richard, Laura Brown, and Virginia Woolf in ‘The Hours’ show the strongest symbols for this theme. Most of the problems and treatments these characters face are in direct result of the age they live in. Both novels express a relationship between era, illnesses and treatments.

Throughout her life, novelist Virginia Woolf suffered with mental illness, and she ultimately ended her life at age 59. As art often imitates life, it is not surprising that characters in Woolf’s works also struggle with mental illness. One of her novels, Mrs. Dalloway, recounts a day in the life of Clarissa Dalloway, a high society woman living in London, and those who run in her circle. As the novel progresses the reader sees one of the characters, Septimus, struggle with post-traumatic stress disorder brought on by serving in war. At the end of the story, he commits suicide. While there is no explicit articulation of any other character suffering from mental illness in the novel, Septimus is not alone. Through her thoughts and actions, we can deduce that Clarissa also endures mental and emotional suffering. Though Clarissa does not actually attempt to end her life in the novel, her mental and emotional suffering lead her to exhibit suicidal tendencies. To prove this, I will examine Clarissa’s thoughts and actions from a psychological perspective.

However, enforced cultural notions of gender differences prohibit Clarissa from blossoming a lesbian attraction towards Sally Seton. Progressing through the novel, Clarissa asks “had not that, after all, been love?” in regards to her relationship with Sally. She makes it obvious she was stifled in her homosexual love, due to her conservative attitude and society’s standards. Many critics believe that Sally Seton represents Virginia Woolf’s love for Violet Dickinson. To further elaborate, Clarissa feels that a sexual dimension in her life is now irrevocably lost, due to her understanding of her own capacities for bisexuality. Similar to Virginia and Leonard’s relationship, Clarissa and Richard are no longer sharing a bedroom, as sexual relations

Woolf supports this claim by focusing on the anonymous writer named “Anon” (anonymous), that we as readers have seen so many times in literature. Could this “Anon” have been a woman, this “Anon” that has written so many poems and ballads? From Woolf’s point of view, “whatever she had written would have been twisted and deformed, issuing from a strained and morbid imagination” (54). She does not reach a conclusion as to the lack of women writers before the 18th century, she can only make assumptions on the time period and enlighten her audience to make sure that women are able to express their creativity without any constraints issued by society.

In the novel Mrs Dalloway, Woolf conveys her perspective, as she finely examines and critiques the traditional gender roles of women in a changing post-war society. Woolf characterisation of Clarissa Dalloway in a non linear structure, presents a critical portrayal of the existing class structure through modernist’s eyes. Titling her novel as Mrs Dalloway presents Clarissa’s marriage as a central focus of her life, drawing attention to how a women’s identity is defined by marriage. Despite the changing role of women throughout the 1920s, for married women life was the same post war. Clarissa experiences ‘the oddest sense of being herself invisible…that is being Mrs Dalloway…this being Richard Dalloway,”

Woolf writes about life for women during that time period. She herself being a woman, found it hard to get her work to become public. During that time women are seen as property and that they must follow social norms. Things such as obeying her husband and waiting to be allowed to speak(if she were allowed to speak) were “just how things are done”. In society women are looked down on and seen as things or property rather than people who have feelings,

Clarissa and Septimus both feel trapped in their lives and oppressed by the people around them, which leads to them find ways in which they can escape the negative world around them. Clarissa is described to the reader as having “a perpetual sense, as she watched the taxi cabs, of being out, out, far out to sea and alone; she always had the feeling that it was very dangerous to live even one day” (Woolf, 17). Even as Clarissa walks down a crowded street the sense of loneliness controls her mind. Societal oppression of loneliness makes her feel distant from the rest of society. She describes herself as, “no longer being Clarissa, but simply Mrs. Dalloway” (Woolf, 11). Clarissa has lost a sense of herself and feels as though she no longer fits in. However, her parties serve as an escape from the outside world, which helps to explain why she loves

There are several possible stresses in Woolf’s life that may be contributing to her depression. One is the stress and isolation Woolf feels living in the suburb of Richmond. Although her husband states that they made to move in an attempt to relieve Woolf’s depression, Woolf herself states that if given the choice between Richmond and death, she would choose death. Another possible stressor in Woolf’s life is the task of writing a novel. Yet another stressor could be difficulties in Woolf’s interpersonal relationships. Woolf expresses that “even crazy people like to be asked [to parties].” Whether Woolf’s interpersonal difficulties contribute to her depression or are a result of it is unclear, however. An additional stressor may be the incestuous relationship Woolf has with her sister. We may not speculate upon a history of abuse in Woolf’s childhood but the nature of Woolf’s relationship with her sister goes against cultural norms of acceptable sexual behaviour at the time, being both incestuous and homosexual. In addition, although some people may not feel distressed at the existence of extramarital feelings for someone, many do. This abnormal relationship may be distressing to

Virginia Woolf is a married woman who had public affairs with women and who shares a chaste kiss with her sister during her narrative. Woolf is also the author of Mrs. Dalloway, a novel that centers on Clarissa Dalloway, a woman who feels the same way "as men feel" (Woolf 36) about women, yet marries a man as society dictates.

Throughout Mrs. Dalloway, Virginia Woolf uses the characters Clarissa and Lucrezia not only to further the plot of the story but to make a profound statement about the role of wives in both society and their marriages. While these women are subjected to differing experiences in their marriages, there is one common thread that unites each of their marriages: oppression. These women drive the story of Mrs. Dalloway and provide meaning and reason in the lives of the men in the story; however, these women are slowly but surely forced to forsake their own ambitions in order to act in accordance with the social standards set in place by marriage for women. For women outside of many modern cultures, marriage has been a necessity for a woman’s safety and security, and it required her to give up her freedom and passions and subjected her to an oppressed lifestyle. Ultimately, through the wives in Mrs. Dalloway, Woolf communicates that marriage is an institution where in women are forced to suppress their individual desires and passions in order to serve their husband and further his own ambitions as first priority.

  Clarissa Dalloway, the central character in Virginia Woolf's Mrs. Dalloway, is a complex figure whose relations with other women reveal as much about her personality as do her own musings. By focusing at length on several characters, all of whom are in some way connected to Clarissa, Woolf expertly portrays the ways females interact: sometimes drawing upon one another for things which they cannot get from men; other times, turning on each other out of jealousy and insecurity.

In Mrs. Dalloway, references to life and death are seen frequently throughout the entire novel. It would not be correct to claim that Mrs. Dalloway focuses more on one or the other, for the novel brings attention to both life and death. Virginia Woolf exhibits these profound ideas through the thoughts of her characters in Mrs. Dalloway. The thought of death is constantly lurking in the thoughts of each character, and it makes even the most ordinary events become meaningful, and sometimes threatening.