It seems
while throughout the book there is this persistent idea that Clarissa Dalloway
is a bit of a snob and stuck up. Most of the point is from Clarissa’s point of
view. The other main character is Septimus (along with Rezia) who never directly
interacts with Clarissa. A lot of the other characters comment on the
personality and appearance of Clarissa. All of the characters give a biased interpretation
of the world. The book goes directly through their innermost thoughts so none
of the characters can truly be trusted. This is especially seen through Septimius’s
PTSD/Schizophrenic mind where a dog literally turns into a man.
Although
we can’t trust any of the characters completely a lot of them point out how snobbish
and uptight Clarissa is. An obvious example would be Peter who seems to constantly
criticize Clarissa (although he does “love” Clarissa and appreciate her in his
own way). Another pretty obvious character is Miss Kilman who pities Clarissa partly for her upper-class,
luxury lifestyle.
A major
part of this is the end of the party. Sally and Peter are talking and even
Sally says that she considers Clarissa to be a snob. “A snob was she? Yes in
many ways. Where was she, all this time? It was getting late” (pg. 186). Throughout the party the only thing Clarissa
seems to care about is how the party is going (except her somber moment of reflection
on Septimus’s death). Her general attitude especially during the party scene
seemed to be one of superiority.
In order
to really judge Clarissa, I think we can’t just look at her through her own
thoughts and actions but also the people around her. She can “soften” some
parts of herself in her mind. So, to kind of round her out at a character I
think it’s important to see her negative characteristic through other
characters.
Interesting points! It’s true that through the eyes of other characters, we get a different image of Clarissa, and insight into some of her more negative qualities. This kind of poses the question of whether someone’s own point of view or the points of view of the people around them is a more accurate representation of who they are. Woolf certainly does a great job of providing us with both.
ReplyDeleteI see your point about other character's views of Clarissa and the importance of the party to her, but I think it is also important to look at societal norms of the time. Clarissa has grown up upperclass and is still upperclass. In the 1920s society, parties as a social gathering were a very important factor in building connections, which is one of Woolf's main points, the connection between characters. We discussed in class how Clarissa feels something important about her parties that she has a hard time articulating, but I also think that her self-consciousness about how others see her shows some self-reflection that not everybody is capable of. Her attempts to look at herself from others' perspectives shows self-awareness of her position. I also think that she feels societal pressures from those who are also upperclass to conform to society's norms and that she has a hard time finding a balance between what is expected of her as upperclass but also what her peers think of her.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your point on how you need to look at Clarissa through other people's viewpoints since Clarissa's own thoughts might be biased. However, Clarissa's awareness of Peter and other's criticisms suggest she's aware of her flaws on some level. At first, I didn't think of Clarissa as acting superior during the party. I thought she was just playing in role as a hostess but then remembered Clarissa's treatment of Ellie Henderson. Clarissa wants her parties to connect people yet Ellie doesn't connect with anyone. Ellie spends most of the party alone and isolated (except for her quick conversation with Richard). In addition, I got the sense that most the party guests were of the same social class as Clarissa. Perhaps that has something to do with societal norms or it could be an example of Clarissa being snobbish.
ReplyDeleteInteresting! I completely agree with having to look at characters through other characters. It creates a much more well-rounded view of said character, and I think this is what Woolf intended when she wrote from an ever-shifting perspective. We only see a holistic view of who Clarissa is when we think about her in relation to herself and to others (which is, I think, a good way to think about who we all are - personality is usually a subjective matter). (I also agree with Betty in that Clarissa probably has some understanding of her snobbishness if she contemplates it.)
ReplyDeleteTo expand on your point - I actually like that Clarissa is snobbish, and I didn't like her before that was established as one of her "flaws" through other characters. I think these so-called "character flaws" are what make characters distinctive and realistic. These quirks and imperfections are what shape the characters outside of literary norm and "color them in", so to speak, which is part of what Woolf is trying to accomplish (as seen through the two essays we read in class). Being snobbish is part of what makes Clarissa Clarissa - it isn't necessarily a problem that should be fixed. I think the book and the character would be VERY different without this snobbishness - for example, Clarissa would likely not be as good as organizing parties and bringing people together without a sense of snobbery.
I think this is very true, you can't just judge a person based on what they tell you or what other people tell you about them. Everyone is biased even if they are trying not to be or don't think they are. However since we get many people's opinions of Clarissa I think that gives us a pretty good image of what she is actually like. I think you also made a really good point when you said that Clarissa herself also might have softened the edges of herself as well, because everyone wants to pain themselves in the best light.
ReplyDeleteI agree that to correctly portray a person, one point of view is not enough. Everyone is looking through a different pair of glasses, and so no one has the same description and interpretation of a person or event. It seems that this idea appears several times throughout the book, one notable location being the scene with the airplane, where the book jumps around to other people, giving their interpretation of the letters in the sky.
ReplyDelete