Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Essay Prospective

In my essay i want to explore why Woolfe approaches the concept of death in so many different ways through all of her characters. Also what the significance of using death or suicide in her novel to tie everyone together. I also want to point out what i think Woolfe is trying to say about human nature and how we all must die the difference is how we approach the act of it. Im thinking i might use Septimus's suicide scene as the central point and then also expand on Clarissa's first mention of suicide and her last mention of death, and comparing Dr. Holmes watching Septimus die to Clarissa watching the old woman go to sleep in the end.

1 comment:

David Lavender said...

This sounds like a good thematic approach, but I wonder if Septimus' suicide scene would be the best 'anchor' for your essay. You might want to go all the way back to the opening pages when Clarissa mentions, "Did it matter then..." and introduces the whole riff on death. You could then move forward, track down other significant discussions of it, and then finally bring it back to the opening scene (informed by your wider discussion). Let's talk.