Human Nature

So, like I said in class, I'm going to use Dr. Holmes in conjunction with Septimus and his suicide to help "define" modernism and this "ego-centric predicament." The passage on human nature and Dr. Holmes on pg 92 will start my analysis, simply showing that Dr. Holmes is a type of symbol for the nature of humans to be ego-centric in the modernist's point of view. Fast forwarding to pg 149, Septimus' suicide, I'll use this "scene" to show how Septimus essentially rejects modernism. He commits suicide to escape Dr. Holmes and humans in general, who, according to the modernist, all live in their own 'bubbles' and each are central to themselves. I know I need to make all of this a little more clear by explaining it but, in a nutshell, that's what I want to write about.

For my essay a few sences appeal to me but the one i have selected is Richards resolve to tell his wife he loves her. With in it im inermingaling the relivence of time and Big Ben. I really like the scene and i think its crusial for the rest of the story. I think it can be seen as a great reprsentation of the rest of the book. and that there are alot of messages Woolf is trying to portray though Richard, Mrs. Dallowway, Big Ben and the events of this scene.

Essay Topic

Hey ya'll. So for my essay I'm going to explore three scenes, using Peter getting rejected by Clarissa as my main scene. My main theme is "major let downs". Thus using Peter's rejection, then Richard's inability to say "I love you" and then Septimus finally being happy and wanting to live before dying. I'm using the scene of Peter's rejection as an anchor because it seems to affect a lot of the characters later on (hence the flower/can't say I love you scene with Richard). At this point I'm thinking I might retract the septimus scene and instead focus on how the scene of Peter's rejection and Richard's I love you because they are similar. And then I will talk about how love can be a momentary event and how just the split seconds you feel in love...could forever change you life! My mind is running rampant and I can NO LONGER look at a screen. Gu-bye

Septimus

For my Mrs. Dalloway essay I have decided to write on Septimus' suicide. While writing on this passage I was going to try to bring in the similarities between his suicide and Socrates' suicide, and how Virginia Woolf herself committed suicide. For now, however, I am just going to focus on really dealing with the passage itself and the uniqueness of Septimus' suicide compared to how people would normally react.

Labels

For my analysis of Mrs. Dalloway I'm going to talk about labels. On page eight Woolf starts to talk about how a label doesn't define you. Woolf starts to talk about how Clarrisa is a upper class, party throwing, socialite, but she also starts to get into how Clarrisa is so much more than a socialite, the experiences she had as a young woman with Sally Seaton, and the fact that she decides to mend her own dress, so on and so forth. Also with Septimus, although he is a war vetran so much has happened to him that cannot be labled and yet the Doctor labels him as crazy. Basically Woolf talks about how everyone in the book has some sort of a label and yet they are so much more than that label.

Lobo's dalloway essay idea

I was thinking of primarily using Septimus's revelations (67-69) to look at the ego-centric predicament by exploring the nature of subjectivity. I would look at the vast differances between the world that Septimus (who is insane) sees and understands as opposed to what "sane" people (like Clarissa) see and understand of the world, and tie that into the ego-centric predicament as proof that everyone has the capacity to see the world in vastly different ways, and as such it is impossible to connect with another person (this being the prevelant theme I argue). I will probably also look briefly at Septimus's suicide (139-149), and the ideas that lead him to jump, as well as what he thinks right before jumping, I will probably also look at Septimus's musings (88-89).

Passage

For my passage I plan to center on the scene in which Mr Bradshaw brings death to the party, and in that moment, when Clarissa and Septimus, though they never encounter in life, seem to make a connection. I will also draw from the passages in which Richard and Clarissa share their unspoken communication, and additionally Septiumus' suicide as well as his being "alone together" with Rezia. However "death stalking the party" will be my main focus. I will also devote some of my analysis to the fact that even though people search for connections and a breaking of the ego-centric bubble, and how, as with Clarissa and Septimus, the breaking of this bubble is not always a good thing.