The conclusion of Mrs. Dalloway
takes place at Clarissa’s party, an inevitable climax as the book is completely
set on the day of the event and largely concerned with the planning that leads up to it. Not long before, the story of Septimus Smith
concluded tragically with his suicide, an expected resolution, though sad. I found the ending of the story revolving
around Clarissa Dalloway to end more abruptly, however, with the dramatic last
line, “For there she was,” as Peter sees her in the doorway. This ending
provoked in me a feeling that there could perhaps be happiness in the future
for Clarissa, despite the wholly depressing subject matter of the rest of the
novel.
When
he sees her in the doorway (a metaphor for a new beginning?), Peter’s internal
questioning, “What is this terror? what is this ecstasy?”(p. 190) is answered
in the next sentence. “It is Clarissa.” This obviously suggests that he is
still in love with Clarissa, and throughout the book we have been exposed to
Clarissa’s complex feelings towards Peter.
Does
this mean that a sequel to Mrs. Dalloway would consist of Peter and Clarissa
eloping and living happily ever after? My answer would be an unequivocal no. Mrs. Dalloway is a novel about one day
in the life of a deeply troubled woman (with a parallel story the last day in
the life of a war veteran.) While the novel may end on a hopeful note, for Clarissa
this is just another day, another party, with its ups and downs, drama and
despair. Peter Walsh will marry the woman in India and Clarissa will continue
to ponder the “what ifs” of life. If this
story were to be continued, would Clarissa eventually act upon her view that
“death was defiance” (p. 180) and follow in the footsteps of Septimus? Or, as I think, would she continue going
about her frivolous party-going life, thinking of Peter Walsh, Sally Seton,
Bourton, and what her life could or should have been? And which path would be the greater tragedy?
I definitely agree that Peter and Clarissa would not go off together if there was a sequel. For one thing, Clarissa already made the decision to marry Richard instead of Peter, and for another, even though Woolf seems to imply that Peter still has feelings for Clarissa, we don't know how Clarissa feels. Not only that, but I don't believe that Clarissa would go off with Peter spontaneously. I think she is more stuck in the way of life she has now than she may like to admit, and she is unlikely to have change in it, especially since she is not exactly young.
ReplyDeleteYou raise an interesting point about what would happen in a sequel to Mrs. Dalloway. As we saw in the movie characterization of Virginia Woolf yesterday, she wanted to write a woman's entire life in one day. I think if there were a sequel it would lessen the value of Mrs. Dalloway. For me, the Beauty of Mrs. Dalloway is that we learn so much about so many characters in the course of one day. If there were to be a sequel I think we would see a more mundane side of the character's lives. Every day Clarissa would not be throwing a party and the characters would just continue to daydream about Bourton. It would be interesting to see how Woolf would write a book about the day after the party though.
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