Are Clarissa and Septimus Two Sides of The Same Coin?
In Virginia Woolf's book Mrs. Dalloway, we are introduced to two seemingly different characters: Clarissa Dalloway is throwing a party, while Septimus is struggling to hold on to his sanity. One is a wealthy woman preparing to entertain London's upper class, and the other is a World War I veteran who has become increasingly disconnected from the world around him. If these two were strangers walking down the street, they wouldn't even bat an eye at each other. They come from different backgrounds, live very different lives, and face problems that seem completely unrelated. Clarissa spends her day worrying about her party, reflecting on her past, and thinking about her place in society, while Septimus struggles with the psychological consequences of war in a world that doesn't try to understand him. So why does it seem like near the end of the story Woolf is trying to connect these two characters? The crazy thing is they never meet, but when Septimus dies, there seem...