The Importance of Time in Virginia Woolf’s Mrs.Dalloway
Modern English novel
Theme:
"The importance of time in Virginia Woolf’s Mrs.Dalloway"
As human beings, we are unique in our awareness of death. “We know that we will die, and that knowledge invades our consciousness…it will not let us rest until we have found ways, through rituals and stories, theologies and philosophies, either to make sense of death, or, failing that, to make sense of ourselves in the face of death.”
Attaching significance to life events is a human reaction to the sense of “meaninglessness” in the world. Fearing our ultimate annihilation, we form belief systems to reassure us in the face of death.
Religion provides us with elaborate rituals at times of death and faith assists believers in mourning and coping with the loss of loved ones. So without a religious foundation, where does one find solace in the face of so much pain? This is the struggle for Virginia Woolf, a self-proclaimed atheist whose life was shadowed by death from an early age. In the years between 18953 (when she was thirteen) and 1904 she lost her mother, her sister, and her father. Less than a decade later, Europe was consumed by war, and public mourning became a part of her life. “Grieving started very early in Virginia’s life, which might be one reason why her writing offers us such a forceful riposte that it should, or could, be brought to an end.”
Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalytic theories profoundly changed the way we think about the mind and its subconscious workings. His work greatly influenced the way people understood mental illness and other social deviations. This is especially true during the time that Virginia Woolf was writing these novels, when his books were widely read. In Civilization and Its Discontents, Freud presents the struggle between Eros (the drive for erotic love) and Thanatos (the appetite for death) as the forces that dominate human decision-making and action. He feared that without healthy outlets for our own sexual appetites, humanity would
Theme:
"The importance of time in Virginia Woolf’s Mrs.Dalloway"
As human beings, we are unique in our awareness of death. “We know that we will die, and that knowledge invades our consciousness…it will not let us rest until we have found ways, through rituals and stories, theologies and philosophies, either to make sense of death, or, failing that, to make sense of ourselves in the face of death.”
Attaching significance to life events is a human reaction to the sense of “meaninglessness” in the world. Fearing our ultimate annihilation, we form belief systems to reassure us in the face of death.
Religion provides us with elaborate rituals at times of death and faith assists believers in mourning and coping with the loss of loved ones. So without a religious foundation, where does one find solace in the face of so much pain? This is the struggle for Virginia Woolf, a self-proclaimed atheist whose life was shadowed by death from an early age. In the years between 18953 (when she was thirteen) and 1904 she lost her mother, her sister, and her father. Less than a decade later, Europe was consumed by war, and public mourning became a part of her life. “Grieving started very early in Virginia’s life, which might be one reason why her writing offers us such a forceful riposte that it should, or could, be brought to an end.”
Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalytic theories profoundly changed the way we think about the mind and its subconscious workings. His work greatly influenced the way people understood mental illness and other social deviations. This is especially true during the time that Virginia Woolf was writing these novels, when his books were widely read. In Civilization and Its Discontents, Freud presents the struggle between Eros (the drive for erotic love) and Thanatos (the appetite for death) as the forces that dominate human decision-making and action. He feared that without healthy outlets for our own sexual appetites, humanity would