Mrs Dalloway by Virginia Woolf is a modernist novel that was published in 1925. It focuses on a single day in June of post-World War I London in the life of Clarissa Dalloway who is preparing to entertain high society guests.
Woolf employs stream-of-consciousness narrative technique that helps to smoothly move in time, between past and present, between the minds of various characters, capturing the fleeting nature of time and consciousness.
The novel uses the interconnected life experiences of two people, Clarissa and a war veteran known as Septimus Warren Smith, and provides a compelling revelation on the inner lives of people and the hidden emotional struggles beneath the surface of everyday life.
Mrs Dalloway by Virginia Woolf Summary
The novel begins on a warm Wednesday morning of mid-June 1923 in London. Clarissa Dalloway is an upper-class woman in her early fifties, who goes outside the city to purchase flowers to arrange a party that evening. She is thinking as she walks along the streets of Westminster. Sights, sounds, and smells of the city take her back to her younger years.
A Busy City and Shifting Minds
She remembers Bourton, the country estate, where she used to spend her summers when she was a girl. She recalls those days of freedom and people she knew closely. Today, her life appears decent and correct, but there is something far or missing within her. She sees how time has transformed her and she contrasts the happiness of youth with the solemnity of middle age.
When Clarissa is walking, she hears the loud sound of a car backfiring. All the people around her stop and look around to see whether there is someone important in the car, maybe royalty or a government official. A bit later there is a plane in the sky, which writes letters in smoke. People rush to gape, making an attempt to read the message. Clarissa still has her thoughts about the past, but she is still under the impact of beauty and mystery of the moment, and she continues her walk.
The view changes to other persons. The sky writing advertisement and the enigma of the car influence them in varying ways. Every individual goes into a trance. This transition reveals the method of Woolf to switch between the minds of different people without any prior notice. With these scenes, the reader gets to observe how commonplace phenomena connect strangers.
Memories of Love and Youth
The walk of Clarissa and the summer air reminds her of Peter Walsh, a close friend of hers at Bourton who once proposed to her. She had rejected him because she felt that life with him would be intense and overwhelming. In fact, she was afraid to lose her independence. Even today, she doubts whether it was the correct decision.
She also recalls about her free-spirited and wild friend, Sally Seton, of the same period. She had been kissed by Sally once, and this one kiss has been one of the most beautiful and strongest memories of Clarissa. These memories cause her to think how she could have lived her life differently, maybe with more intensity, less security.
Clarissa is now married to Richard Dalloway, a stable and successful politician. It is a stable and peaceful marriage that has no emotional depth. She does not like to be close to him despite the fact that he treats her kindly. She often ponders whether she sacrificed something valuable when she decided to trade safety over love.
After purchasing flowers and other things, Clarissa goes back home and starts arrangements for the party that evening.
The Disoriented Septimus Warren Smith
The book then shifts to Septimus Warren Smith who was a former soldier in the World War I. He is walking through Regent’s Park with his wife, Lucrezia (Rezia), an Italian woman. Septimus is horribly traumatized by his war experiences. He has hallucinations and hears strange voices. He encounters his fallen comrade, Evans, and thinks that the birds talk Greek. He has a shattered and disoriented mind.
Septimus had an aspiration of being a poet and admired beauty and nature. But he did not feel anything after the war. He thinks his incapability to feel is a punishment and he gets so convinced that the world is judging him. He is afraid of the modern world and contemplates death a lot. Rezia does her best to take care of him, yet she is scared and lonely. She desires to live a normal life, to have children, but her husband is drifting away.
Seeking Doctors for Diagnosis
Rezia has been taking Septimus around to a general physician called Dr. Holmes. Holmes rejects the status of Septimus stating that he is only stressed and needs some rest. He assures Rezia that there is nothing to worry about Septimus and he needs distractions.
Rezia then takes Septimus to a renowned psychiatrist, Sir William Bradshaw. Bradshaw at once replies that Septimus is in a state of nervous breakdown, and must be carried out to a house in the country. He intends to separate him from Rezia as he thinks quiet and control are the best.
Bradshaw believes in “proportion” and compliance with rules. He fails to understand the mind of Septimus and considers his emotions like issues that need to be rectified. But, Septimus feels even more trapped. He views the doctors as threats who just wish to wipe out his soul.
Peter Comes Back from India
Clarissa’s servant informs her that a visitor has come, Peter Walsh. She feels nervous with this surprise visit. Peter Walsh is a man in his fifties who has just come back from India. He shows up at Clarissa’s house, without an invitation, and finds her at home. Their encounter is full of feelings, forgotten memories, and thoughts. They talk politely, but inside, both are stirred.
Peter is still hurt by the fact that Clarissa refused to marry him. He informs her that he is now in love with a married woman in India and he is attempting to get a divorce. Clarissa listens and she is aware of the turmoil in him. Sometime later, they are interrupted by Elizabeth, the daughter of Clarissa. Peter goes away, bewildered and in tears. He recalls the past with nostalgia and with disillusion.
Peter’s Walk and Thoughts
Peter is walking on the streets of London. His thoughts wander as he wanders, and he thinks about the Empire, changes in the society and the future. He observes human beings and ponders on the type of life he has led.
At one point, he stalks a young woman in the streets, being attracted by her vitality and her charm. But nothing happens. It is a small moment, full of feeling and fantasy, like many others in his life.
Richard Dalloway’s Silent Love
Meanwhile, Richard Dalloway has lunch with a respected upper-class female, Lady Bruton. The lunch is formal and uneventful. Afterwards, Richard purchases a bouquet of roses to Clarissa. He wants to tell her that he loves her, but when he sees her, he is unable to say a word.
He presents her the flowers and says nothing. Clarissa is pleased but senses the emptiness in their communication. She feels how hard it is for people to truly understand or express love.
The Silent Reflection of Clarissa
Clarissa later lies in her bed. She reflects on life and death, and on herself. She is wondering whether her parties are important or they are just a means of disguising her loneliness. She wonders whether what she has done has any sense.
She cogitates about the surrounding people, her memories, and the way life is changing all the time. She wants to find something permanent, something deep and real in the face of time and loss.
Septimus’s Suicide
Meanwhile, Septimus gets even more disturbed. The world to him is a world of lies and he fears he will never get back his sanity. He and Rezia have one last joyous time when they create a hat. Then Dr. Holmes comes.
Rezia attempts to prevent Holmes entering but he shoves her aside. Terrified and desperate, Septimus makes a last decision. Instead of getting carried away, he leaps out of a window and falls on the railings below and dies. His death is not a mere escape but a means of saving his soul which would have been ruined.
Clarissa’s Evening Party
Clarissa’s evening party of starts. Visitors pour in – politicians, noblemen, artists and old friends to the house. On the one hand, the party seems to be ideal but on the other hand, many individuals feel lost or dissatisfied.
Sally Seton comes unexpectedly. She is now Lady Rosseter and has five sons. Clarissa is glad to see her but she observes that time has altered her. Sally is no longer the adventurous girl that she was. Clarissa experiences a mixed feeling of joy and sadness.
A Moment of Understanding
Peter Walsh is also in the party. He observes Clarissa in the room. He is amazed by her beauty, her composure, and something more than that which he cannot clearly define. Then, Lady Bradshaw informs Clarissa that a man committed suicide earlier that day named Septimus Warren Smith.
Clarissa does not know Septimus, yet the news impacts on her. She moves out of the crowd and reflects about him. She feels a strong connection to him. She realizes that he did not die out of insanity but out of courage. This is how he could protect his inner truth.
The Quiet Reflection of Clarissa
Clarissa understands the importance of safeguarding inner life from the death of Septimus. She wonders how people hide behind roles, parties and rules. She envies Septimus because he is opposed to that.
His death makes her reflect on her own life again, on what matters, what is real, and what it means to live fully. She finds a new sense of peace.
A Gentle Ending
Clarissa comes back to the party with a calm spirit. When she is walking in, Peter sees her and is overwhelmed by feeling. He finds something bright and calm in her. At that moment, he experiences some sort of clarity, as though he finally understands her soul.
The novel ends not with a final answer, but with quiet understanding. It is a tale of life, death, memory and identity all in the span of one day.
Mrs Dalloway: A Critical Appreciation
Here’s a critical appreciation of Mrs Dalloway by Virginia Woolf in short paragraphs for an easy read to get to Know about the novel’s stream-of-consciousness technique, themes, symbols and other notable things in the novel:
Stream of Consciousness
Virginia Woolf is famous because of the use of stream of consciousness, and Mrs Dalloway is one of the finest examples of this literary technique. Stream of consciousness is a writing style in which thoughts and feelings of characters are presented in the same way they appear in the mind, without clear organization or sequence. This is not the conventional storytelling. It is rather the way the human mind truly operates jumping between past and present, thought and feeling, memory and reality.
In Mrs Dalloway, Woolf moves away from narrating the story through fixed events. She shifts the focus to the inner worlds of characters. The action occurs in one day, however, in this day, the reader gets deep into the minds of Clarissa Dalloway, Septimus Smith, Peter Walsh, and others. They are never inactive in their minds. They look in the mirror at their past, at what they regret and what they hope – and sometimes all three.
Woolf conjoins the present with the past, making a flowing narration. To give an example, Clarissa is on the way to purchase flowers and all of a sudden she recalls her summers at Bourton. Meanwhile, she is listening to the city and observing people in the streets. All these thoughts, images, and memories mix and match in a natural way as they would in the mind of someone.
Woolf also applies free indirect speech, where the voice of the narrator is mixed with the voice of the character. Take the example of Clarissa when she is contemplating on her party, she is not being told about it in a remote manner. Rather, we are made to believe that we are inside her mind and we are experiencing her pride, fear and sadness. The same occurs with Septimus whose thoughts are frequently interrupted, muddled or poetic. His thoughts disclose the war trauma, his guilt, and the necessity to run away.
By writing this way, Woolf shows that the truth of life is not found in big events, but in quiet, private moments. A glance, a memory, or a small act of kindness can mean more than speeches or parties. The stream of consciousness technique lets the reader enter those moments and feel them closely.
A Quiet Day, A Deep Life
Mrs Dalloway by Virginia Woolf is not a book of great adventures, or huge historical events. It is a narration of one day in the life of Clarissa Dalloway, a London socialite who is planning a party. But behind this plain framing there is something deep. Woolf is able to grasp the complex, rich thoughts of her characters and presents that even a normal day has a deep meaning. Woolf uses the little things and intimate feelings to examine life, death, memory, and time in a very strong manner.
Time That Ticks and Time That Lives
The novel has been smart to demonstrate two types of time. One of them is a “Big Ben” that ticks indicating the movement of time. The other is inner time – the subjective, emotional time. On the way to purchase flowers, Clarissa recollects her childhood at Bourton. The mind of Peter Walsh alternates between the regrets of the past and fears of the present. Woolf helps us realize that time exists within us, formed by our memories, and not just by clocks.
Two Worlds, One City
London is not merely a place but a breathing character. Woolf provides two Londons. One is the physical city, which is crowded with street traffic, shops and people. The other one is a “city of the mind,” which consists of memories, emotions, and thoughts which are not expressed. As shown when Clarissa walks in Westminster with past memories, Septimus walks in Regent park being haunted by war. These two roads, one peaceful and the other disturbed, display the division between the external appearances and internal suffering.
Clarissa and Septimus: Mirror Image
The parallelism of Clarissa Dalloway and Septimus Smith is one of the biggest accomplishments of Woolf. The two never come across, yet their narratives resonate with one another. Clarissa uses partying and courtesy to conceal her grief. Septimus has no way to conceal his anguish and he is judged for it. Time and loss weigh on both of them. When Clarissa hears of Septimus’s suicide, she sees it not only as tragic but as a kind of courage. Their connection shows Woolf’s belief that even strangers can share deep emotional truth.
The Inner World Unwrapped
Woolf employs the stream of consciousness style which brings us into the thoughts of her characters. She does not merely inform us what they do, but what they feel, remember and imagine. This makes the novel very real and close. We do not simply observe Clarissa or Peter, we experience their thoughts. In this style, emotions such as regret, joy, fear and hope are brought out in a manner that is realistic and human.
The Shadow of War
In spite of the fact that Mrs Dalloway is not a book about battles and soldiers, the influence of war is present everywhere. Woolf is able to depict the lingering hurt of World War I through Septimus. He does not only experience trauma but also the cold attitude of society towards mental illness. The death of Septimus is not only a tragedy but a warning of how easily a pain of a person may be overlooked.
A Party with a Lot of Sense
The novel closes with the evening party of Clarissa. Superficially it is merely a social occasion. But Woolf makes it a moment of reflection. Youthful companions come back. Old emotions are awakened. Clarissa learns of the death of Septimus and she goes away briefly to think of herself. When she returns, Peter Walsh sees her and feels a deep wave of emotion. This quiet climax shows how much can lie behind a smile or a gesture. The party becomes a symbol of life’s beauty and sadness.
A Modern Masterpiece
Mrs Dalloway is a powerful example of modernist writing. It breaks many rules of traditional storytelling. There is no clear plot, no main conflict, and no action in the usual sense. But what it gives instead is more lasting—an honest look at how people think, feel, and live. Woolf’s language is poetic, her structure is delicate, and her vision is brave.
Why Mrs Dalloway Still Matters?
Nearly a century after it was written, Mrs Dalloway remains fresh and important. It speaks to anyone who has ever questioned their choices, missed the past, or wondered about death. It reminds us that daily life, though quiet on the outside, is full of meaning. It teaches us that true understanding lies not in events but in empathy, the ability to feel what others may be hiding.
Mrs Dalloway Characters
Clarissa Dalloway
Clarissa is the protagonist of Mrs Dalloway. She is an upper-class woman living in London and the wife of a Conservative Member of Parliament Richard Dalloway. Clarissa is graceful, refined and a socialite, who knows how to organize elevated parties with people of different social and political backgrounds. She appears to live a nice and usual life, however, she is tormented by the feeling of loneliness, regrets, and doubts about identities and death.
Clarissa’s mind keeps wandering back in time, especially about her childhood back in Bourton, where she had a strong feelings with Peter Walsh and with her friend Sally Seton. The conflict between the fantasy and the reality of the inner and the outward worlds of a person is symbolized in the character of Clarissa. On the one hand, as a conforming woman, she does what society expects of her, but, on the other hand, she spends a great deal of time on her inner world of thinking, feeling her emotion and questioning life and death.
Septimus Warren Smith
Septimus is a very traumatized World War I veteran, who stands as a strong contrast to Clarissa. He is an individual in his early thirties who is nowadays would be defined as “PTSD.” Septimus is haunted by the death of his friend Evans on the war, and he is hallucinating and experiencing the extremes of emotions. He feels that the world does not make any sense and he is facing the judgment of unseen hands.
Initially sensitive and idealistic Septimus is now more alienated than ever to the world that surrounds him. His tragic struggle with mental illness and society’s inability to understand or help him culminates in his suicide. Septimus’s character critiques the dehumanizing medical and societal systems that dismiss emotional and psychological suffering, and his death deeply affects Clarissa, who senses a spiritual connection with him.
Peter Walsh
Peter is an ex-lover of Clarissa and longtime friend of her. He has never recovered from Clarissa’s rejection of his marriage proposal years earlier. He is returning to London after working in colonist administration in India and being entangled with a married woman.
Peter is restless, not satisfied with what he has done and remains highly bound to Clarissa. He is vacillating between envy and awe about her, as he is, in fact, unstable. The theme of unrealised wish and the bitterness of memory is carried out in the character of Peter. His introspective wanderings through London mirror Clarissa’s, and show how the past continues to haunt the present.
Sally Seton (Lady Rosseter)
Clarissa and Sally were best friends in her early years in Bourton and she represents a brief excursion in her emotional and even romantic freedom when she was younger. Wild and rebellious in her youth, Sally once scandalized the household by running through the corridors naked and talking about women’s rights.
Once Clarissa even kissed her, and the memory stayed in her as one of the most beautiful moments in her life. But later in the novel, when Sally arrives at the party of Clarissa, the latter learns that the woman is now an established housewife Lady Rosseter with five sons. She is no longer a radical as she used to be. Sally helps to draw a parallel between youthful innocence and adult recognition.
Richard Dalloway
Richard, Clarissa husband, is a Parliament member, successful and traditional person. He is loving and good in his manner, though an emotionally tight person. The love he has towards Clarissa is sincere but he finds it hard to express it, as we see him on one occasion wanting to tell Clarissa that he loves her, but can only bring her a flower.
Richard is conservative, stable and traditional, and socially respectable. Woolf, through him, is able to discuss the flaws within marriages and the small, oft-times unquestioned fudges of maturity.
Rezia Smith
Rezia (Lucrezia Warren Smith) is the wife of Septimus Warren Smith who is Italian. She is much younger than him and married Septimus, when he was going to war, to get a peaceful and a happy life in England. However, as Septimus’s mental health deteriorates, Rezia becomes increasingly isolated and overwhelmed.
Rezia fails to recognize his hallucinations and his withdrawal, and is in a conflict of love, fear and frustrations. The fact that she feels lonely in an unfamiliar land, her desperation to have kids of her own and her inability to do anything about Septimus going mad makes her a tragic figure.
Dr. Holmes
Dr. Holmes is a general doctor who takes half measures to treat Septimus and keeps insisting that there is nothing unusual or wrong with him. According to him, Septimus ought to have normal activities and take much rest.
Holmes signifies the ignorance and the indifference of the medical establishment toward mental problems. Septimus sees him as a symbol of the oppressive forces that seek to erase his individuality, and his arrival ultimately precipitates Septimus’s suicide.
Sir William Bradshaw
Sir William Bradshaw is an influential psychiatrist who comes to the treatment of Septimus. Bradshaw is unsympathetic too, although considerably more authoritative than Dr. Holmes. He stresses the significance of the concepts of a “proportion” and conversion.
Bradshaw demands that Septimus be sent to the asylum thereby to be separate from Rezia. The philosophy of Bradshaw turns out authoritarian and repressive of emotions. His character plays the role of institutional domination, societal norms and inability of modern medicine to cure the soul.
Elizabeth Dalloway
Elizabeth is a 17-year old daughter of Clarissa and Richard. She is reflective and rarely has a role to speak, and is rather unconfident of her role on the planet. She is very intimate with her history teacher Miss Kilman and at times feels alien to her mother.
Elizabeth is a juvenile of the younger generation, a generation that is searching to find an identity in the shifting world. She even thinks of becoming a doctor or a farmer, something completely out of her family circle of parties and politics. Her personality opens up suggestions of an alternate future but it is still unknown what sort of decision she will make.
Miss Doris Kilman
Miss Kilman is a history teacher and Elizabeth’s companion. Miss Kilman is a poor, middle-aged woman who is very religious and sees a reason to be angry at those such as Clarissa who are shallow and privileged.
She is arrogant, sour and passionate, which makes Elizabeth feel uncomfortable even though they are so close to each other. Kilman hates Clarissa and wishes to be like her in beauty and position. Her character is symbolic in its signifying the social disparity, religiosity and the gap between the classes of the society.
Evans
Evans is an important character in the life of Septimus despite the fact that he is already dead. Evans, a fellow soldier, and close friend of Septimus in the war, was killed in the war. The psychological scars of the war on Septimus are revealed when he feels guilty about his death and constantly sees hallucinations of Evans. Evans is the worse memory experienced by Septimus and seems to be one of the reasons why Septimus unravels.