Friday, March 16, 2012
mrs. dalloway-ali pepin
Confusion surely ensues upon reading this novel. Many in the class would agree at this statement on the book and its complexity. I didn't even understand that the book occurred in a time frame of one day until somebody said something. I often question Woolf's thoughts as to why she would create such a book as this. Also, while Woolf gives us some character background, she manages to bypass a good character build up. I don't get a good feel for what anyone is about in this novel. One thing we discussed that seems to stick with me however is the stream of consciousness that occurs in this novel. When she was talking about choosing a pair of gloves Woolf writes, "Choosing a pair of gloves-should they be to the elbow or above it, lemon or pale grey?" (page 15 on ipad) The stream of consciousness occurs similar to how we think as humans. How we don't just think one thought, but we sometimes think multiple thoughts at once. Woolf succeeds in this way by relating this and making the reader feel like they are part of the book with relating the book to human thought.
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I definitely agree that this novel was very confusing to read. I knew that the book took place in one day because I read the back cover before starting it, but I managed to forget this several times due to the memories of each character and various discussions about past events. I was also very confused about the narrators. I was always unsure of who was speaking as I was reading. I often found myself searing through previous pages so that I could understand the narrator. Although it is confusing, I do agree with you that the stream of consciousness is an interesting concept. I like the example you chose about picking gloves. I could almost follow the thoughts of this narrator as something I might be thinking to myself as I tried to pick out clothes in my closet for the day.
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