Parties
In Mrs. Dalloway, Clarissa is judged by both Richard and Peter for her parties. They see it as childish or that she’s a snob. We might want to agree with them too, because why would someone like throwing parties? They seem to be trivial, just an event without real meaning. Does she want to appeal to everyone and show that she can be the “perfect hostess” or does she want to be the center of attention? What’s the big fuss about parties?
Clarissa says that she throws these parties as an offering. She wants to be able to bring people together. She says that parties are her gift because she doesn’t do anything else important. She just simply likes life. I think that she just wants to make people happy. She enjoys life and she wants others to as well. She uses her parties to accomplish that.
I think this shows how even seemingly trivial things can make someone feel better, like being invited to a party and being able to socialize. Peter and Richard are wrong for thinking that her parties don’t mean anything. Her parties mean a lot. They’re a way for people to get together and have fun. Being invited also shows that someone cares enough to invite you, that you’re important (even if they don’t actually like you). It’s the simple things in life that make life simply enjoyable.
Personally, I hate parties, and would hate to by invited to Clarissa's party because that means I have to go out rather than sit at home and watch TV. But, to other people to enjoy parties, I can see why they would be happy to be invited to Clarissa's party. I think its very nice for Clarissa to spread happiness like that. I wonder if Septimus' suicide could have been prevented if he were more engaged in society, like if he were able to attend her party.
ReplyDeleteI think the definition of "meaningful" varies from character to character within the book. Peter doesn't think the party was meaningful because he had no reason nor did he want to be there and he despised Clarissa's current lifestyle. Versus where as It was meaningful to Clarissa because this is where she meets Sally again after a long while and it was a way for her to feel useful by making people's life more happy.
ReplyDeleteFrom my understanding of college parties today, I can see how people would like to get drunk or get high on drugs. These events don't have meaning, it just that there are incentives to go to the party (drugs and alcohol). I guess people like to host parties so they can be drunk and high along with the guests.
ReplyDeleteI feel like her parties are really important for her happiness and feeling of self worth and that this makes them meaningful enough for me. While others might not find parties to be particularly important, me included, they are for her, and I think other characters have no right to judge her for doing something that is important to her and that is, on the whole, probably a good thing.
ReplyDeleteI also think that Clarissa lacks a lot of social interaction. She was sick with influenza and couldn't leave the house for some time and also doesn't get invited to the lunch gatherings that Richard did. The parties might also be because she is very lonely.
ReplyDeleteI agree that Clarissa throws parties to make herself happy, but I don't think that her parties are really to make other people happy. I think that, mainly, her parties are used to show her social status. We see multiple times throughout the book that Clarissa is focused on her status and rank among other people in London. Even her obsession with throwing the perfect party in the beginning of the book was based on her need to look good for others rather than making others happy
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