Clarissa at her Party

From the very first sentence of Mrs. Dalloway, both the reader and the characters anticipate Clarissa’s party. Much of the book builds up to it, so I was really excited to read the party scene. When I did, however, it wasn’t quite what I was expecting. Although the party did feature many of the main characters finally getting to interact, we did not really see Clarissa interact with them (in particular Peter and Sally) for long. I thought this was a really interesting choice since it meant that Clarissa’s relationship with her past and her old friends didn’t feel fully resolved at the end.


On the surface, it seems like the way Clarissa almost ignored her friends during the party supports Peter’s point that Clarissa is superficial. I could sympathize with Peter in this scene. I really wanted Clarissa to stop for a minute and take the time to talk to her friends. I could feel Peter’s disappointment when she just kept moving on and talking to other people. I could understand the way he would judge her for only talking to the important, respected people at the party, not the interesting people that mattered to her and for only making small talk, and not having deep conversations. It seemed like she was forcing herself to be nothing more than “the perfect hostess” at the party (Woolf 7).

However, when I give this scene more thought, I understand Clarissa’s point of view and I understand the importance of what she does. The conversations she has with her guests might not be radical or world-changing but they do have a very valuable purpose - they make people happy. Throughout her party, Clarissa continuously runs to the rescue when she senses that one of her guests isn’t enjoying the party to the fullest. For example when she is talking to one friend, she thinks “But alas, she must go. For there was Professor Brierly, who lectured on Milton, talking to little Jim Hutton … and even at this distance they were quarreling, she could see (Woolf 171-172). Clarissa means what she says when she explains that her parties are an “offering” (Woolf 118). No matter what her friends think, her parties aren’t an excuse for her to selfishly enjoy herself. As much as she wants to catch up with Peter and Sally, she doesn’t allow herself to just do what she wants and instead devotes herself fully to making sure her guests are happy. This “job” isn’t easy, but she’s good at it, and I think that it's as important as anything.

Overall, I think that Clarissa’s actions at the party offer another interesting opportunity to analyze her character. I am curious about what would have happened if she had gotten to have a longer conversation with Sally and Peter. However, I think that the somewhat ambiguous ending fits the story. In real life, things don’t always get resolved clearly. I think that the lack of dialogue between all three of Clarissa, Sally, and Peter at the end allows the story to end with each of them still having mixed feelings which makes the story more realistic.


Comments

  1. WilliamOctober 3, 2022 at 10:35 AM

    Excellent post! Another thing I enjoyed about the party sequence was the subtle shift in Clarissa's character as the party went on. She began nervous and constantly worried about how the party would go, but after she meets Sally, she has an almost-epiphany, and is able to withdraw herself from the moment and reflect on how happy everyone is, and how great a party she threw. This scene tells us so much about every character, particularly Clarissa, it's almost unimaginable how Woolf was able to fit it all into 30-odd pages of text.

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  2. AnuprovaOctober 3, 2022 at 1:12 PM

    Nice job Maya! Your analysis on how Clarissa has to give up talking to Peter and Sally in order to be the "perfect hostess" really helps sell her role in the book as more of a job. Rather than being a lavish and superficial display of wealth for a middle-aged woman, the parties help Clarissa feel like she has a role in society. Even though she hasn't seen Sally, her best friend, in decades, she continues on with her job of being the hostess. While this can be depicted as "fake", I think it serves to show Clarissa's true dedication to her job and how important it is to her.

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  3. KathrynOctober 7, 2022 at 9:01 AM

    I was also expecting some kind of dramatic conclusion since the whole book led up to the party scene. But I actually really liked the less dramatic party scene because we got to see Clarissa have a successful party and go from insecure to confident in herself and her abilities. She doesn't want to be the stereotypical hostess like Peter says she does, she just wants to make her guests happy. Great post!

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  4. ArjunOctober 7, 2022 at 9:46 PM

    I really like your post. Since a lot of this book, including the party scene, is written through Peter Walsh's perspective, I think positive attributes are often twisted into negative ones (especially Clarissa). I think it's Peter Walsh's cynical worldview which makes us consider Clarissa's actions during the party as superficial (trying to be the "perfect hostess"), when in reality it could just be her being a genuinely friendly person.

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  5. Grace ToOctober 8, 2022 at 1:00 AM

    I really liked the way you thought about Clarissa's actions at the party -- the ambiguous ending really fits in with Woolf's writing style (we start and end the book with more questions). I actually really liked the ending scene of the novel because it kind of ties together the end of the day, and we finally get to see her put together the plans she has been preparing for the entire day.

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  6. AyaOctober 9, 2022 at 10:13 AM

    I agree that there are definitely two sides to the story. While Peter's stance is somewhat understandable, it shows that he doesn't understand Clarissa's parties and her reason for having them. Clarissa seems truly devoted to bringing people together and helping them connect. It definitely reflects real life where there's so much to do that some things are left unsaid and unfinished. But even though Clarissa doesn't get to talk with Sally and Peter, the party seems to have left an impression on the both of them, which feels like Clarissa leaving her mark. Awesome post!

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  7. MitchellOctober 10, 2022 at 12:03 PM

    Nice job emphasizing the actual WORK we see Clarissa doing at the party, which Peter does begrudgingly seem to acknowledge--she is actually very good at this whole "hostess" role. Clearly Peter means to hurt her feelings with his "perfect hostess" line, and by "perfect" we understand something like "perfectly superficial" or "perfectly phony." But in the actual party scene, Woolf makes sure we understand the unique kind of work that Clarissa is doing here--monitoring every social interaction for the slightest hint of tension, checking for signs only she can see (like when that guy beats back the curtain that's blowing in, and she realizes the party will be a success). She isn't just standing at the top of the stairs telling everyone they look lovely (although that's part of the job)--she is also curating the experience of the party, coordinating meetings and interactions, making sure everything goes well. (So it's an even bigger deal for her to suddenly duck into the darkened room alone and leave the party to fend for itself.)

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