Death in "Mrs. Dalloway" and "To the Lighthouse"

Paper Summary:

This paper focuses upon the aspects of modernism relating to the theme of death in two of Virginia Woolf's novels, "Mrs. Dalloway" and "To the Lighthouse", which both involve the sudden premature death of one or more of the major characters. The paper contends that even though Woolf had her own individual voice, she used modernist ideas as a basis of conveying her own about the theme of death. The paper examines the theoretical aspects of modernism in their literary implementation within Woolf's works and discusses how the general mood and the social circumstances of the era can be seen as catalysts to the salience of death as a topic of thought.

Outline:
Introduction
Social and Historical Background
The Characterization of Life and Death in Modernist Thought
Urbanism, Technology and the Alienation of the Individual
The Search for Meaning
Concluding Remarks: Death as Means of Affirming Life

From the Paper:

"In both novels, the plot is secondary to philosophical introspection, individual experience and perspective. Death as a literary theme governs both Mrs. Dalloway and To the Lighthouse, yet Woolf examines it from a different angle in these two novels. In the former, she inspects the reaction to death and the social outlook on the issue, whilst in the latter the focus is upon the absence of people, death's consequences and the search for a meaningful existence. In this manner the theme of death is widely broadened in order to embrace other Modernist concepts. The different perspective presented allows a deeper understanding in terms of Woolf's treatment of the topic, which in turn provides a more thoughtful research. "

Sample of Sources Used:

• Aries, Philippe. 1972. Western Attitudes towards Death from the Middle Ages to the Present, trans. by Patricia M. Ranum. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.
• DiBattista Maria. 1980. "Mrs. Dalloway: Virginia Woolf's Memento Mori" in Virginia Woolf's Major Novels: The Fables of Anon. New Haven: Yale University.
• Faulkner, Peter. 1977. Modernism. London: Methuen.
• Gaipa, Mark. 2003. An Agnostic's Daughter's Apology: Materialism, Spiritualism, and Ancestry in Woolf's To the Lighthouse. Journal of Modern Literature 26.2: 1-41.
• Hussey, Mark. 1986. The Singing of the Real World: The Philosophy of Virgina Woolf's Fiction. Columbus: Ohio State University Press.

More papers on Death in "Mrs. Dalloway" and "To the Lighthouse":

• Book Review # 103057 : "Death in "Mrs. Dalloway"
• Analytical Essay # 58326 : "Mrs Dalloway" and "The Hours"
• Analytical Essay # 137228 : "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf" and "To the Lighthouse"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: