Why did Clarissa ignore Sally and Peter?
When Sally arrived at the party I was super excited to see what Clarissa and her would talk about. And from Clarissa's reaction it seemed like yes, that was true, she was excited to see her old friend again and wanted to have that conversation. But instead she tells her to wait there, and goes to make small talk with people who should be less important to her. Sally goes and sits with Peter, and for the rest of the evening she ignores both of them. This seemed strange at first. However, when I thought about it, it makes perfect sense that Clarissa would prioritize the party. She essentially already made that choice when she married Richard, and her decision to tend to the other guests before them mirrors the crossroads she was at, and affirms her confidence in her selection. I saw that as a way telling them that yes, she was the perfect hostess, which meant they had to wait his turn. She had made this life for herself, she was satisfied with it, and was she good at what she did. But, her coming back to them in the end shows that even though she is Mrs. Dalloway, she's still the Clarissa they knew, and she still cares about them.
I really like your perspective on this. It struck me as odd as well when I was first reading that passage. Her constant nostalgic pondering on both Peter and Sally throughout the earlier parts of the book made me think they were some of the most important people in her life, so the lack of attention she showed them (at least before the book ended) was a bit of a shock. I think the book ending where it did was a little frustrating, but I really like your take on it and what it could potentially symbolize.
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree, her ignorance of Sally and Peter even after the long years of deep and meaningful friendship is symbolic of her choice to completely polarize her liberal life to that of a conservative one with Richard Dalloway.
ReplyDeleteThis makes a lot of sense to have Clarissa making a statement in a way of how she has her duties. One thing that stood out to me in the novel was the possibility that Clarissa lost her desire to talk to Sally when she saw her as a changed person. The Sally that showed up to the party wasn't the Sally that took up space in her mind.
ReplyDeletePerhaps her lack of attention to Sally was purposeful. Maybe she was trying to "suppress her past" , and not see how much her friend has changed. After all, Sally represented Clarissa's ideal version of youth and freedom, and now she has changed drastically. This part kind of reminded me of the road not taken: Clarissa chose one path and is now in the thick of her journey, she doesn't want to go and ponder the path she did not take. Maybe confronting her childhood friends would bring up old memories she wasn't to keen on facing, especially at her party.
ReplyDeleteI agree. Clarissa has chosen the party to be more important than someone such as Sally when she decided to marry Richard. But I think an important thing to consider is that fact that Sally has changed a lot from when she and Clarissa were friends. Who knows what Clarissa thinks of Sally now? She could be less friendly than before, or they might have a different friendship than before. It's impossible to tell because we never see Clarissa thinking too much about this new Sally.
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