Mrs. Dalloway

Mrs. Dalloway was written by Virginia Woolf. Mrs. Dalloway was published in 1925.

The main character of the book is Clarissa Dalloway. She choose to marry Richard over Peter. Each man would have taken her life in completely different directions. She choose to marry Richard, thereby choosing society life and security. Throughout the book Clarissa thinks about the choice that she made. The majority of the book is dedicated to Clarissa's party that she throws for high society people.

Another character in the book is Septimus. Septimus is mentally ill because of being in war. Ultimately Septimus kills himself by throwing himself out a window.

The Good Soldier

The Good Soldier was written by Ford Madox Ford and published in 1915. The writing style of Ford was different from anything I have read before. The story isn't told in a chronological way. He will tell one piece of the story and then he may move forward and then tell a piece that falls in the middle. I had a difficult time following the timeline. In all honesty it wasn't until the middle of the book that my interest grew and I felt I was following the story. Given some time, I would like to reread the beginning of the story, I am sure I would pick up some missing pieces of the puzzle. If you have time to really analyze this story, I would give my recommendation.

Stephen in A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man

The novel A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man is a sort of biography of James Joyce. The main character of the novel is Stephen Dedalus. Stephen is one of many children of the Catholic family. His mother is very religious while his father has a difficult time providing financially for the family.

Stephen moves through a series of life events that mold him. Stephen is a sensitive boy who cares a lot about what others think of him. He is sensitive in more than his feelings however, he is also more aware of sights, sounds and smells, a clue to his creative mind.

Stephen struggles with his faith. At one point he considered being a priest but decides against it in order to pursue his art. Stephen sees prostitutes and this pulls at his faith even more. He knows he is committing a sin and his guilt is beyond measure. He does eventually go to confession in an attempt to reduce the guilt.

Stephen eventually moves away from his family. At one point he was ridiculed for kissing his mother. He was the ridiculed for saying he didn’t kiss his mother. The novel begins with Stephen feeling a close connection with his mother and near the end of the novel he doesn’t want to make her happy by attending Easter services with her.

The trials and tribulations and normal events of the life of Stephen are very well spelled out. I did find the novel hard to follow in many places. The writing seems fragmented, jumping from one thought to another. The main story line is very interesting however.