Mrs Dalloway

«Mrs Dalloway», Virginia Woolf's fourth novel, chronicles a single day in the life of Clarissa Dalloway, an upper-class socialite living in London in the 1920s. Set on June 28, 1925, the novel follows Clarissa's preparations for an evening party she is hosting. The beautiful summer day triggers a flood of memories from her idyllic youth. Clarissa contemplates her choice to marry the reliable and respectable Richard Dalloway over the passionate but extravagant Peter Walsh. Throughout the day, Clarissa reflects on her past, considers her present, and grapples with the meaning of life. She ponders her relationship with her husband, the paths not taken, and what her life might have been like had she made different choices. Woolf masterfully employs stream-of-consciousness to paint the inner lives of her characters, seamlessly weaving together past, present, and future.