While reading Mrs. Dalloway I found myself wondering about Septimus Smith's agency. Distinguishing how much of a person's life is determined by their environment versus their personal choices can be difficult, but I thought it'd be an interesting question to explore - especially in the context of Mrs. Dalloway, since one of its major themes is how one's surroundings - particularly society's expectations - can drastically affect someone's life.
We can see a lot of Septimus's character from the descriptions of him pre-war. He pursues his passions. He writes poetry and reads Shakespeare. He's rather sensitive, and keenly attuned to his surroundings.
So why does he fight in the war? Certainly one reason is that he must; society needs him to fight. But perhaps he also wanted to prove himself - we know he was quite proud that he felt nothing after Evans' death. In that case, is it a display of agency, that he pursued his own goal, or is it yet another example of society driving men towards certain paths?
In the end, however, we know that this ends badly. We've discussed in class the expectations of men and masculinity and how that hurts his mental health. Septimus tries not to feel and ends up damaged by it. He ultimately does not appear to have much agency, hunted as he is by his mental and emotional injuries, forced into a certain way of life.
That seems to paint a dark picture of Septimus's life and society in general. Look how harmful the world can be! the book seems to say. How it can twist people up and ruin their entire sense of self!
But I think that's a bit drastic. After all, even after the war, he still writes some poetry - he must write poetry - it is his own personal desire, calling him to do his passion.
And in the end, he is driven to commit suicide. That seems to once again imply that societal expectations not only limited the paths Septimus could take in his life, but almost entirely demolished his agency. But once again, I don't think that looks at the whole picture. Septimus chooses to take his own life. It is depicted in the book as something he has done for himself. Clarissa is definitely moved and even inspired by it.
Similar to the hints of domesticity between Septimus and Rezia, the glimpses into the man Septimus could have been - but could never be - are meant to show the reader that it doesn't have to be this way. Such societal expectations are not as essential as we think.
We can see a lot of Septimus's character from the descriptions of him pre-war. He pursues his passions. He writes poetry and reads Shakespeare. He's rather sensitive, and keenly attuned to his surroundings.
So why does he fight in the war? Certainly one reason is that he must; society needs him to fight. But perhaps he also wanted to prove himself - we know he was quite proud that he felt nothing after Evans' death. In that case, is it a display of agency, that he pursued his own goal, or is it yet another example of society driving men towards certain paths?
In the end, however, we know that this ends badly. We've discussed in class the expectations of men and masculinity and how that hurts his mental health. Septimus tries not to feel and ends up damaged by it. He ultimately does not appear to have much agency, hunted as he is by his mental and emotional injuries, forced into a certain way of life.
That seems to paint a dark picture of Septimus's life and society in general. Look how harmful the world can be! the book seems to say. How it can twist people up and ruin their entire sense of self!
But I think that's a bit drastic. After all, even after the war, he still writes some poetry - he must write poetry - it is his own personal desire, calling him to do his passion.
And in the end, he is driven to commit suicide. That seems to once again imply that societal expectations not only limited the paths Septimus could take in his life, but almost entirely demolished his agency. But once again, I don't think that looks at the whole picture. Septimus chooses to take his own life. It is depicted in the book as something he has done for himself. Clarissa is definitely moved and even inspired by it.
Similar to the hints of domesticity between Septimus and Rezia, the glimpses into the man Septimus could have been - but could never be - are meant to show the reader that it doesn't have to be this way. Such societal expectations are not as essential as we think.
Nobody talks about Septimus still writing poetry after the war. There are boxes of it. Since the story all takes place in one day, we don't get to see him writing all of it, or his mental state in the preceding weeks and days. Doesn't Rezia say at one point that he's been getting worse lately? That poetry shows a lot of his own ability to be himself in spite of society (that is, his agency): poetry is central to his character, yet societally inappropriate.
ReplyDeleteI think that societal pressures stifled Septimus's agency and made him into a character easily pushed around into certain paths. The way I see Septimus's suicide is that it was Holmes (the embodiment of human nature) who forced Septimus out the window. From Septimus's point of view, he had no choice but to jump, which is why I feel like Septimus has never had a true moment of choosing for himself postwar.
ReplyDeleteI certainly like your idea that Septimus still has agency after the war. I also like to think his greatest act of postwar agency was the rejection of societal expectations. He went to war to prove himself a man, to fight for his country. He came out damaged but with the badge of masculinity. However, this was won at a hard cost and Septimus no longer thinks it is worth it to continue pleasing society. As such, he writes whatever comes to mind, he lets his mind wander, he cries in public! I think that while these all can be argued as results of his illness, it is also evidence of Septimus's rejection of the pressures imposed upon by society and his autonomy.
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