The Hours: Laura's "Perfect Hostess" Role

In The Hours, Laura is a complex character that intertwines traits of several characters in Mrs. Dalloway. The main characteristics of Clarissa and Septimus have been merged to create Laura’s personality. While she tries to reassemble herself, she has a nagging wariness of her incompetence to complete her role as a housewife.

The movie opens with a scene illustrating Laura’s hope to make a cake for her husband’s birthday. From her behavior, it seems like she is taking on the role of a “perfect housewife”, analogous to Clarissa’s position as a “perfect hostess”. While she strives to make the cake look perfect on the outside, things don’t turn out the way she expected. As insignificant as this moment can be, Laura takes it seriously and becomes more frustrated when her neighbor comments on the simplicity of such a task; any woman was capable of making a cake. The inability to make something as simple as a “perfect cake” leads Laura to believe that her attribution as a legitimate housewife is destroyed.

Clarissa’s reaction as a “perfect hostess” is the way Peter perceived for her to be in the future. According to her standards as well as the society’s expectations, Clarissa accepts her contribution to throw a successful party. Laura is different in the case that while we, as viewers, might be convinced of her behavior as a “perfect housewife”, but she isn’t satisfied of her success. Based on the appearance of the cake, the outside didn’t look entirely deformed besides the icing. The obsession to have the outside appear perfect signifies the similarity in the way people saw Septimus.   

As a character, Septimus has been presented with a mental illness due to the trauma of World War I. On the outside, everything seems to be normal, so doctors infer his condition is related to his lack of relaxation. However, Septimus’s real issues involve internal emotions that he isn’t able to control. Laura is similar to Septimus in the sense that she appears to be normal on the outside, but is aware that she is struggling internally as not being able to fulfill her role as a proper housewife. This constant dissatisfaction is what drives her to leave her family and life as a failure.  

Laura, in specific, has a convoluted story that brings different aspects of characters within Mrs. Dalloway. Throughout the movie, Laura isn’t convinced with her perception as a “perfect hostess” and because of this, she struggles to understand what she succeeds in. The way Laura reacted by leaving her family, she believed, would aid her to create a new, dominating life, but wouldn’t her previous life haunt her by emphasizing her failure not just as a housewife, but as a mother? What benefit did she achieve from visiting her son after he had committed suicide besides feeling condemned? While Laura might believe of an irregularity on the inside, I believe her personality would have been further destroyed through these decades as a result of her behavior.

Independence and Individuality

Does one marry for independence? For displaying their personality? Mrs. Dalloway declares the importance of marriage as “a little license, a little independence there must be between people living together day in day out in the same house; which Richard gave her, and she him,” (7). This relationship with Richard, as expressed by Mrs. Dalloway, is a successful one due to the personal space each spouse has allotted for the other.

While Peter does seem to be a precious individual to Clarissa, it could be argued that, according to Clarissa, he would contribute to her lack of individuality had they gotten married due to his constant interference in her life. But even with her marriage to Richard, Clarissa seems to convey a conflict of individuality.

It could be evident that intervals of loneliness is what keeps Mrs. Dalloway moving. During the party, Mrs. Dalloway was required to play a perfect hostess by greeting and interacting with guests whether she admired their company or not. However, the minute she disappears from the havoc of the evening, Mrs. Dalloway submerges in the afterthoughts of a suicide to deeply think about her own self: Clarissa.

Suicide, in this event, demonstrates a person’s madness. Clarissa’s thoughts might not have veered in this direction, but it is clearly supported how death made her rethink her previous events and actions that made her who she is. In the same instance, she mentioned Bourton where she met Richard and everyone was well aware of Peter Walsh’s love towards Clarissa. Consequently, she contemplates how this moment, in the emptiness of the room, could never be achieved had she wed Peter Walsh because “everything had to be shared; everything gone into,” (7).

But even while feeling independent of her spouse, Clarissa walks down Bond Street repeatedly claiming:

She would not say of any one in the world now that they were this or were that. She felt bery young; at the same time unspeakably aged. (8)

Throughout the book, Clarissa’s conflict of interest based on what to feel contributes to her own confusion. While Clarissa believes Richard and herself conform to a public identity of Mr. and Mrs. Richard Dalloway, Woolf gives presence to the insecurity Clarissa subtly communicates to us readers. Overall, Clarissa seems to cover her ambiguous personality with reasons that hint at her lack of self-identity.

Internal Struggles

Towards the beginning of the book, Virginia Woolf offers a vivid description of Clarissa’s thoughts. Her ideas indicate a women of higher living standards and, in several instances, a manner that makes her above the normal. Septimus, on the other hand, is also depicted as a self-centered character, but with a contorted history that clashes similarity with Clarissa. Based on what we have read so far, it can be reasonable to argue the dichotomy of their struggle to either expose or hide themselves from the crowd.The limo incident itself serves a critical point to analyze both Clarissa and Septimus.  

No one among the spectators actually knows who is the mysterious figure hiding behind the blinds (that is if there was anyone at all). Mrs. Dalloway’s imagination justifies an important figure approaching her direction so she consequently wears “a look of extreme dignity standing by the flower shop in the sunlight” (16). Aside from the fact that Mrs. Dalloway emphasizes the presence of flowers, she demonstrates her interest in appearing more prestigious than the common person. Lady Burton, “whose lunch parties were extraordinarily amusing”, is an ideal example to Clarissa for her prominence (30). In another situation, she imagines herself as a perfect hostess to the Prime Minister, a position to be highly ranked by nature (7). While she has succeeded to create a similar a portrait to this, Clarissa is cautious about using her outer appearance to conceal the struggles of her inner self.

The external appearance Clarissa tries to advocate is used to make the impression as a one-of-a-kind lady worth thinking and conversing about, as is apparent with the party she is hosting. However even after thirty years of marriage, she is still doubtful of her relationship between herself and Peter. On more than one occasion, she predicts how life would be if she was Mrs. Peter Walsh. The concept of questioning a decision she made decades ago about marrying Richard might hint at an unsatisfied relationship that lacks qualities exhibited by Peter. This notion is further distorted when Sally Seton enters the picture; this confusing relationship provides reason to believe that Clarissa lacks love, feels undermined to express her values thanks to society, or both. While these specific obstacles may not coincide with Septimus’, they both exhibit characteristics similar to each other.

In this exact limo event, Woolf also provides a reaction from Septimus’ point of view. Septimus’ initial impressions conform a melancholy state when muttering, “I will kill myself” (15). As we later acknowledge, it seems to be his life as a soldier in the War malignantly affected his present-day thought process. Septimus is heavily embedded with the constant self-centeredness in a burdensome manner. As the limo is driving by, he offers any ill-mannered excuse to put him at the center of attention, as if it was his fault for causing the limo to disrupt the cities’ routine. His lack of control over emotions is what makes it difficult for him to perceive events the way the “common person” would.

Septimus without a doubt, also displays a state of confusion and asceticism. As Lucrezia removes her wedding ring because of her emaciated fingers, Septimus contemplates “with agony, with relief” (66). A tiny ring not worn by his wife due to health issues shouldn't be a point of disturbance. However, since it happens to be so, this further implies his ignorance in self-control. While this may indicate a slight instance of humor, contemplating the relief of ending his marriage with a caring wife and agony for feeling deserted portrays the mass confusion within the character.   

As both characters have contrasting personalities in their “outside” life, I believe, to some extent, that they both experience somewhat similar internal struggles. They are too cognizant of their surroundings to notice their own shortcomings. Paranoia, depression, and trauma reveal both the internal and external world Septimus faces. Clarissa is very much unlike this, due to her representation as Mrs. Richard Dalloway to the public as well as her personal interest in appearing ostentatious. Clarissa’s outer appearance almost always carries a sense of pride. Overall, would it be appropriate to say Clarissa and Septimus are similar in character to some extent?