Description

Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf (1985 ed.)

Virginia Woolf’s modernist classic Mrs. Dalloway unfolds over a single June day in post–World War I London, following Clarissa Dalloway, an upper‑class woman preparing for an evening party. As Clarissa moves through the city buying flowers and greeting acquaintances, her thoughts drift through memories of youth, lost love, and roads not taken.

Interwoven with Clarissa’s story is that of Septimus Warren Smith, a traumatized war veteran suffering from severe psychological distress. His internal struggle, marked by hallucinations and a profound sense of alienation, acts as a haunting counterpoint to Clarissa’s outwardly ordered social world. Their parallel narratives explore the fragmentation of identity, the weight of memory, and the lingering impact of war.

Through its fluid stream‑of‑consciousness narration and shifting perspectives, the novel delves into themes of time, mental health, social change, loneliness, and the complexity of human connection. Big Ben’s chimes mark the passing hours, underscoring Woolf’s meditation on how personal and public histories collide within a single day.

A groundbreaking work of psychological depth and lyrical brilliance, Mrs. Dalloway remains one of Woolf’s most celebrated novels—an enduring testament to the hidden inner lives that shape us.

Copyright: Originally published in 1925, renewed in 1953 by Leonard Woolf. This paperback copy was published by A Harvest/HBJ Book in 1985.

Condition: Okay. Loved. Vintage.

ISBN-10: 0156628635

ISBN-13: 9780156628631

Dewey Decimal: 823.912