"... for those who for mysterious reasons have the fortune to be alive. It is, in fact, great good fortune" (Cunningham, 226).
Although the mood of the last part of the book has been negative, Cunningham uses this line to bring hope back into the readers mind. Most of the novel has expressed how stuck people feel in their lives, but Cunningham is saying that it is good to be alive, and that one should be grateful. It is also interesting that he chose to bring up this point on the last page of the book.
Monday, September 29, 2008
"The Hours"
"' But there are still the hours, aren't there? One and then another, and you get through that one and then, my god, there's another. I'm so sick'" (Cunningham, 199).
Time is the most obvious theme in The Hours. This quote shows how frustrating it is to keep going, when everyone knows it doesn't really matter. The tittle of this book is The Hours, which ties directly down to what Richard is saying. (Edit) This quote could passably be the most crucial one in the whole novel because Cunningham added it to add to the books meaning and truth.
Time is the most obvious theme in The Hours. This quote shows how frustrating it is to keep going, when everyone knows it doesn't really matter. The tittle of this book is The Hours, which ties directly down to what Richard is saying. (Edit) This quote could passably be the most crucial one in the whole novel because Cunningham added it to add to the books meaning and truth.
Uniroyal Man
"Helmeted astronauts, plump and white as the Uniroyal Man, faceless behind their dark visors, offer stiff, white-gloved salutes" (Cunningham, 196). The Uniroyal man is the mascot for the Uniroyal tire company. This is important because tires are one of the things that got civilization off on a roll, and in this novel, civilization has begun to crumb. Although the message isn't sent in the same fashion as The Heart Of Darkness, many of these characters feel as though society has failed them.
Kisses
"They rest their mouths, each on the other. They touch their lips together, but do not quite kiss" (Cunningham, 110)
In this novel, when two people kiss, it is often written like this "they kissed, on the lips". Not only is this reversed, but it is also stated that they did not quite kiss. Both Kitty and Laura know that they have feelings for each other, but they are both to scared to admit it. The other characters who kissed had accepted their feelings, which is why they were able to complete the act.
In this novel, when two people kiss, it is often written like this "they kissed, on the lips". Not only is this reversed, but it is also stated that they did not quite kiss. Both Kitty and Laura know that they have feelings for each other, but they are both to scared to admit it. The other characters who kissed had accepted their feelings, which is why they were able to complete the act.
Dan
"(the scattering of crumbs caught in the icing, the squashed appearance of the 'n' in 'Dan,' which got too close to a rose)" (Cunningham, 99-100).
Dan is Mrs. Brown's husband, whom she convinces herself that she loves. It is very symbolic that part of Dan should be ruined by a flower. This flower represents Mrs. Brown herself, not only because she is a female, but because she is not being truthful to herself or to him. (Edit) Cunningham also did this because flowers were important symbolism in Mrs. Dalloway.
Dan is Mrs. Brown's husband, whom she convinces herself that she loves. It is very symbolic that part of Dan should be ruined by a flower. This flower represents Mrs. Brown herself, not only because she is a female, but because she is not being truthful to herself or to him. (Edit) Cunningham also did this because flowers were important symbolism in Mrs. Dalloway.
"The Golden Notebook"
"They'd kissed, and walked around the pond together. In another hour they'd have dinner, and considerable quantities of wine. Clarissa's copy of The Golden Notebook..." (Cunningham, 98).
Dorris Lessing wrote The Golden Notebook in 1962. It tells of a women who writes four journals, and each one has a different genre. Frustrated by life, she then attempts to put all of the notebooks together in a golder notebook. Clarissa has had many different "notebooks' in her life, and now as she ages, she is trying to piece it all together.
Links:
"Vanity Fair"
" Oliver St. Ives, who came out spectacularly in Vanity Fair and was subsequently dropped from his leading role in an expressive thriller, has gained more notoriety as a gay activist than he could ever have hoped for had he continued posing as a heterosexual..."(Cunningham, 93).
All three women in this novel have experienced homosexual feelings. Some have embraced it(Mrs. Dalloway), while others are ashamed (Mrs. Brown). Oliver St. Ives is a character present in Clarissa's life, and he has made his sexuality public fact. His beliefs and ideas are similar to what Cunningham is trying to portray in his novel.
All three women in this novel have experienced homosexual feelings. Some have embraced it(Mrs. Dalloway), while others are ashamed (Mrs. Brown). Oliver St. Ives is a character present in Clarissa's life, and he has made his sexuality public fact. His beliefs and ideas are similar to what Cunningham is trying to portray in his novel.
West Village
"Two floors and a garden in the West Village! They are rich, of course; obscenely rich by the world's standards; but not rich rich, not New York City rich" (Cunningham, 91).
The West Village is a section of Manhattan that is known to be home to some of the wealthiest people in America.Clarissa is expressing how that she has been fortunate, but perhaps not yet achieved the American dream. Mrs. Dalloway was placed in London England, so it is interesting that Cunningham decided to add another element to his novel that wasn't present in Woolf's.
Links:
http://www.nybits.com/manhattan/west_village/
The West Village is a section of Manhattan that is known to be home to some of the wealthiest people in America.Clarissa is expressing how that she has been fortunate, but perhaps not yet achieved the American dream. Mrs. Dalloway was placed in London England, so it is interesting that Cunningham decided to add another element to his novel that wasn't present in Woolf's.
Links:
http://www.nybits.com/manhattan/west_village/
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Rilke's Apollo
" It is one thing to be asked to carry a cabbage across the street, quite another to be asked to carry the recently unearthed head of Rilke's Apollo"(Cunningham, 77).
Rainer Maria Rilke was a famous poet who lived from 1875 to 1926. Torso of an Archaic Apollo was one of his most famous works. Although the poem itself is written about a dead object, he makes writes as if it were alive. This young child is fighting for the love of his mother, and feels as though this one cup of flower will define their relationship.
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Metal Rim
"She can hear her husband moving around downstairs. A metal lid kisses the rim of its pan"(Cunningham, 42).
Cunningham is using personification to enrich his setting. Settings play a very important role in novels, and one way to add emphases to this is by filling the setting with literary devices, such as personification. Cunningham also uses metaphor, similes, and other personification to accomplish setting in The Hours.
Cunningham is using personification to enrich his setting. Settings play a very important role in novels, and one way to add emphases to this is by filling the setting with literary devices, such as personification. Cunningham also uses metaphor, similes, and other personification to accomplish setting in The Hours.
"Mrs. Dalloway"
" Mrs. Dalloway said she would buy the flowers herself. For Lucy Had her work cut out for hr. The doors would have been taken off their hinges; Rumplelmayer's men were coming. And then, though Clarissa Dalloway, what a morning-fresh as if issued to children on a beach." (Cunningham, 37).
Mrs. Dalloway was a novel written by Virginia Woolf. It is off this novel that everything in The Hours is built off of and parallel to. All three characters are surrounded by this book, whether they are the writer, character, or reader. Without Mrs. Dalloway, The Hours would not have existed. (Edit) Cunningham made sure that these two novels have much of the same symbolism, plot outline, and truths.
Links:
http://ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/w/woolf/virginia/w91md/
Mrs. Dalloway was a novel written by Virginia Woolf. It is off this novel that everything in The Hours is built off of and parallel to. All three characters are surrounded by this book, whether they are the writer, character, or reader. Without Mrs. Dalloway, The Hours would not have existed. (Edit) Cunningham made sure that these two novels have much of the same symbolism, plot outline, and truths.
Links:
http://ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/w/woolf/virginia/w91md/
Virginia Stephen
" She is Virginia Stephen, pale and tall, startling as a Rembrandt..." (Cunningham, 33).
Rembrandt Harmensz van Rijn was an artist born in Leiden on July 15, 1606. He is known for mythological and religious works, which were in high demand during his lifetime. Leonard remembers his wife when she was young and beautiful, like a Rembrandt, and even though she has aged, he still loves her. (Edit) It is interesting that Cunningham included this because usually aging is viewed in a negative light.
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Mirrors
"The mirror is dangerous; it sometimes shows her the dark manifestation of air that matches her body, takes her form, but stands behind, watching her, with porcine eyes and wet, hushed breathing" (Cunningham, 310).
Michael Cunningham describes the mirror like this so the reader thinks of it more as a character in the novel, and less of a mirror. Virginia Woolf is the person who wrote Mrs. Dalloway, and this moment shows that she does fear age and time, which is an important theme in both The Hours and Mrs. Dalloway.
Michael Cunningham describes the mirror like this so the reader thinks of it more as a character in the novel, and less of a mirror. Virginia Woolf is the person who wrote Mrs. Dalloway, and this moment shows that she does fear age and time, which is an important theme in both The Hours and Mrs. Dalloway.
Louise Glück
" There is a new... the poems of Louise Glück, but nothing seems right" (Cunningham, 21).
Louise Glück is a famous poet who was born in the 1940's on Long Island, New York. She is famous for her moving poetry that is filled with emotion, and has won many accomplishments. Clarissa would not want to buy Richard a collection of award winning poetry because Richard himself is about to accept a very prestigious award. She understands that he has a fragile mind set, and doesn't want to do anything to upset him.
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Flowers
"There are still the flowers to buy. Clarissa feigns exasperation(though she loves doing errands like this), leaves Sally cleaning the bathroom, and runs out, promising to be back in half an hour"(Cunningham,9).
The meaning and symbolism of flowers in this book mirror the flowers in Mrs. Dalloway. When people think of flowers, they generally think of them as female. This is important because the connection that the flowers have to the women in this novel adds to the symbolism of the book. Although flowers may be beautiful while they are young, they soon wain and die, and human kind is no longer interested in them. When women show signs of age, society either forces them to surrender or do extensive things to try to delay aging. The women in this book all notice that they are no longer young and their lives will end, and they try to ignore it.(Edit) Cunningham adds this to his novel to add to the enduring truths and to show that this novel is connected to Virginia Woolf's Mrs. Dalloway.
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