My attention was drawn to the description of "Shawled Moll Pratt", selling flowers in the street as the limousine drives by bearing, she thinks, the dashing young Prince of Wales. Moll thinks of throwing "a bunch of roses" into the street "out of sheer light-heartedness and a contempt of poverty", but then she sees "the constable's eye upon her, discouraging an old Irishwoman's loyalty."
The Great War had resulted in the end of the Romanov dynasty in Russia, the collapse of the House of Hohenzollern in Germany, and the fall of the Hapsburgs in Austria. Closer to home, there was the Easter Uprising of April 1916 in Dublin, often called the second capital of the British Empire, followed by the Irish War of Independence and the Irish Civil War, which had ended only two years before "Mrs. Dalloway" was published.
For VW's contemporaries, loyal Moll Pratt would have been a reminder of the 30,000 Irishmen who served in the British army during WWI, but also of the turmoil and bloodshed that had persisted for almost a decade just across the Irish Sea, and which had threatened British rule in its oldest colony. Apparently, the police constable keeping an eye on old Moll might have been worried that she'd be as likely to throw a bomb into St. James's Street as a bunch of roses. Modern readers may not be quite so aware of this history, but for VW's readers the current events in Ireland would, I think, have contributed to the sense of uneasiness and the impermanence of things--epitomized by the flowers Mrs. Dalloway goes shopping for--that underlies much of the novel.
I wondered whether the name Dalloway might have Irish origins, but it seems to be old Norman French or Old English. It was seeing the Irish film "The Quiet Girl" last year that led me to read up on modern Irish history.
Thanks for this Tom! I'm appreciative of anyone who can fill in gaps in my knowledge of history. As I mentioned in another comment to you, my edition of Mrs Dalloway is not annotated so there are times when I am perhaps not getting the full context.
No annotated edition can cover everything, and Ms. Merve Emre's annotated "Mrs. D." passes right by Moll Pratt without offering a single comment. If I hadn't been reading about the 1916 Easter Rising in Dublin and the subsequent civil strife in Ireland during the early 1920s, I might not have commented either. I notice Mrs. D. has an Irish cook, Mrs. Walker, for what that's worth.
How gratifying/grateful that I could read through your summary, Tash, and nod along -- 'Yes, I remember that bit', or 'Ah, that's what I thought was happening,' or, 'Wow, so that's what that was all about!'. This is only my second Woolf novel (after To The Lighthouse, which was challenging) but I'm already feeling I could start looking at her back catalogue ...
Oh good! I was worried that maybe my summary was a bit of overkill, but mostly I wanted to make sure we didn't leave anyone behind. So it pleases me immensely to read your comment, Jen! That's exactly what I was aiming for!
Did you know that apparently the London paving stones Virginia would have walked on found their way to the garden paths at Great Dixter in Sussex? There’s something magical about walking them there and I always think of those Big Ben bells in Mrs Dalloway.
My attention was drawn to the description of "Shawled Moll Pratt", selling flowers in the street as the limousine drives by bearing, she thinks, the dashing young Prince of Wales. Moll thinks of throwing "a bunch of roses" into the street "out of sheer light-heartedness and a contempt of poverty", but then she sees "the constable's eye upon her, discouraging an old Irishwoman's loyalty."
The Great War had resulted in the end of the Romanov dynasty in Russia, the collapse of the House of Hohenzollern in Germany, and the fall of the Hapsburgs in Austria. Closer to home, there was the Easter Uprising of April 1916 in Dublin, often called the second capital of the British Empire, followed by the Irish War of Independence and the Irish Civil War, which had ended only two years before "Mrs. Dalloway" was published.
For VW's contemporaries, loyal Moll Pratt would have been a reminder of the 30,000 Irishmen who served in the British army during WWI, but also of the turmoil and bloodshed that had persisted for almost a decade just across the Irish Sea, and which had threatened British rule in its oldest colony. Apparently, the police constable keeping an eye on old Moll might have been worried that she'd be as likely to throw a bomb into St. James's Street as a bunch of roses. Modern readers may not be quite so aware of this history, but for VW's readers the current events in Ireland would, I think, have contributed to the sense of uneasiness and the impermanence of things--epitomized by the flowers Mrs. Dalloway goes shopping for--that underlies much of the novel.
I wondered whether the name Dalloway might have Irish origins, but it seems to be old Norman French or Old English. It was seeing the Irish film "The Quiet Girl" last year that led me to read up on modern Irish history.
Thanks for this Tom! I'm appreciative of anyone who can fill in gaps in my knowledge of history. As I mentioned in another comment to you, my edition of Mrs Dalloway is not annotated so there are times when I am perhaps not getting the full context.
No annotated edition can cover everything, and Ms. Merve Emre's annotated "Mrs. D." passes right by Moll Pratt without offering a single comment. If I hadn't been reading about the 1916 Easter Rising in Dublin and the subsequent civil strife in Ireland during the early 1920s, I might not have commented either. I notice Mrs. D. has an Irish cook, Mrs. Walker, for what that's worth.
How gratifying/grateful that I could read through your summary, Tash, and nod along -- 'Yes, I remember that bit', or 'Ah, that's what I thought was happening,' or, 'Wow, so that's what that was all about!'. This is only my second Woolf novel (after To The Lighthouse, which was challenging) but I'm already feeling I could start looking at her back catalogue ...
Oh good! I was worried that maybe my summary was a bit of overkill, but mostly I wanted to make sure we didn't leave anyone behind. So it pleases me immensely to read your comment, Jen! That's exactly what I was aiming for!
I love Woolf's writing. I have not read this book yet and this is cool
👍
Did you know that apparently the London paving stones Virginia would have walked on found their way to the garden paths at Great Dixter in Sussex? There’s something magical about walking them there and I always think of those Big Ben bells in Mrs Dalloway.