Page 352 - DENG404_FICTION

Fiction

Notes they did not yet know the troubles of the flesh. Alone in Trafalgar Square, he had not felt so
young in years. A young woman passed who enchanted Peter. He transformed her into the
woman he had always wanted and began following her through the streets. She seemed to
speak silently to Peter, to his soul. He kept up with her until she slowed before a building and
disappeared inside. He had had his fun.
He was still too early for his appointment with the lawyer and so walked to Regent’s Park to
sit. The day was beautiful, and he felt a certain pride for the civility and accomplished air of
London. His Anglo-Indian family had administered the affairs of India for years and, though
he despised the empire and army, he still felt proud. The pomp was absurd, but admirable.
Thoughts of his past continued to combat him, likely a result of seeing Clarissa. He thought
of a fight he had had with her father at Bourton. Peter looked for a secluded seat in the park
but settled for one next to a nurse and sleeping baby. Peter again thought of Elizabeth, thinking
she was peculiar looking and probably did not get along with her mother. Smoking a cigar,
he curled the smoke from his lips and decided to try to speak with Elizabeth alone that night.
He threw away the cigar and fell into a deep sleep.

Part One Section Four Analysis

The theme of the intersection of time and timelessness arises as we watch Peter walk through
London and wander through Regent’s Park as Clarissa had done only a few hours earlier.
Unlike Clarissa, however, he does not notice the beauty of the day or feel the effect of the bells
on a cosmic, spiritual level. He does not appreciate the moment as Clarissa often does. Instead,
everything for Peter relates to his past, present, or fantasy. His thoughts are always internalized.
In this manner, time blurs with timelessness as Peter’s memories blur with present images,
wishes, and fantasies.

As soon as Peter leaves Clarissa’s home, he is overcome with combative thoughts. He believes
that Clarissa said the wrong thing to Elizabeth, for example. He hates Clarissa’s parties. Clarissa
dominates his thoughts to the point where external stimuli simply function to remind him of
her in different ways. St. Margaret’s bells remind him of Clarissa as the hostess. This reference
alludes to Clarissa’s thoughts earlier in the day of Peter and his comment to her that she
would be the perfect hostess. Thus, the bells symbolize a line of conflict between Peter and
Clarissa.
Consequently, Peter is soon reminded of Clarissa’s heart condition and he pictures her dying.
Clarissa’s imaginary death foreshadows the death of her double, Septimus, later in the novel.
Peter shakes off the bad image because he does not want to think of himself being old enough
to die. He thus uses the next images that come his way, the marching boys and the beautiful
young woman, as symbols of his youth and his courage.

He tells himself that he was a rebel when young and that the world needed men like him.
Peter is trying to rationalize the dissociation he feels from the humanity surrounding him. The
waves of emotion he experiences touch on the theme of the sea. The words that describe him
following the young woman allude to the motions of the sea. The phrases are short and
choppy, yet rhythmic. The text states, “She moved; she crossed; he followed her...But other
people got between them on the street, obstructing him, blotting her out. He pursued; she
changed”. His mood changes again when he stops to actually look around at the world passing
him by. He is impressed by the civility of London as compared to the Indian culture in which
he had been living. London is a metonym for Clarissa and the type of society she represents.
Though Peter wants to rebel, he cannot help but yearn for inclusion within the society he tries
to despise.

346 LOVELY PROFESSIONAL UNIVERSITY