Why is Peter Walsh so critical of Clarissa Dalloway

 Why is Peter Walsh so critical of Clarissa Dalloway?

Throughout Mrs. Dalloway we hear from multiple characters like Peter, Sally, and even Clarissa that they don't think Clarissa should’ve married Richard. Sally and Peter express that they feel as if Richard was bad for Clarissa. But what exactly was wrong with him? Nothing. Many of the characters in Mrs. Dalloway seemed to actually like Richard as an individual character, they seemed to even have fond memories of him. He was described as an all around nice, clean cut, and decent dude. 

It seems like the main reason the characters were so dissatisfied with Clarissa's marriage to Richard was not because Richard was a bad guy but because he was a boring guy. Peter described Clarissa as radical, thought provoking, and inspiring in her youth. Peter makes Clarissa sound like a woman who looked to solve the deeper problems in life and dive into issues that plagued more than the upper crusts of society. Now that she's married to Richard it seems like Peter has adopted the idea that Clarissa is more concerned with being the perfect wife, hostess, mother, or doing whatever an upper class woman like herself was thought to do. He thinks of her as a woman who runs around filling her day with frivolous activities like shopping for flowers or trying on new gloves. I think Peter blames Clarissa’s marriage to Richard for why she has become a masked watered down version of herself. He thinks that because she married a well put together man who had the means to supply her with a cushy life; that she traded her radical ‘I'm gonna change the world’ thought process for stability, comfort, and a ‘I'm gonna throw the world a nice dinner party’ thought process. I believe when Peter remembers the woman he loved 30years ago and he looks at the woman she has become he feels a certain level of disdain and distaste for her which fuels constant critiques of Clarissa. 

I also think one of the main reasons Peter is so critical of Clarissa is simply because he’s bitter. Clarissa was the first woman he ever loved; and the book described him as being absolutely torn apart by her breaking his heart. Then Clarissa moved on and got married, had a child and lives a ( at least at the surface) relatively carefree life. Peter never quite found the same kind of love he had for Clarissa, even with Daisy he questioned if he still loved Clarissa and he had to constantly tell himself he didn’t love her anymore. Peter isn’t in the same financial situation Clarissa is in, he constantly talks about how he doesn’t fit in Clarissa’s world. I think in some capacity Peter looks at how Clarissa's life turned out 30 years later and he looks at his life 30 years later and he carries resentment from Clarissa rejecting him, envy because he doesn’t fit in with the upper class, and jealousy because of what his life may have been like. All those emotions get channeled into him criticizing and picking apart everything Clarissa does because he doesn’t understand it, and because he’s somewhat envious of it. 

There could be a thousand and one reasons why Peter is so critical of Clarissa. Jealousy, anger, resentment, or that could just be his personality. Either way he is hyper critical of Clarissa and these could be some reasons why. What do you think? Why is Peter Walsh so critical of Clarissa Dalloway? 

Comments

  1. Emily DOctober 2, 2022 at 10:57 AM

    Yes, yes, exactly! We've already characterized him as a sad person, and that seeps into his perception of other people. Despite his past of being deeply in love with Clarissa (and maybe he still loves her?) he criticizes her relentlessly precisely because his past history with her clouds his judgement. He compares the Richard-ized version of her with the woman he fell in love with, and can't reconcile the difference.

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  2. TaehanOctober 2, 2022 at 3:23 PM

    I agree with what you said. I think it was an interesting choice by Woolf to show that nobody hates Richard. its not that Richard is bad, but that people don't want Clarissa's individuality to get lost in the more conventional marriage. nice post!

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  3. Luca ZepedaOctober 3, 2022 at 9:02 PM

    I definitely agree. Peter Walsh is incredibly critical of Clarissa, and this could be attributed to his resentment of her marriage, his anger that he cannot find love later in life as Clarissa did, or his disappointment that Clarissa gave up her exciting lifestyle. Whatever the case, I'm glad you brought up this point because it is important to the plot. Great post Nyla!

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  4. Emma D.October 4, 2022 at 12:01 PM

    I think you nailed a lot of the really important reasons Peter's dynamic with Clarissa is so charged! One effect of the style the book is written in is that we get to spend a lot of time in both characters' heads, and we get a really clear picture of the way they react to and respond to each other. As a result, I think a lot of readers can sympathize with both sides—we can see both the traces snobbishness and worldliness that Peter hates in Clarissa, and we can understand her reflexive defensiveness that comes from her awareness of Peter's criticism.

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  5. HermogenesOctober 8, 2022 at 11:45 AM

    Peter's anger and strangely, love for Clarissa all end up culminating in a situation where he's angry at the way her situation has played out... I think that Peter is angry at himself, but when he is unable to really blame Richard (because he is such a nice guy), he focuses his anger at Clarissa. Perhaps Clarissa is aware of Peter's dissatisfaction and if she is, I think it would be interesting to compare Clarissa's happiness with Peter's dissatisfaction. Whether or not she is "content" is a whole other situation, but I think it is important to consider why Peter would be angry and how Clarissa somehow puts up with his unrelenting criticism despite it sometimes really getting to her.

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  6. Xenia MongwaOctober 9, 2022 at 7:12 PM

    This is really interesting to think about! I had always wondered why Peter was so critical of Clarissa. I definitely agree with you said about him being critical of her because he was bitter. I also think that it comes from jealousy, since he has to watch her become successful from afar and he wants the success that she has.

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