Symbolism in Mrs. Dalloway, Tracks, Heart of Darkness, and The God of Small Things

1. Symbolism in Mrs. Dalloway, Tracks, Heart of Darkness, and The God of Small Things Linn Elisabeth Fredriksson Vianca Natividad Allison Schubauer

2. Boats & Water • Mrs. Dalloway: Peter crosses the ocean on a ship to India and returns to England the same way • Tracks: Nanapush’s boat crosses the lake from his house in town to Pillager land • Heart of Darkness: Marlow travels from Belgium to Africa by ship, travels up Congo River by steamboat • The God of Small Things: Estha and Rahel take boat across river to History House; Sophie Mol drowns when boat capsizes

3. Boats & Water Continued; • Mrs. Dalloway: India is less “civilized” than mother country (in view of English society) • Tracks: Fleur’s land & the lake viewed as haunted, dangerous by those living in town • Heart of Darkness: jungle uncontrolled by humans, inhabited by “savages” • The God of Small Things: History House abandoned, overgrown in contrast to well-kept family house across river • Journeys across water represent the journey deep into oneself and into man’s true nature. It is the discovery of self as well as mankind. • common theme of travel from “civilization” to “wilderness”

4. Boats & Water Continued; • Nanapush’s leaky boat signifies man’s discomfort, insecurity with confronting unknown • Estha and Rahel’s lives shattered when boat capsizes in river & Sophie Mol drowns • Water serves as the universal symbol of life force, constantly-changing nature of life • Boats in the novels symbolize a single man’s journey through life The recurrence of symbols of boats and water in all four novels suggests that these symbols have a common universal significance. As the characters in each novel embark on physical journeys, they also undertake psychological journeys to discover the hidden fundamental aspects of human nature.

5. Shoes in: Tracks & Heart of Darkness • Lulu’s shoes represent conspicuous consumption & influence of whites on Native American culture • holes in shoes represent white culture penetrating Native American culture • Marlow’s shoes represent his ties to civilization; throwing them overboard represents his loss of sanity In both novels, shoes represent the characters’ ties to “civilized” society. When Marlow casts aside his shoes and Lulu has hers taken off, they are briefly freed from the constraints of society and brought closer to their primal roots.

6. Clocks in: Mrs. Dalloway & The God of Small Things • passage of time emphasized in Mrs. Dalloway as Big Ben’s chime, which rings every half-hour, is noted by all characters throughout day • Rahel’s toy watch in The God of Small Things remains stagnant, always showing the time time as “ten to two” Time moves too quickly for characters in Mrs. Dalloway, parallels obsessive observation of passage of time throughout the day

7. Clocks Continued; • On the other hand, the family in The God of Small Things is stuck in a moment of Terror and can’t move on, paralleled by Rahel’s watch frozen in time • watch buried in ground at History House memory of Terror forever attached to its location The characters’ perception of the passage of time in these two novels is reflected in the symbols of clocks Big Ben and Rahel’s toy wristwatch. These symbols signify that time is a subjective concept that is perceived differently by each individual, influenced by the events of his or her life.

8. The Will of Society in: Mrs. Dalloway & The God of Small Things • In both of these novels, a central theme is that individuals are overpowered in the struggle against society. Symbols for the will of society in each novel help emphasize this theme. • Mrs. Dalloway: Sir William Bradshaw represents society’s will (Proportion & Conversion), leads Septimus to commit suicide because he can’t conform • The God of Small Things: History House represents influence of centuries of tradition on worldview of society • policemen beat Velutha to death because that’s what they were taught to do; they don’t question it

9. The Will of Society Continued; • Septimus, Clarissa, and Sally in Mrs. Dalloway and Ammu, Velutha, Estha, and Rahel in The God of Small Things find it difficult to conform to the strict rules that their society lays out for them. Those that refuse to comply Septimus, Ammu, and Velutha are subject to the crushing force of society’s will expressed in the symbols of Sir Bradshaw and the History House, which lead to the deaths of all three characters.