Jack's World War Rock-n-Roll Jukebox Diner

In The Sun Also Rises, the protagonist Jake is portrayed as rather intolerant of people unlike himself--that is to say--not white, straight, and Christian. Throughout the book, Jake makes several racist, homophobic, and antisemitic remarks--to the point where the book becomes legitimately cringe-inducing to read. Not to put too much of a Freudian spin on my interpretation, but I'm willing to bet that his aggressiveness is due to the injury he sustained during the war. Although Jake initially describes Robert Cohn fairly favorably, stating that he "likes him" in the first chapter, Jake's opinion quickly sours when it becomes clear Cohn intends on attempting to woo Brett. However, Jake's negative comments aren't just limited to attacks on Cohn's character, rather Jake seems to target Cohn's Jewish faith. However, we can't forget the root of Jake's problem in our discomfort with his antisemitism--he's jealous because Cohn got with Brett, and...

In Mrs. Dalloway , we find Clarissa trapped by societal expectations. Specifically, the fact that Clarissa has fulfilled the narrow goals that Edwardian era England had limited women to fulfilling. Namely, getting married and having babies. By the time the events of Mrs. Dalloway happen, Clarissa is already middle aged, with a husband and an already independent daughter. As a result, Clarissa feels empty and without passion for her life. However, we see Clarissa achieve satisfaction  when she does things outside of these roles society has set out for her-- most notably during her parties. However, but Peter and Richard deride her parties as frivolous affairs-- so we end up in a situation where Clarissa has nothing to live for, and the one thing that brings her any sort of purpose is derided by two of the most important men in her life as a waste of time. I think Wolfe is trying to highlight the futility of the Edwardian era ladys' existance.

In our in-class discussions of Mrs. Dalloway, we've discussed the relationships between Clarissa and Sally, and Septimus and Evans. However, we've never really discussed the possibility that Wolfe wasn't just describing intense friendship, but rather romances suppressed by the homophobic society they live in. When reflecting on her relationship with Sally, Clarissa describes their kiss as "most exquisite moment of her whole life". In contrast, Clarissa's relationship with her husband, Richard, seems devoid of the passion that she experienced with Sally. I think her describing her kiss with Sally as the most exquisite in her life, rather than any from Richard, might be because Clarissa's first love wasn't Richard or Peter, but rather Sally. Also interesting to note is how she remembers pausing to think to herself that Sally was in the same house as her--something most people do not when with friends, but rather with a romantic interest. However, giv...