Clarissa and Septimus as Opposites

Throughout the novel, Clarissa and Septimus lead parallel lives without coming in contact. In many ways, they are exact opposites of each other. While Clarissa is of a high social class who many see as never having faced any real adversity, Septimus is a shell-shocked war veteran of more meager means. And yet, the two of them have eerily similar perceptions of society as a whole, especially the social pressures that are placed upon them and the delicate balance they are expected to strike between their desire to lead private lives and the expectations placed upon them to interact with others. However, they are entirely different in the way they handle the stress this causes them. While Clarissa molds into what the masses expect her to be, losing herself in the process, Septimus chooses to take matters into his own hands and end his life rather than conform and being yet another unhappy clone. This is exactly the point Woolf was making with the two characters – while society make place undue pressures on every citizen, it is up to these citizens to decide their fates for themselves.