Look the characters and beauty

Oh Clarissa, somehow she manages to turn the world inside out. In the heart of New York City, the old woman manages to find the small happiness the “endless, harsh punishments” and she stands out amongst it all. At 52 she might as well have been 22 because there is no denying her youth and liveliness. The chapter is named Mrs. Dalloway but that isn’t even her real name, her name is Clarissa Vaughn and she got the name “Mrs. Dalloway” from Richard. Richard assumed that because she was such a wonderful lady she didn’t need something plain and simple as “Vaughn” for it didn’t suit her. No, what she needed was something that would have people remember her, a name that had merit such as Jane Eyre, Isabel Archer, and Ana Karenina, great female figures in literature that represent independence, femininity, and strength, because even at 52 Clarissa was all of those things; love, independence, and strength. Clarissa was given a gifted fate, she was destined to happiness and love and success not disaster and failure. Where Clarissa was imaginative Richard was practical or seemingly obtuse he preferred wit (which we can connect to scenes in Hamlet where, Hamlet uses his wit and play on words to show superiority over others, such as Polonius when they have their little word war). Richard tells Clarissa “Beauty is a whore, I like money better.” Beauty and whore seem to be contrasting ideas, when one thinks of beauty they think of something alluring or something that captures the mind of people; captivating. The literal definition of beauty is “something that is appealing; an intense pleasure or deep satisfaction to the mind.” When you think of a whore you think of a woman who has lowered her standards, degraded herself. The words dirty, seller, worthless, rascal come to mind but when one thinks of beauty you stop ponder, consider, take in, observe, enjoy. The ideas contrast then bring in the concept of money. Money is “ a type of currency used to cover the costs of goods or services.” They tie in with each other. Could we not see money as beauty? Is Richard trying to tell Clarissa to be more practical and realize that beauty is overrated and worthless and dirty, and that money, something that could take something beautiful and turn into a “whore” by turning it into something filthy and dirty, more practical? Or is he just witty? Being sarcastic to show how people no longer focus on beauty because they think it is overrated and perverted, so they settle for something that is supposed to be less perverted and clean like money, which can eventually consume a person turning them into something that could be considered dirty and filthy when greediness has taken over. There’s the part of Clarissa that too feels sluttish and dirtied, she tries and appreciates the days (beauty ) but feels herself to be the “sluttish widow” stuck in the triangle of her Louis and Richard. She is now the “money” which could be used for beauty and prosperityin the right hands but then in the wrong hands could also be considered dirty and filthy.