Crafting Creative Concepts with Charlotte

 I'm assuming that I'm not alone when I say that, thus far, Sally Seton is my favorite character in Mrs. Dalloway . Her rebellious attitude mixed with her confidence and progressive ideas makes her by far the most captivating character in the novel. It was so refreshing to see a female character in Victorian-era British high society pushing traditional gender roles. Then, we learn from Peter that Sally "married a rich man and lived in a large house near Manchester" (Woolf 70). At first, this felt like a betrayal. How could Sally, the one who I adored for her nonconformity, settle into such a supremely conformist livelihood? However, I soon realized that she probably didn't really have a choice. First, a quick history lesson. The Victorian era was a period in which femininity was emphasized. The ideology of separate spheres for men and women (women do "domestic" work and men engage in the "rougher" public sphere) really emerged, so the enforceme...

 One of the most prominent themes in our society over the past few decades has been the sapping effect of desk jobs in corporate America. Occupations that were once seen as favorable were suddenly frowned upon, and still today many people dread the possibility of ending up sitting at a desk from 9 to 5, Monday through Friday. However, Nicholson Baker is able to put an entirely unique spin on corporate America through the childlike attitude and curiosity of Howie, and The Mezzanine  is a direct challenge to the ideology that working a meaningless desk job has to suck all the fun out of life. Interestingly enough, we never learn anything about Howie's occupation. We don't know what he does or what kind of a company he works for - that's not important. What's important is that he is able to find joy in the small things that people take so often for granted. Nobody knows how to entertain themselves better than Howie does, and Baker makes this out to be key to Howie's ha...