Mr. Ramsay

Initially, Mr. Ramsay struck me as a cocky individual who constantly needed to be reminded of his significance and brilliance."It was sympathy he wanted, to be assured of his genius, first of all, and then to be taken within the circle of life, warmed and soothed, to have his senses restored to him, his barrenness made fertile.." (page 37). It seemed that Mr. Ramsay needed his wife to idolize him and boost his bravado. I refused to sympathize with an individual who seemed to rely on his wife solely for reassurance. Later, when he stood alone on the hill and we got a sense of his vulnerabilities and uncertainty, I realized that his seemingly "cocky" persona was merely a facade. "It was a disguise; it was the refuge of a man afraid to own his own feelings," (page 45). Here, we gain insight into Mr. Ramsay's character and his insecurities. Despite the fact that Mr. Ramsay is brutally honest with his children, and to "sugar-coat" his stories truly wouldn't prove to be too inconvenient, i don't feel that Mr. Ramsay does this with bad intentions in mind, rather, i feel that due to his profession as a philosopher, he sees the truth as necessary and lying as more harmful. Mr. Ramsay is a character that truly cannot be judged within the first several sections of the book.
On page 38, Mr. Ramsay talked to himself which revealed a lot about his character, "If he put implicit faith in her, nothing should hurt him; however deep he buried himself or climbed high, not for a second should he find himself without her." Already, we see how dependent Mr. Ramsay is upon his wife not only for compliments, but also for safety. The fact that he relies so heavily upon Mrs. Ramsay shows that his facade is more of an appearance he attempts to put on for his peers. In his house, his walls come down and he implores his wife to reassure him. Upon exiting the house, Mr. Ramsay can put his "mask" back on and enable the world to assume that he's a brilliant, self-assured, philosopher.