shadow selves in mod fiction

A common theme in both Mrs. Dalloway and Heart of Darkness is the shadowing of characters. In Heart of Darkness, Kurtz acts as Marlow’s shadow self, and as a catalyst, that brings Marlow to a realization about himself. In Mrs. Dalloway, Septimus acts as Clarissa's shadow self, and as well, the catalyst that brings her to an understanding of herself. In both novels, the shadow characters are viewed by their society as being insane, …

…in both of these novels. The plot lines could have been different, as well as the details of each story and it would have had the same effect because the important part of each novel is how the main characters come to a realization and how the shadow characters need to die in order for that to happen. It is as if the death of the shadow characters represents a birth for the main characters.