When Septimus Smith comes home from the war, he is a changed man. Hallucinations and anxieties plague him and stress his relationship with Rezia, his young wife who has left her life in Italy to be with her husband in London. Septimus seeks help from his GP, or general practitioner, Dr. Holmes, but Dr. Holmes is out of his depth; though Septimus suffers from severe hallucinations and dangerously frequent suicidal ideation, the doctor simply encourages Septimus to think about anything except himself, advocating the “stiff upper lip” approach to personal problems that characterizes British middle-class masculinity. Eventually, Dr. Holmes suggests that Septimus see Dr. Bradshaw, an eminent Harley Street psychologist, but Dr. Bradshaw’s advice to institutionalize Septimus disappoints the couple, who do not want to be separated. Dr. Bradshaw also represents a sort of British version of masculine ideal, one that does not give in to one’s own sensitivities and indulge one’s own weaknesses.

These two men and their immovable, ineffective approaches to the treatment of mental health problems represent the immovable traditions of England. These traditions inspired legions of young men to enlist during World War I, and Septimus represents the disillusion of a generation who watched their young men lose their lives while defending an England that will fail those who survive.