Another great episode full of insight and reflection. It is always a pleasure hearing the wonderful interactions between you guys. Time Regained is an amazing book. I didn't know how he was going to bring all the strands of plot and philosophy together and I wasn't expecting this volume to be so definitive. It blows my mind that he could weave it altogether and conclude so eloquently. I remember at the beginning of Swann's Way how enchanted I was by the incredible writing, but by the end of this volume it is the resonance of the philosophy of Time, existence and consciousness that I take from the book. There is a directness in it, that by dint of his failing heath you don't get in the others, I believe. It is our perception of things that give meaning to our lives and allow us to create art. That the Willo-O-Wisp of involentary memory, the impressions of things past, without their attachment to our senses give us the clearest sense of ourselves outside Time. I'm glad I read it and I will be mulling it over for a long time to come I am sure. I recently went to the park with a friend and mentioned I was going home to read Proust and a passer-by said 'the madeleine dipped in tea'. So, it does stay with you.
Congratulations! The Everest of literature has been scaled. It was very interesting to hear we had the same reaction to this book, and also the work taken as a whole. It really wraps up perfectly and I agree - it wouldn't be the same without those passages of tedious salon conversations. Great point about moving through time with the book too. One element that I found drew me into the work was the way in which a certain revelation would pop up, and then the past would look completely different. I think there is a scene in a previous volume where the narrator returns to Balbec without his grandmother and realises she must have been ill and concealing it while with him (unless i have misremembered). In this volume it is how Gilberte had actually expressed an attraction to the narrator (whatever the gesture) which the narrator had always mistook as an insult. I also felt like rereading the entire cycle again on finishing the final sentence, but held off. I have since reread some of the first volume, and it really repays. In fact the opening scene of the narrator falling asleep (unless I am again misremembering) is in Gilberte's house at the time of this volume, when he accompanies her on walks etc. Anyway I'll end this rambling message with the following - thank you for such a brilliant podcast series, one which nobody has committed to completing before. And to think, it all started because a Frenchman decided to dip a madeline into a cup of tea. How wonderful is life!
Thank you very much for all of these videos on Proust. I finished The Search a few months ago in French and it's been amazing to see someone analyze the work volume by volume in my native language. Many of your favorite quotes were the same as mine, but I must say it was epic to hear them in English, it's safe to say that the images came out in much sharper relief in English as my French isn't native. It's interesting to compare which volumes you preferred in contrast to what seems to be considered the best in France. For instance, the second volume won the Goncourt prize in 1919, not the first. Nowadays, apparently French people don't read Proust because the first volume is considered unreadable, at least until the section about The Love of Swann. My favorites were the second and seventh volume(The prisoner and Albertine Disappeared as published separately in French), but I do see your argument for the sixth, the meditations there are phenomenal. To be honest, I think the seventh volume in the greatest book I've ever read. There's nothing online like this. Most reviews focus on the madeleine without recognizing that three better(in my opinion) involuntary memories will be triggered in the seventh volume. Thank you so much!
Thank you so much for such a thoughtful response. Wish we knew French to compare and to hear and comprehend some of the quotes at least. Intreating to hear about the different books as they are perceived in France, both today and in the past. I (David) agree that the final book is probably the greatest, but you need to know all the others to truly appreciate it.
Another great episode full of insight and reflection. It is always a pleasure hearing the wonderful interactions between you guys. Time Regained is an amazing book. I didn't know how he was going to bring all the strands of plot and philosophy together and I wasn't expecting this volume to be so definitive. It blows my mind that he could weave it altogether and conclude so eloquently. I remember at the beginning of Swann's Way how enchanted I was by the incredible writing, but by the end of this volume it is the resonance of the philosophy of Time, existence and consciousness that I take from the book. There is a directness in it, that by dint of his failing heath you don't get in the others, I believe. It is our perception of things that give meaning to our lives and allow us to create art. That the Willo-O-Wisp of involentary memory, the impressions of things past, without their attachment to our senses give us the clearest sense of ourselves outside Time. I'm glad I read it and I will be mulling it over for a long time to come I am sure. I recently went to the park with a friend and mentioned I was going home to read Proust and a passer-by said 'the madeleine dipped in tea'. So, it does stay with you.
Thank you. This work will stay with us for a long time. And the ending book in the series really does something wonderful.
Congratulations! The Everest of literature has been scaled. It was very interesting to hear we had the same reaction to this book, and also the work taken as a whole. It really wraps up perfectly and I agree - it wouldn't be the same without those passages of tedious salon conversations. Great point about moving through time with the book too. One element that I found drew me into the work was the way in which a certain revelation would pop up, and then the past would look completely different. I think there is a scene in a previous volume where the narrator returns to Balbec without his grandmother and realises she must have been ill and concealing it while with him (unless i have misremembered). In this volume it is how Gilberte had actually expressed an attraction to the narrator (whatever the gesture) which the narrator had always mistook as an insult.
I also felt like rereading the entire cycle again on finishing the final sentence, but held off. I have since reread some of the first volume, and it really repays. In fact the opening scene of the narrator falling asleep (unless I am again misremembering) is in Gilberte's house at the time of this volume, when he accompanies her on walks etc.
Anyway I'll end this rambling message with the following - thank you for such a brilliant podcast series, one which nobody has committed to completing before. And to think, it all started because a Frenchman decided to dip a madeline into a cup of tea. How wonderful is life!
Thank you so very much for listening and your lovely comments. How wonderful is life, indeed! Hope you are having a fantastic one!
Thank you very much for all of these videos on Proust. I finished The Search a few months ago in French and it's been amazing to see someone analyze the work volume by volume in my native language. Many of your favorite quotes were the same as mine, but I must say it was epic to hear them in English, it's safe to say that the images came out in much sharper relief in English as my French isn't native. It's interesting to compare which volumes you preferred in contrast to what seems to be considered the best in France. For instance, the second volume won the Goncourt prize in 1919, not the first. Nowadays, apparently French people don't read Proust because the first volume is considered unreadable, at least until the section about The Love of Swann. My favorites were the second and seventh volume(The prisoner and Albertine Disappeared as published separately in French), but I do see your argument for the sixth, the meditations there are phenomenal. To be honest, I think the seventh volume in the greatest book I've ever read. There's nothing online like this. Most reviews focus on the madeleine without recognizing that three better(in my opinion) involuntary memories will be triggered in the seventh volume. Thank you so much!
Thank you so much for such a thoughtful response. Wish we knew French to compare and to hear and comprehend some of the quotes at least. Intreating to hear about the different books as they are perceived in France, both today and in the past. I (David) agree that the final book is probably the greatest, but you need to know all the others to truly appreciate it.