During our most recent meeting, we discussed the first half of Place-Names: The Place, which is the second section of In the Shadow of Young Girls in Flower. Specifically, we discussed the introduction of two key characters in Saint-Loup and the Baron de Charlus and why Saint-Loup was initially so cold to the narrator.
We also discussed the swarms of secondary characters that flutter about the Grand Hotel of Balbec, including the young actressed who inhabit a sort of human aquarium, eating their meals in the large windows overlooking the beach but completely immune to the charms of the seaside. There they sit as an exhibit in upper class insouciance for the "human ichthyologists" (i.e. people walking by who can look in the window to see them) study the lifestyle that will always be out of their reach.
Other Grand Hotel characters under discussion were the lift operator and the hotel's manager, Aimé. Proust is very keen on filling his world with these sorts of functionaries and we will see the narrative develop with several connections created by such figures.
At our next meeting (which will be on Wednesday, April 4), we will finish discussing In the Shadow of Young Girls in Flower so if you can, try to finish that volume. See you then!
HI everyone,
ReplyDeleteWell, I'm in the middle of the Guermantes Way, and Grandmaman has had a slight stroke, and M. Charlus seems to want to takeMarcel under his wing in a big way; says he has to seem him everyday; weird! Robert has been very mean to his mother, and I don't really like him. More interminable afternoon salons! Looks like I'll be back in Edmonton for the April 18th meeting; I look forward to that; maybe one of these days I'll start enjoying this; so far I find about one in every 50 pages mildly interesting, but I'll keep plugging along. I know, his descriptions of rooms, clothing etc. are wonderful, and some of his characters are very funny, but still...?!
Yvette
Don't get too far ahead! We'll just be starting to discuss The Guermantes Way at the next meeting so you will definitely be on track.
DeletePerhaps our discussions will help you plug along when you hear what everyone else likes about the reading.
Yes , you are right; I do look forward to hearing what everyone else has to say, and also look forward to seeing the video. And there are things I do like about it; i do see the genius in his writing; the detail, the characters etc. ; I guess I've been so used to reading very plot-driven fiction in the last few years; it's a big change , but a good thing for me to do!
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