Summary
A monumental novel by French author Marcel Proust, Remembrance of Things Past (also known as In Search of Lost Time) is widely considered one of the most influential works of 20th-century literature. Published in seven volumes between 1913 and 1927, this sweeping exploration of memory, art, love, and the passage of time revolutionized the form of the novel with its stream-of-consciousness style and profound psychological insight. At over 3,000 pages, Proust's masterpiece is renowned for both its scope and its exquisite, lyrical prose.
Plot
Remembrance of Things Past follows the narrator's recollections of childhood and experiences into adulthood in late 19th century and early 20th century high-society France. The story begins with the narrator as a young boy in Combray, sensitively attuned to the world around him. A taste of madeleine cake dipped in tea triggers vivid memories of his childhood visits to his aunt's house in the countryside, launching him on a journey through his past.
As the story unfolds across seven volumes, the narrator becomes infatuated with Gilberte Swann, befriends her parents, and is introduced to Parisian high society through the Guermantes family. He pursues his desire to become a writer while navigating complicated relationships, especially his obsessive love for Albertine. Throughout, the narrator reflects on the nature of memory, art, love, and the passage of time. He observes the changes in French society brought about by the Dreyfus Affair and World War I.
In the final volume, the narrator attends a party where he has profound realizations about memory and time, inspiring him to finally begin writing his long-deferred novel. He concludes that art is the only way to recover lost time and make sense of one's life. The entire novel is revealed to be the book he eventually writes, bringing the story full circle.
Themes
The power of involuntary memory to unlock the past
The nature of time and its effects on human experience
Romantic love, jealousy, and obsession
Social climbing and class distinctions in French society
Art and the creative process
Sexuality identity and homosexuality
The mutability of human perceptions and personalities
Setting
Marcel Proust's Remembrance of Things Past is set primarily in France during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The story unfolds against the backdrop of the Belle Époque era, a period of peace and prosperity in Western Europe that lasted from the 1870s until the outbreak of World War I in 1914. This was a time of artistic and cultural flourishing in France, particularly in Paris, which forms a central setting for much of the novel.
The narrative moves between several key locations in France. A significant portion takes place in Paris, depicting the salons and high society gatherings of the fashionable Faubourg Saint-Germain neighborhood. The fictional town of Combray, based on Proust's childhood home of Illiers, serves as an important setting for the narrator's reminiscences of his youth. The seaside resort of Balbec, modeled after Cabourg in Normandy, is another crucial location where the narrator spends summers and encounters new characters.
While the novel is deeply rooted in French society and culture, it touches on broader European themes and occasionally ventures beyond France. Venice makes a notable appearance late in the novel. The progression of time is a key aspect of the setting, with the narrative spanning several decades and capturing the societal changes occurring in France, including shifting class structures, the Dreyfus Affair, and eventually the impact of World War I. Throughout, Proust meticulously recreates the atmosphere and social mores of this pivotal period in French history.
Characters
The Narrator: The sensitive, introspective unnamed protagonist who recounts his memories and experiences throughout the novel. He aspires to become a writer.
Charles Swann: A wealthy art connoisseur and friend of the Narrator's family. His obsessive love for Odette is a major storyline.
Odette de Crécy: A courtesan who becomes Swann's wife. She is beautiful but of questionable morals and intellect.
Baron de Charlus: An aristocratic and flamboyant homosexual man, known for his wit and snobbery. He becomes infatuated with the violinist Morel.
Albertine Simonet: The Narrator's primary love interest, a young woman he meets at Balbec and later keeps as a virtual prisoner in his home.
Françoise: The Narrator's family's loyal but opinionated servant.
Duchess de Guermantes: A fashionable aristocrat, known for her wit and beauty, whom the Narrator idolizes.
Robert de Saint-Loup: The Narrator's close friend, a dashing and intelligent aristocrat who marries Gilberte.
Gilberte Swann: Daughter of Charles Swann and Odette; the Narrator's first love interest.
Madame Verdurin: A social climber who hosts a salon frequented by artists and intellectuals.
Quick facts
Remembrance of Things Past is also known and sometimes published as In Search of Lost Time, the literal translation of the novel's original French title, À la recherche du temps perdu.
It is one of the longest novels ever written—consisting of approximately 1.2 million words and more than 3,000 pages spread across seven volumes.
The seven volumes follow a loose chronological structure of the Narrator's life, but frequently jump back and forth in time through memories and reflections. The final volume ties the themes together.
Marcel Proust worked on the novel for 13 years, from 1909 until his death in 1922.
Proust wrote much of the novel while bedridden in a cork-lined room to alleviate his asthma and allergies.
The famous “madeleine episode” that triggers involuntary memory occurs in the first volume, Swann's Way.
The novel was initially rejected by several publishers before Proust paid to have the first volume published himself.
Many characters are composites of real-life people Proust knew in French high society.
Remembrance of Things Past is considered a defining modernist novel for its innovative narrative techniques, including stream-of-consciousness.
Proust's writing style features extremely long sentences—one sentence is 958 words long.
The novel is also deemed groundbreaking for its deep psychological insights and philosophical reflections on art, memory and the nature of time.
Virginia Woolf said of Proust, “Oh if I could write like that!"
The final three volumes were published posthumously and were still in draft form when Proust died.
While the novel has inspired several film and stage adaptations, Volker Schlöndorff's 1984 movie Swann in Love, starring Jeremy Irons, is perhaps the most famous cinematic interpretation of Proust's work.
About the Author
Marcel Proust was a French novelist widely regarded as one of the most influential authors of the 20th century. Born in 1871 to a wealthy family, Proust grew up in Paris during a time of great social and political change in France. Despite suffering from poor health and asthma throughout his life, he became an active participant in Parisian high society as a young man, experiences that would later inform his literary masterpiece.
Proust is best known for his monumental novel À la recherche du temps perdu, translated as Remembrance of Things Past or In Search of Lost Time. This seven-volume work, published between 1913 and 1927, is a sweeping exploration of memory, art, and the passage of time, told in a distinctive stream-of-consciousness style. Drawing heavily from Proust's own life experiences, the novel follows the narrator's reminiscences and observations of French aristocratic society from his childhood through adulthood.
Proust was also an essayist, critic, writer of numerous short stories, and translator of works by English writer and art historian John Ruskin. As he worked on Remembrance of Things Past, his magnum opus, Proust became increasingly reclusive, often writing at night and sleeping during the day. He was known to line his bedroom with cork to block out noise as he wrote. Despite interruptions caused by World War I and his declining health, Proust remained intensely dedicated to completing his novel. He continued revising and expanding the work until his death from pneumonia in 1922 at the age of 51, leaving the final volumes to be published posthumously.
