Swanns Way Marcel Proust

1. On the surface, “Swann’s Way” is more surreal than humorous, detailing the subconscious state of mind of its protagonist. Yet in so doing, Proust reveals a deep source of humor: locating the absurd in daily life and in the human experience. Proust’s humor is that of one relishing the paradoxes and peculiarities of life itself. The narrator’s reveries reveal his singular perception of life, and the reader can relate on several levels, most notably the way that one struggles between the perceived subconscious reality and the objective reality presumably shared by all of humanity. “It often happened that, in my spell of uncertainty as to where I was, I did not distinguish the successive theories of which that uncertainty was composed,” (“Overture,” digital edition). It is abundantly clear that the points of rational reference in the world are relatively small and minute compared to the much larger world of one’s internal perceptions. Through the interface between the two, the inner world and the outer, one locates points of humorous convergence. When personal perceptions, beliefs, and self-concepts do not coincide with those in the outer world, the discomfort that precedes humor arises. Proust therefore nails the type of humor that is at the root of self-deprecation: it is necessary to make fun of the self to truly find anything funny. Most definitely, it is essential to make fun of the self and of life itself if one is to remain sane.
Proust also plays with reality and fantasy in comical ways, similar to the ways Shakespeare does in comedies like A Midsummer Night’s Dream. For example, the narrator becomes obsessed with Gilberte without knowing exactly why. In one of the most comical passages of “Swann’s Way,” the narrator experiences and expresses a juxtaposition of contradictory feelings. He states, “I loved her; I was sorry not to have had the time and the inspiration to insult her, to do her some injury, to force her to keep some memory of me,” (digital edition). Love is described here in decidedly unromantic terms, combining aggression and passion in ways that are purely comical and which satirize the concept of chivalry.
2. The madeleine is symbolic and evocative. Decisively feminine in both name and shape, the cookie is far more impressive upon the reader than mere toast. Therefore, Proust does deliberately choose this form of baked good as a means of alerting his reader to the underlying sexual tension embedded in the text. As the first essay points out, “Many of the sentences are labyrinthine. There are long introspective passages, long passages of analysis, equally long passages of description.” Proust’s style epitomizes the literary zeitgeist of the time, which was Romantic as well as retaining elements of French irony and an appreciation for the absurd. Therefore, Proust relies heavily on symbolic and poetic elements, literary devices that take on a para-textual quality. It is not just about the plot and what happens to the characters, but about the overall effect of the language, diction, and rhythm of Proust’s prose. Just as a poet must choose words wisely and judiciously, so too does Proust. Had Proust opted to stick with toast, the cognitive associations would have been dry, crisp, ordinary. A madeleine is something else altogether: something sweet, rich, decadent, and almost mythical in scope. Proust writes, “even before we reached the Madeleine I would be trembling with emotion at the thought that I was approaching a street from which that supernatural apparition might at any moment burst upon me unawares,” (digital edition). The “little crumb” of the madeleine assumes an importance that a toast crumb would not have been able to have.
Moreover, the cookie represents the narrator’s repressed memories. “The sight of the little madeleine had recalled nothing to my mind before I tasted it.” Once he tastes it, the narrator forms associations in his mind, linking him to his memories. Toast cannot do that because it is too commonplace. One could have eaten toast every day for a week, but a madeleine is for special occasions, which is why it is significant to have chosen this particular baked good.





Works Cited

Proust, Marcel. “Swann’s Way.” eBook edition. https://www.gutenberg.org/files/7178/7178-h/7178-h.htm