Proust just gives me so much pleasure precisely for the reasons you say — the insights about relationships, human nature, and what it's like to be alive, but also all the things that are super-specific to his particular social world, like the shifting points of etiquette. I always tell people that if they want to give Proust a try they should skip the Combray section and go straight to Swann in Love, which can be read as a standalone novel — and, I think, offers most of Proust's pleasures while being a bit easier going. Then, if they want more, go back and read the novel properly.
I tell people that too! But I feel like nobody ever does it. I mean nobody ever follows any of my advice on any topic, so I probably shouldn't be surprised by that
This is so timely - I just finished Swann’s Way for the first time yesterday - and now you’ve convinced me I need to finish the novel ASAP… rip my Amazon account. I got the first volume from the library and I want to be able to underline and annotate the rest of it, and your advice is taken on the translation.
I appreciate your commentary on style vs content and Proust really is such a good example of why they’re interrelated. He goes on and on about the hawthorn bushes (yawn) yet the way he places his attention is how he is making his point about memory. Yes, once I got used to the writing style, it was delightful, though it never ceased to take up a lot of brainpower. Similar to Infinite Jest.
I was prepared for Proust by reading Alain de Botton's How Proust Can Change Your Life. It was a useful guide, but the more I read, the more I realized that nothing could adequately explain the full, immersive experience of Proust's work. In my opinion, the form and the function are one, because he was using his unending prose style as a way to conjure up and share his experience of life as vividly as possible.
A more general comment/question. I have a huge interest in anything written in English. I also read a lot of theology/philosophy Great Books, and I don't care about language and translation, because you're clearly buying the ideas over the style. Non English poetry seems really weird as a reading choice, because most of the point is the style, word choice, rhythms, all of which are totally different when translated. Not sure how to think about novels. It's impossible to avoid translated novels since at least prior to the 19th century that's pretty much what's on offer. And I thoroughly enjoy most of them. I just wonder what/whom I'm actually reading. People often get so strident in recommending a particular translation that sometimes I think it's not worth reading if the translations vary so much. And with someone like Proust who had such a strong and unique style, don't we lose much of that in translation?
I don't think so! Because most of Proust's style comes from his unique syntax, and French / English syntax aren't that dissimilar, so quite a bit of it can be translated. I don't think there's a huge difference between translations, but I do think the Enright is just more consistent, and I enjoyed reading it more
Proust just gives me so much pleasure precisely for the reasons you say — the insights about relationships, human nature, and what it's like to be alive, but also all the things that are super-specific to his particular social world, like the shifting points of etiquette. I always tell people that if they want to give Proust a try they should skip the Combray section and go straight to Swann in Love, which can be read as a standalone novel — and, I think, offers most of Proust's pleasures while being a bit easier going. Then, if they want more, go back and read the novel properly.
I tell people that too! But I feel like nobody ever does it. I mean nobody ever follows any of my advice on any topic, so I probably shouldn't be surprised by that
This is so timely - I just finished Swann’s Way for the first time yesterday - and now you’ve convinced me I need to finish the novel ASAP… rip my Amazon account. I got the first volume from the library and I want to be able to underline and annotate the rest of it, and your advice is taken on the translation.
I appreciate your commentary on style vs content and Proust really is such a good example of why they’re interrelated. He goes on and on about the hawthorn bushes (yawn) yet the way he places his attention is how he is making his point about memory. Yes, once I got used to the writing style, it was delightful, though it never ceased to take up a lot of brainpower. Similar to Infinite Jest.
Yeah I've read it twice and thought the second time I would be into the bush--no such luck.
I was prepared for Proust by reading Alain de Botton's How Proust Can Change Your Life. It was a useful guide, but the more I read, the more I realized that nothing could adequately explain the full, immersive experience of Proust's work. In my opinion, the form and the function are one, because he was using his unending prose style as a way to conjure up and share his experience of life as vividly as possible.
A more general comment/question. I have a huge interest in anything written in English. I also read a lot of theology/philosophy Great Books, and I don't care about language and translation, because you're clearly buying the ideas over the style. Non English poetry seems really weird as a reading choice, because most of the point is the style, word choice, rhythms, all of which are totally different when translated. Not sure how to think about novels. It's impossible to avoid translated novels since at least prior to the 19th century that's pretty much what's on offer. And I thoroughly enjoy most of them. I just wonder what/whom I'm actually reading. People often get so strident in recommending a particular translation that sometimes I think it's not worth reading if the translations vary so much. And with someone like Proust who had such a strong and unique style, don't we lose much of that in translation?
I don't think so! Because most of Proust's style comes from his unique syntax, and French / English syntax aren't that dissimilar, so quite a bit of it can be translated. I don't think there's a huge difference between translations, but I do think the Enright is just more consistent, and I enjoyed reading it more