Remembrance of Things Past is a seven-part novel by the French author Marcel Proust that ranks among the classics of French fiction. The French title for the work is À la recherche du temps perdu. The title has also been translated as In Search of Lost Time.
Proust published Swann’s Way, the first part, at his own expense in 1913 after several publishers refused it. Within a Budding Grove (1919) won the Goncourt Prize, a prestigious literary award, and Proust suddenly became internationally famous. Two other parts were published during the author’s lifetime: The Guermantes Way (1920-1921) and Cities of the Plain (1921-1922). The final three sections were published after Proust’s death in 1922. They were The Captive (1923), The Sweet Cheat Gone (1925), and The Past Recaptured (1927).
Remembrance of Things Past covers a period from the late 1800’s until shortly after World War I (1914-1918). The novel is filled with vivid characters and provides a panorama of French high society in the process of change. It is a study of love, jealousy, marriage, and the evils of the time. It describes the growth of the narrator, Marcel, into a mature artist. Marcel, except in one episode, is both participant and observer. He tells his story with frankness, intelligence, sensitivity, irony, and humor. Proust’s novel has brilliant dialogue and offers original and profound observations about art, music, writing, and the theater.
To Marcel, reality remains elusive. It is constantly changing because the passing of time alters the nature of what is perceived. He finally recognizes that reality is not external but something stored in the depths of one’s unconsciousness. There it is preserved from the changes of time but is accessible only in rare moments. These moments are made possible by a variety of sensual experiences. The most famous example is that of the madeleine, a small cake that brings back his childhood when he dips the cake into a cup of tea and tastes it.
The novel starts with the narrator in middle age. He recalls his memories of his happy childhood and introduces a gallery of vivid characters. They include Charles Swann, his daughter Gilberte, the aristocratic Guermantes family, Baron de Charlus, and Albertine, who becomes the love of Marcel’s life.
