Proustian Paths

Join your literary tour guide and host Dr James Holden for Episode 9 of Proustian Paths, in which we continue our gentle walk through Marcel Proust's masterpiece of French literature - A la recherche du temps perdu (In Search of Lost Time).

 

Today, we travel further through Swann’s Way. We discover how Charles Swann is excluded from the Verdurin salon. Love and jealousy abound as he storms home through the Paris night alone with the promise of other love affairs and piano music hanging in the evening air.

 

In this episode we will discuss:

Swann’s exclusion from the Verdurin salon

A performance of Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata for piano, played in the dark

The mutability of social truths

 

Proustian Paths is the perfect podcast for both first time readers of Proust's novel and dedicated Proustians alike.  It is ‘a brilliant invitation into the world of Proust and the insights his work offers’.

Well, it's been a while! But the Proustian Paths podcast is returning, and there are exciting new ways to engage with the show.

This short Channel Update episode tells you everything you need to know about the show's latest developments, including how to get even more classic literature discussion direct to your inbox via the Proustian Paths Substack newsletter.

Subscribe to Proustian Paths on Substack FOR FREE by clicking here to become part of the show's welcoming community of readers and listeners, and take part in subscriber chat.

So, dust off your literary walking boots as we prepare to set out once again on our guided walk through Marcel Proust's classic novel, In Search of Lost Time.

Love quickly turns to jealousy along Swann's Way. In this episode of the Proustian Paths podcast we return to the Verdurin salon in Paris on the evening Odette introduces Forcheville to the little clan. He establishes himself there as a rival for Odette's love, sparking Swann's jealousy which we see played out as we follow the paths that take him to Odette's window late at night.

 

Join audio tour guide Dr. James Holden on the next leg of our gentle walk through this important work of French literature, Marcel Proust's classic novel A la recherche du temps perdu.

 

This episode will provide you with:

 

* a clear 'map' of the sequence - focusing on the social scene and the two 'window' scenes that are the beginning of Swann's jealousy.

* a discussion of the important physical, social and conceptual 'landmarks' Proust  places in the passage.

* an opportunity to take in the literary-critical view.

 

Proustian Paths is the perfect introduction to Marcel Proust's work for new readers and a way for dedicated Proustians to get a new view on the book they love.

Today's steps along the paths through Marcel Proust's classic novel In Search of Lost Time find us heading out into the streets of Paris and following Charles Swann as he searches for Odette. This episode traces Swann's emotional and physical journey, and the relationship that then develops between the couple.

Listening to Episode 7 of the Proustian Paths podcast will give you:

a 'map' of this section of Proust's narrative (pp. 229 - 253 of the edition published by Penguin).

a list of the physical and conceptual 'landmarks' needed to navigate this passage.

a discussion of the literary-critical view.

Join your audio tour guide and host Dr James Holden as we continue our gentle walk through Marcel Proust's masterpiece of French literature - A la recherche du temps perdu. The perfect podcast for both first time readers of Proust's work and dedicated Proustians alike.

It's time for a quick channel update! Discover what’s been happening here at the Proustian Paths podcast since our last episode and find out what's coming up on the channel. It’s true that I’ve taken a long detour before being able to come back to the paths through Marcel Proust's classic novel In Search of Lost Time, but I’m now back to guide us on our slow reading journey together.

So dust off your literary walking boots and listen to this update and you'll be ready for upcoming new episodes as we continue our gentle walk through Proust's masterpiece of French literature - A la recherche du temps perdu.