RMST 202

Aragon’s “Paris Peasant” was a strange experience to read. The text describes venturing through the Passage de L’Opéra, which includes cafes, theatres, and small shops. The journey is rather imaginative due to its ambiguity. A consistent theme in this book is its surrealism. There are illogical scenes combined that make the text so unordinary. For example, the gardens become a place of dreams and for mad invention. Similarly, during the night, the parks become places lurking danger yet also a sensual delight. Surrealism uses techniques to allow the unconscious mind to express itself, and I think this is what Aragon was trying to do with his writing.

Another feature of this text I noticed was that it does not follow a timeline. This is most likely why I felt like the text was dragging on, with no real goal. As Jon explained in the lecture, most stories have a sequence of events, even if there are flashbacks in the text, it makes sense because it follows the storyline and contributes to the plot. I prefer this because in these types of books actions have consequences, everything that happens in the story is meaningful because it impacts the main story, builds character development, or contributes to the story in some other way. In this sense, we read with reason and do not have to invest ourselves in lines that have no impact on the story. In this book, however, we are reading about the mundane, with a surreal twist. We are subject to reading about the ordinary, there is no particular climax or purpose, but we are viewing the mundane through a new lens. Perhaps this is Aragon’s way of getting his readers to appreciate the everyday and see it in a new light, pushing us to think outside of the box and create fiction out of reality, as this text does.

Surrealism is demonstrated by Aragon in his portrayal of the gardens and parks as previously mentioned. During the time that Aragon wrote this book, I’m sure that he received a variety of responses. As he implies on page 85, lawyers would not think so highly of his untraditional novel. My question is, why are we so opposed to new concepts and techniques? Though I believe this is more true in the past and we are more open to new ideas today, why is our initial reaction to reject it? What has made us more open to new writing styles today?

Proust’s novel “Swann’s Way” was a bit difficult to follow at first. Though I was able to pick up on a few main themes through the first and second sections, I often found myself lost in the text – and not in the form of fantasizing or escapism, but rather in confusion. I felt like I was reading a piece of literature that required background knowledge on the narrator/protagonist that I simply did not have. I also found myself getting lost in the timeline of the text, I wasn’t quite sure where I was in the space and time of the text, much like the narrator. Perhaps blurring the lines in time was exactly what Proust intended to do. I think it would reflect Modernism in that sense, as it explored creativity and imagination instead of the traditional rational and logical thinking. Proust leaves the text up to interpretation instead of providing a straightforward, black and white narrative/storyline.

I really enjoyed how the narrator discusses sleep and memory and how they affect each other. In particular, the narrator noted how whenever he sleeps, he recalls memories of his childhood and gets the opportunity to rediscover those memories in a new light. Nonetheless, those childhood memories will never be exactly true, as they are broken fragments being pieced together to form a similar but new memory. Moreover, as time goes on, eventually all the fragments of a memory will fade away, as the narrator notes when recalling the woman from his dreams. I think this theme is interesting because it explores and experiments with the relationship between reality and the subconscious. This connects back to Modernism because it is representing how literature was being used to think outside the box instead of following the traditional ways.

Another aspect I found interesting about this text was the narrator’s need to be kissed goodnight by his mother before bed. I’m not quite sure how old the narrator was at this point (hence me being lost in the text), but it seemed like a big deal to the father, so I assume the narrator was at least older than a toddler. I think this factor raises an interesting point and question about mental health and how it was greatly overlooked back then in comparison to today. This part of the text made me curious about whether mental health was given more attention after the emergence of Modernism, a time in which people were getting more in touch with their thoughts and feelings, or rather introspective.

Hi everyone, my name is Aliyah (she/her) and I am from Vancouver, British Columbia. I am a third-year student, though I am a transfer student, so this is my first semester at UBC.

This course, in both its structure and content, seems very refreshing from my usual classes that involve papers, projects, and exams. The ability to plan ahead and know which grade we will be receiving accordingly is quite comforting as well. Overall, I think this course allows a lot more freedom for creativity, which I appreciate.

I chose this course not only to fulfill my literature requirement but to also expand my horizons. I have never taken a course like this before – the content and structure of this course are both very new to me but I feel that I can use this to my advantage, discovering new ways to learn and looking at the romance world with a fresh perspective.

Pre-covid, I used to travel internationally quite a bit. Learning about different cultures, traditions, and lifestyles around the world always fascinated me from a young age. Hence, I am also curious to learn about the history of the intangible romance world through books. I do enjoy reading in my spare time, however, I do have a particular taste. I am hoping that the readings of this course will not only be easy to follow but also capture our interest.

This course, in both its structure and content, seems very refreshing from my usual classes that involve papers, projects, and exams. The ability to plan ahead and know which grade we will be receiving accordingly is quite comforting as well. Overall, I think this course allows a lot more freedom for creativity, which I appreciate.

After listening to the first lecture and attending the first class, I was able to familiarize myself with what the Romance World truly is, fiction. Romance studies is not bound to any territory, though it can exist anywhere. Romance languages derive from Latin and are considered as their untamed spawns, having created their own respective identities. This concept reminds me of how young adolescents will distance themselves or rebel against their parents in order to form their own identity and gain independence.

Nonetheless, there are still aspects of the Romance World that I am struggling to grasp. Such as, if we can define the Romance World through historical texts that represent it and its power, why would it be untrue to state the Romance World is not real? Of course, it is not a physical location that we can go to, but perhaps it is a period in time or a state of mind.

My question is, how would you describe the Romance World?

I look forward to learning more about the world of romance through our readings and discussions. 🙂