After reading Proust’s Combray, I actually found it easier to work my way through Nadja, especially during the beginning. It was a little confusing at times, but I am at peace with the non-linear structure. At this point, I have realized that the confusion of it is the point. I enjoyed the first section for that reason. I liked the narrator’s thoughts and descriptions of the places and people, and I especially liked the they were paired with photographs.
That said, after finishing the first section, I remember thinking, “Ohhhh okay… where is Nadja?” And then she’s introduced… and things move fast. A little too fast! I really liked Nadja and all that she brought to the story. I liked the moment where she shares her drawings, and even more so because we actually get to see them. That part felt very intimate and touching, and I almost forgot I was supposed to be reading because I was a little too focused on looking at her art. The drawings made her feel very real and kind of bare (I guess you could say.. ?).
However, as the novel went on, I became increasingly uncomfortable with the dynamic between Nadja and the narrator. Nadja is clearly struggling with her mental health and forms a pretty intense attachment to him, and what bothered me most is that he knows this. He acknowledges it, but instead of really questioning his role in it, he seems fascinated by her dependency. It felt like he was treating her less like a person and more like an experiment. His obsession with the idea that she “needs” him, and the way he places himself as the center of her existence really just irked me. One moment I remember was when he says she takes him “for a god” and thinks of him as “the sun” (p. 111). It’s a little unsettling to me. Knowing that he also has a wife at home made this whole thing even worse for me. Why is he inserting himself so deeply into the life of someone who is clearly extremely vulnerable?
Despite all of that, I actually did enjoy the third section. I thought that Breton’s critique of institutionalization, especially how it intersects with poverty, made sense to me. Nadja’s fate being tied not just by her mental state but also by her lack of resources was incredibly sad. The part where the narrator recalls Nadja speaking to his wife on the phone and saying, “At times, it is terrible to be so alone. I have no friends but you” (p. 142) felt insanely devastating because it made her isolation so clear. Overall, I think I enjoyed the novel, but I really can’t shake the discomfort regarding Nadja’s treatment. It just made me feel uneasy so… I don’t know.
Discussion question:
How did you feel about the relationship between Nadja and the narrator as the novel went on? Did your feelings towards them change at all while reading?
“I thought that Breton’s critique of institutionalization, especially how it intersects with poverty, made sense to me.” Yes, thank you for reminding us of that part of the book. What does it tell us about how the changing perception of mental health was perceived at that time, when Freudian psychoanalysis was emerging as the dominant paradigm? How does this relate to the novel?
Hi Emily! I felt the exact same at the beginning of the novel. I was just waiting and waiting for Nadja to show up. I also felt quite uncomfortable with Breton and Nadja’s relationship and dynamic. To answer your question, I hated it from the beginning and even more so at the end. #FREENADJA
Hi Emily! I also felt the same way about the narrator’s relationship with Nadja! In the sense that this guy is so bad, the way he talks about himself and his importance in Nadja’s life is just wrong, and he seems to be aware of this too.
Hi Emily,
I also found Breton’s Nadja to be easier to read after getting through Marcel’s Proust, I think it was a good introduction to the non-linear / confusing structure. I too kept waiting and waiting for Nadja, only to see her eventually show up and become the center of Breton’s mind. I thought it was wild how Breton wrote he was in power over Nadja all the while being MARRIED and completely obsessed with her after their encounter on the streets of Paris.