“I have more and more difficulty following her monologue” (106)
My response to this quote: Likewise, Breton, likewise.
Navigating through the initial section of the book, an incessant cycle of philosophical perspectives on the self and the question of “who I am,” I saw myself in the aforementioned quote. A cause for this is actually a commonality between Breton and Proust: the utilization of long sentences. While I acknowledge the importance of extended sentences for conveying specific ideas or injecting structural diversity into prose, the occasional use of shorter sentences is also critical for readability. A sentence like this. It just makes it easier to read! See, haven’t these last few sentences made my post easier to read? Haha anyways, once I eventually moved past Breton’s prolonged opening monologue and reached the segment where he encounters Nadja, my appreciation and comprehension of the book improved.
That said, there were still some enjoyable bits from the first section that stood out to me. For instance, Breton’s depiction of being in a glass house, glass bed, under glass sheets, to reveal “who [he is],” offered a unique and visually metaphorical description of his confession (18). Further exploration of this concept of “confession” during the lecture video deepened my appreciation for this quote. The imagery of being in a glass bed and sheets resonated well with his writing about Nadja, symbolizing the privacy of a bed where dreams occur—a private part of his life akin to his time with Nadja where visions occurred.
In the section where he first encounters Nadja on page 64, I, like some classmates, interpreted Nadja through the modern character trope of a “manic pixie dream girl.” Despite the trope’s lengthy and amusing name, it is relevant to this text. Breton’s description of Nadja at their initial meeting reflects his infatuation, portraying her as quirky through her poor dressing and incomplete makeup. Nadja’s language and behaviour, especially on page 74, further contribute to her characterization as a manic pixie dream girl.
Lastly, I found Breton’s perspective on institutions intriguing. His observation about how society “hurl[s] an individual among others whose association can only be harmful to him and, above all, systematically deprive[s] him of relations with everyone whose moral or practical sense is more firmly established than his own” is devastating. It struck me that, even a century later, our society operates similarly. I am curious what Breton would have to say about the evolution of institutions– would he be surprised by our lack of progress, or would it align with his expectations of the future? What do you all think? Further, “who are we” to have allowed this to happen and to allow it to persist?