Combray by Marcel Proust

First of all, I actually found Proust quite challenging to read. There was so much happening in the story that I wasn’t sure what to focus on at first. Proust describes everything in great detail, from the visual components of buildings, to the feelings that the protagonist experiences. I found myself looking up many words because they are not ones used in everyday reading. I thought that perhaps these words are meant to be confusing to the reader to reflect the ambiguity of the protagonist’s childhood since there is a scene where he is trying to remember all the details of his grandmother’s house. I noticed that certain passages were easier to read than others because of the sensory details given. I feel like the sensory details grab the reader’s attention and ground them in tangible feelings.

Aside from all the random snippets of information given to the reader, I did notice in particular the descriptions of  his connection with certain family members. For example, I notice his emotional anguish when his mother doesn’t kiss him goodnight on a particular evening. The boy’s childhood anxieties seem to be associated with his mother leaving, and not being able to be there with him all the time.

I wonder if the information provided in this text strategically tells us something about memories. Since there are so many incessant details droning on and on, the pause for his memories of emotion are what sticks out in particular. The details that I do find memorable from the story include the sensory information about the food that the narrator tastes. It was “as soon as [he] had recognized the taste of the piece of madeleine dipped in lime-blossom tea” that he remembered “the old gray house on the street” (Proust, 47). So many details such as all “the flowers in [their] garden”, the “water lilies on the Vivonne”, and “all of Combray and its surroundings” “[acquired] form and solidarity” from his “cup of tea” (Proust, 48). This technique is very effective for evoking a sense of nostalgia that the narrator feels. In real life too, flavours can bring back memories of previous moments that the food was consumed. They may bring back comfort, or sadness for example. I think that this was a great technique used because as humans, we all understand this feeling of taste being linked to memory. This technique makes the story feel more real and appealing.

A question that I wondered about is:

What is the significance of the narrator revisiting his past?