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How to Prepare for the Proust Project (Translation, Edition, Approach) (Patreon)

Published:
2021-04-25 13:18:23
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2026-06
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Content

As there's been quite a bit of excitement for the upcoming Proust Project, I thought I would  address some questions in a brief informal audio.

We'll talk about which edition of In Search of Lost Time we'll be reading from, time and page commitments, the art history approach, and all that good stuff.

Timestamps:

  • 0:20 which volume to start with?
  • 0:40 which translation to choose?
  • 1:30 why some people learn French through Proust
  • 2:00 volume 1: Swann's Way + Within A Budding Grove
  • 2:40 should you get the whole set?
  • 3:20 how to fall in love with Proust
  • 3:58 the art history approach
  • 4:55 Tolstoy and the psychological approach
  • 5:20 Dostoyevsky and the moral/biblical approach
  • 5:30 Austen and the rise of the novel
  • 6:38 Hesse and the spiritual approach
  • 6:40 The Shakespeare Project
  • 7:20 Don Quixote and Les Misérables 
  • 7:40 length and reading commitment 
  • 8:10 learning the art of rereading 
  • 8:40 journalling along the way 
  • 10:00 questions and comments?

Recommended Edition/Translation:

Happy Prousting, everybody! 

The journey into À la recherche du temps perdu begins soon. Brace and fortify yourselves!

Files

Previews only

Comments

Matt P.

Damn, I messed up. New York Review of Books released an edition of Swann’s Way earlier this year translated by James Grieve which I innocently picked up as I can be a real sucker for the beautiful design and quality of nyrb books. Now I’m halfway through and comparing the translations of some of the excerpts covered in the Proust Project here and feeling a bit like I’m missing out 😅 Grieve seems to be trying to make the text more I dunno… accessible?? One review said it sounded “colloquial like Huck Finn or something.” Having said that, my experience with the text so far hasn’t been bad. I do love the book, but maybe I’m the person who needs a more “accessible” version of Proust 😂 I can appreciate what he’s doing with the translation, I just feel though, in comparison, the Grieves version may not be as ambitious artistically as perhaps the Montcrieff-Kilmartin. No one here has mentioned the Grieve translation as far as I know, so I just thought I’d share my experience. Cheers, Matt

Ralph

❤️ 🇫🇷 Proust!

HappyKnitter2020

I'm setting into Proust's mind this year (2025), as I turn the page in my life chapters. Looking forward to following your backlist videos, thanks so much Benjamin

Bill Freeman

Ben - This was very helpful. As I shared, your version recommendations are very helpful; please include those in your list of books. I so enjoyed AK, and I am sure that it was because you specifically recommended the P&V translation. In fact, I had the Garnett translation which I retunded for the P&V before embarking on the book. I found your recommendation to read slowly over the year helpful and supportive. I would be interested in hearing more about using the journal as a tool in self-development as we reflect on the books we are reading. A podcast idea? This entire experience has whetted my appetite for fiction. I shard that I am reading Tolstoy's Short Stories. As well, I am reading E.M. Forster's "Maurice" (published posthumously) and Wendy Moffat's biography of Forster, "A Great Unrecorded History." Ken Burns has just released a three-episode series on Hemingway that is spectacular and I highly recommend watching (https://www.pbs.org/kenburns/hemingway/). I received his short stories this morning. But . . . I see AK and Tolstoy as a lifelong companion.

Sharon xx

Ben I'm so excited for Proust! As you know I splashed out on the whole set of six Vintage Classics - Vintage Proust in PB by Moncrieff/Kilmartin, due to my OCD wanting all the covers to match, especially if it's something I will revisit and use often. For general information the whole set from Amazon UK came to £49.50 but prices are inclined to fluctuate on Amazon depending on supply/demand I've noticed. I'm so glad that we're going to take it ssllllllooooooooooooow, that's perfect especially as I'm still tandem reading AK and C&P. New journal is ready and waiting! I'm with Bill on the potential for you sharing your journaling techniques, methods and inspirations in a poscast/video. I'm filling one rapidly for AK & C&P but it's a bit all over the place. I've got a dedicated journal for Proust however as I think he'll be needing a lot of space.

Bill Freeman

Sharon - I can so identify with your OCD! Until Ben and this dive into A&K and C&P I NEVER would have imagined writing in a book. I also appreciate taking it slow, It allows me to "soak" in these books as well as to read other fiction on the side. Thanks also for the plug to Ben on journaling, I'd like to hear how he using this type of journal to support personal growth. Be well - Bill

Sharon xx
>>58549394

Hi Bill I hope you are keeping well, especially in the current climate? I tried to message you directly on here but it doesn't appear to be an option which I didn't realise. I've only written in books over the last ten years or so, previously like you I had not even thought to. I am totally into reading for quality, not quantity and yes, soaking it all up. We are literary sponges :) . It's all too easy to get caught up in the whole competitive reading, cracking that TBR pile as fast as possible and then not remembering a single word two weeks later. Hmmm yes, the journaling. I don't journal enough whilst reading and when I do it all feels very 'messy' and unstructured. I also get intimidated by the blank page = ridiculous! However, I've started actively noticing which parts of the text strike me the most and thinking about why that is. Often times I've found it's because it will generate a memory or resonate with a situation I've experienced. I may have a strong or interesting opinion/reaction to what the character is doing. THAT's the moment I should start writing, putting that memory or reaction down on paper while it's fresh. Why does this passage strike a chord? What emotions are linked to that and how do I feel about that now? How does the passage link to my life either now or historically? Before I know it the pages are filling and it's like [as I said before] you find yourself and your life in the pages of the book. Easy to say, I'm just so rubbish at actually doing it. I'm really interested to see how Ben actually starts journaling, what motivates him and whether or not he has a specific approach or just goes free-fall? Book OCD is alive and well on planet Earth - I love my books and if they match then so much the better. Shallow but there we are lol. Take good care, Bill. Sharon

Bill Freeman

Hi Sharon, Thanks for your note – wonderful to hear from you. I live in Arlington, VA (where the Pentagon is). I have received both doses of the Pfizer vaccine. My spouse received the first Pfizer shot and is scheduled for the second on May 12th. I trust that you are well and have either been vaccinated or on a schedule. I really appreciate your thoughts! Your prompting questions on journaling which I am repeating below are outstanding: * Why does this passage strike a chord? * What emotions are linked to that and how do I feel about that now? * How does the passage link to my life either now or historically? This is a great template that I will use. In the past, so much of my journaling has been ineffective and almost a travel log of what I had done the prior day. I’ll let you know how it turns out. I have enjoyed the readings and watching Ben’s videos over the past few months. While this Spring term, I only taught a graduate seminar for two students, this Summer, I am teaching two courses and chairing a dissertation committee. I will take your advice of “quality over quantity” as I continue reading amid increase time demands. Again, thanks for your reply. Warm regards - Bill

hardcoreliterature
>>58465177

Thank you, Bill! Poor Garnett!! But, yes, she would not be my first choice of translation. Funnily enough, I prefer her over P&V when it comes to Chekhov - but none of the other Russians. Regarding journalling, I can certainly put something together - perhaps a video that shows a clean page of the journal, book beside, and a quick "real time" glimpse into how I typically pause and what I might note down. A guided podcast would be a good idea too :) I'm absolutely thrilled that you have befriended Tolstoy. I'll have to check out Ken Burns. I took his masterclass and ended up positively weeping at multiple points. His "Jazz" and Civil War stuff is breathtaking.

hardcoreliterature
>>58478815

Thank you, Sharon!! I feel your excitement :) Those Vintage Prousts are lovely, aren't they? I've got the first volume in Vintage and the whole set in Everyman. Not a bad price at all. For comparison, Everyman are currently listing the box set as £44.45, so whether one prefers paperback or hardcover might be the deciding factor. And thank you for another vote on some journal-based content - I'll make sure something comes out on that soon!!

Sharon xx
>>58590926

Hi Bill - good to know that you've had the Pfizer and that your spouse will receive the second vaccine soon. Simon and I live in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire [also known a The City of Roundabouts - home of Bletchley Park and The Enigma Code Breakers]. I work for the National Health Service at our local hospital and Si is a Prison Officer - I had the Pfizer vaccine early in the programme as part of my job and Si is about to have his second dose of the Astra-Zeneca so we're feeling very blessed. Journaling - I think that, for me anyway, I just need a starting point or prompt - once I've started writing it all just flows, it's getting started that's the issue. I'm very interested to know what you teach, Bill? Sharon

Lori Miller

Looking forward to starting this journey! I bought the Montcrieff-Kilmartin translation, then found another volume from Yale University Press that is the Montcrieff translation edited and annotated by William C. Carter. The annotated addition has wonderfully wide margins, so I thought it could double as my notebook. I'm sure I'll also enjoy noting what William Carter contributes to the translation. Thanks, Benjamin, for leading us on this epic journey!

petr jirasek

I have embarked on Proust project couple weeks ago, following Ben recommendation- taking ‘ meditative ‘ approach and including regular journaling on Proust journey. English isn’t my first or second language, I’m gifted with analytical mind, thinking and pondering a lot. I felt frustrated that I will perhaps be never able to appreciate the art for evoking emotions in me instead will continue try to analyse everything. Im reading both translation of Proust simultaneously - starting with modern one which gives me better understanding of context and immediately afterwards rereading it in Montcrieff translation. I started to feel change - on the beginning I was trying to translate every sentence in old translation which I didn’t understand now I’m attending this old translation as visiting art gallery and start to have feelings. I have read this sentences from Proust today and it suddenly ‘click’ And my grandmother had bought them in preference to others just as she would have quicker to commend an estate on which there was a Gothic dovecote or another old things that exercise such a happy influence on the mind by filling it with longing for imposible voyages through the time’ My mind is full of these longings now and it’s so serene, so beautiful It’s so nice to be part of this wonderful group of people Thank you Ben for all your hard work on this Hardcore literature project Best wishes Petr