hardcoreliterature

Born in the Belle Époque (Close Reading of Proust) (Patreon)

Published:

2021-11-10 14:37:18

Imported:

2026-06

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Content

Today's video is one part French historical context, one part art appreciation, and what I hope will be a motivating discussion on the ethos of reading Proust deeply.

We're discussing why readers stray from Proust, the sociological concept of "face", the Third Republic, Belle Époque, Fin de siècle, and a deep-dive into the artwork of Jean-Bapiste-Camille Corot (a favourite of Monsieur Swann's).

We also have a fun art assignment/thought experiment for us all to collaborate upon - details of which are at the end of the video, and below the timestamps.

Video Timestamps:

0:00 the philosophy of reading Proust
3:30 different paces/gear changes for literature
7:30 why readers abandon Proust
8:30 how to deal with the length of the Search
9:40 go slow to go fast
11:00 the ethos of the Proust Project
11:40 Proust as a primer for poetry
12:15 the work is never finished
12:50 why you cannot fail in reading Proust
13:50 what if you’ve fallen out with Proust?
14:30 meeting your friend Marcel after a rest
15:00 the sociological concept of “face”
16:30 politeness theory
17:30 social mobility and the invisible caste
18:28 a hack for reading Proust (and real-world interactions)
22:00 French historical contextualisation
25:40 Third Republic, Belle Époque, and birth of Proust (1871)
26:00 who was writing during Proust’s childhood?
27:00 the Fin de siècle
29:00 Proust the dandy
30:30 paintings during the Belle Époque
32:00 how to prepare for Proust through immersion in art
33:15 the paintings of Jean-Bapiste-Camille Corot
35:00 a fun thought experiment for you
37:00 colour and harmony in Proust and Corot
38:00 appreciating the artwork of Corot together
39:00 what paintings did M. Swann have in his collection?

Art Appreciation Assignment:

What paintings of Corot do you believe Monsieur Swann had in his collection?

Enjoy a leisurely browse through Corot's catalogue of neoclassical paintings, pick three paintings, and share them with us.

Questions to Consider:

1) What does your choice of artwork say about Swann? What does it say of how you view Swann? And, therefore, what might it say about you?

2) Have you left Proust for long periods of time? If so, why? How does that feel?

Happy Prousting, everybody!

Files

Previews only

Born in the Belle Époque - Proust's In Search of Lost Time (Pages 18-21)

0:00 the philosophy of reading Proust 3:30 different paces/gear changes for literature 7:30 why readers abandon Proust 8:30 how to deal with the length of the Search 9:40 go slow to go fast 11:00 the ethos of the Proust Project 11:40 Proust as a primer for poetry 12:15 the work is never finished 12:50 why you cannot fail in reading Proust 13:50 what if you’ve fallen out with Proust? 14:30 meeting your friend Marcel after a rest 15:00 the sociological concept of “face” 16:30 politeness theory 17:30 social mobility and the invisible caste 18:28 a hack for reading Proust (and real-world interactions) 22:00 French historical contextualisation 25:40 Third Republic, Belle Époque, and birth of Proust (1871) 26:00 who was writing during Proust’s childhood? 27:00 the Fin de siècle 29:00 Proust the dandy 30:30 paintings during the Belle Époque 32:00 how to prepare for Proust through immersion in art 33:15 the paintings of Jean-Bapiste-Camille Corot 35:00 a fun thought experiment for you 37:00 colour and harmony in Proust and Corot 38:00 appreciating the artwork of Corot together 39:00 what paintings did M. Swann have in his collection?