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Den genfundne tid 2

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De nombreuses années se sont écoulées et le narrateur, malade, a passé de longs séjours en province pour se soigner. La guerre a éclaté et, lors d’un retour dans la capitale, le narrateur constate que ni l’élégance, ni le luxe, ni la recherche du plaisir n’ont perdu leurs droits. Mmes Verdurin et Bontemps règnent sur les deux salons les plus courus de Paris, entre autres par la haute aristocratie du faubourg Saint-Germain. Dans l’ensemble, les gens se montrent patriotes, excepté Charlus qui ne cache pas sa sympathie pour l’ennemi. En vieillissant, il se livre à des expériences sadomasochistes dans un hôtel de passe qu’il a acheté et dont il a confié la gérance à Jupien. Prenant conscience que sa maladie l’empêchera de réaliser une œuvre littéraire, le narrateur se désespère. Lors d’une soirée chez le prince de Guermantes, il a l’impression d’assister à un bal costumé, tant les anciennes connaissances qu’il y retrouve ont vieilli, paraissant déguisées. Cependant, trois incidents mineurs déclenchent en lui un effort de mémoire qui va ranimer des souvenirs lointains. Ces réminiscences mettent en évidence l’intérêt de ces introspections pour préserver de l’oubli certains événements du passé. Il décide alors d’orienter son travail dans ce sens pour faire aboutir son projet d’écriture. Victime d’une légère attaque cérébrale, il craint de de ne plus avoir assez de temps pour concrétiser son rêve.

279 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2014

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46 people want to read

About the author

Marcel Proust

2,158 books7,476 followers
Marcel Proust was a French novelist, best known for his 3000 page masterpiece À la recherche du temps perdu (Remembrance of Things Past or In Search of Lost Time), a pseudo-autobiographical novel told mostly in a stream-of-consciousness style.

Born in the first year of the Third Republic, the young Marcel, like his narrator, was a delicate child from a bourgeois family. He was active in Parisian high society during the 80s and 90s, welcomed in the most fashionable and exclusive salons of his day. However, his position there was also one of an outsider, due to his Jewishness and homosexuality. Towards the end of 1890s Proust began to withdraw more and more from society, and although he was never entirely reclusive, as is sometimes made out, he lapsed more completely into his lifelong tendency to sleep during the day and work at night. He was also plagued with severe asthma, which had troubled him intermittently since childhood, and a terror of his own death, especially in case it should come before his novel had been completed. The first volume, after some difficulty finding a publisher, came out in 1913, and Proust continued to work with an almost inhuman dedication on his masterpiece right up until his death in 1922, at the age of 51.

Today he is widely recognized as one of the greatest authors of the 20th Century, and À la recherche du temps perdu as one of the most dazzling and significant works of literature to be written in modern times.

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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
Profile Image for Gitte Winneche.
44 reviews39 followers
March 21, 2016
Kan ikke rigtig helt forstå, at det er slut. Har brugt næsten tre måneder i selskab med Proust, og på samme måde som ham har jeg svært ved at begribe den levede fortid som en del af min nutid. På sporet af den tabte tid er verdens længste bog af en grund, ikke blot fordi den kan. For at kunne forstå den er det nødvendigt, at det tager lang tid at læse den. Hvordan skal tiden ellers blive bare i nærheden af håndgribelig?
Tak, Proust - du har været både godt og lærerigt selskab. Måske vi ses igen, når mine stylter er blevet højere og ryster under mig.
Profile Image for Kirstine.
465 reviews607 followers
June 30, 2016
Before I started In Search of Lost Time a teacher told us that we could look forward to a life before and a life after Proust. I thought he was exaggerating. He was right.

I’ve seen a life start and fade away, I’ve seen a boy turn into a man turn into an artist, I’ve seen Marcel go from innocent to unsympathetic. I’ve spent three months seeing In Search of Lost Time everywhere I went, in everything I watched, read, heard or experienced. There was almost always a parallel, always the ghost of Proust letting me know I had started seeing the world differently.

Marcel finally has the epiphany that will lead to him writing the work that the reader has almost finished. While waiting in a library he suddenly starts remembering, involuntarily, and Proust expounds his vision, his philosophy. We understand the importance of memory, how it unlocks truth and art. We realize you need a life to remember in order to understand the truth of it. And we see his idea of how memory works; that each memory unlocks a new vision of the past, that the past you and the present you exist at the same time, you experience it as both yous. In the moment and in hindsight. This is the masterpiece.

This is not the only thing we learn. Proust ends his book with Marcels reflections on the work he’s about to start, and his hopes that the reader will not read and discover Marcel in these books, but rather read and discover themselves. I wanted to tell him that yes, yes, I saw myself reflected back at me, it was you and me both presented in the book. And when the words started spiraling, when the narrator started worrying there wouldn’t be time to finish it, that with all the days and years he’d wasted not writing he’d now run out of time before his masterpiece would be done, I wanted to cry, I wanted to yell there’s time, there’s time! I’m reading it now, there’s time!. All the while knowing that he’d be right in worrying, that although the work would be finished, it’d be left incomplete, the last few volumes left unedited as Proust, the master, the genius, ran out of time.

To have those thoughts almost conclude four-thousand something pages; that was emotional. To know that while Marcel is just now starting to fully discover the power and secrets of involuntary memory, as he’s just beginning to sense what art has in store for him, that at the same time he regains time; he’s running out of it. Nothing compares to the ambivalence of emotions. Gaining time and losing it within a sentence, within a breath.

Nothing compares to the masquerade hosted by old age that we suddenly attend, and I know that there is truth in Proust’s descriptions; that the masks of white hair, wrinkles, and the wear and tear of the years will come as a surprise to us all.

Because the truth of the matter is that life is not, merely, one moment following another, it is every moment stacked on top all other moments, existing simultaneously with the present. Every person you’ve ever been hides in those moments, ready to show you the past as you’ve never seen it before, called forth by the sight of a pretty face, the smell of the ocean, a flower, the sound of a specific tune, suddenly you see another moment intertwined with the present. You see the past resurrected in your mind, more true, more ideal, more essential than it was when you first lived through it. If you dare, if you try, you’ll find truth in these moments.

There is comfort in knowing I’ll carry Proust with me. He’s articulated things I never thought I’d see in print. And no matter if you agree or disagree with everything he’s shown you (you’re bound to do both), three months and four thousand pages is time spent soaked in his words, his thoughts, his vision. You can’t help but take it with you, to carry a piece of him in your soul.

But if I’ve learned anything it’s that Proust can always be found on my shelf, and in my memory; better, even, when visited by another me, in another time. I’ll see you again.
Profile Image for K's Bognoter.
1,048 reviews96 followers
August 4, 2021
Halleluja! Hvilken finale! Sidste del af Prousts monstrøse magnum opus binder det hele sammen og er i sig selv en så udsøgt fornøjelse, at jeg føler mig fristet til bare at starte forfra med en genlæsning af hele værket med det samme.
Læs min anmeldelse på K’s bognoter: https://bognoter.dk/2021/08/04/marcel...
Profile Image for Nene La Beet.
611 reviews86 followers
November 28, 2025
Tænk, jeg er færdig! Jeg kom igennem alle tretten bind, selvom det har taget mig 2-3 år (gad ikke tjekke).
Sidste bind er både mere og mindre en konklusion, end jeg havde ventet. Og Proust er mere ondsindet end nogensinde før – der er de styggeste beskrivelser af folk, der er ældet, siden han så dem sidst. Både mænd og kvinder, men især kvinder. Det gør ondt på en aldrende kvinde som mig! Fx skriver han (side 207) at "jeg bemærkede – uden at føle mig den mindste smule smigret over det, for hun var både gammel og grim – at skuespillerinden sendte mig nogle [...] øjekast." Og der er meget mere udpenslede beskrivelser af disse kvinders frygtelige grimhed. Vores hovedperson forholder sig mere teoretisk til sin egen aldring, og han beskriver, hvordan han jo stadig tiltrækkes af helt unge piger. Sjovt aktuelt netop i disse uger i den danske debat.

Vi erfarer, at hovedpersonen nu, i et øjebliks klarhed, forstår, at han må og skal skrive en roman om de oplevelser, vi har hørt om i de foregående 12 bind. Og han bliver så opsat på det, at han begynder at frygte døden – den må ikke komme ham i forkøbet! Han beskriver frygten: (..) jeg begyndte på ny at frygte den, ganske vist i en anden form og ikke for mig selv, men for min bog, hvis tilblivelse i hvert fald for en tid var helt afhængig af dette liv, der var truet af så mange farer.

Tid er i det hele taget det, han kredser om her til slut – selvfølgelig den tabte tid, som han er på sporet af.
Profile Image for Laura.
7,136 reviews607 followers
March 10, 2017
Free download in French available at La Bibliothèque électronique du Québec - 2eme partie.

Cette édition numérisée reprend le texte de l’édition Gallimard, Paris, 1946-47, en 15 volumes :
5* 1. Du côté de chez Swann. Première partie.
5* 2. Du côté de chez Swann. Deuxième partie.
3* 3. À l’ombre des jeunes filles en fleurs. Première partie.
3* 4. À l’ombre des jeunes filles en fleurs. Deuxième partie.
3* 5. À l’ombre des jeunes filles en fleurs. Troisième partie.
4* 6. Le côté de Guermantes. Première partie.
4* 7. Le côté de Guermantes. Deuxième partie.
4* 8. Le côté de Guermantes. Troisième partie.
4* 9. Sodome et Gomorrhe. Première partie.
4* 10. Sodome et Gomorrhe. Deuxième partie.
3* 11. La Prisonnière. Première partie.
3* 12. La Prisonnière. Deuxième partie.
4* 13. Albertine disparue.
4* 14. Le temps retrouvé. Première partie.
4* 15. Le temps retrouvé. Deuxième partie.
Profile Image for Laura.
7,136 reviews607 followers
July 22, 2024
Free download available at Project Gutenberg

5* Du côté de chez Swann (À la recherche du temps perdu, #1)
3* À l'ombre des jeunes filles en fleurs (A la recherche du temps perdu, #2)
4* Le Côté de Guermantes 1/2 (À la recherche du temps perdu, #3)
4* Le Côté de Guermantes 2/2 (À la recherche du temps perdu, #4)
4* Sodome et Gomorrhe 1/2 (À la recherche du temps perdu, #5)
4* Sodome et Gomorrhe 2/2 (À la recherche du temps perdu, #6)
5* La Prisonnière (À la recherche du temps perdu, #7)
5* Un amour de Swann (À la recherche du temps perdu, #8)
5* Albertine Disparue Vol 1 of 2 (À la recherche du temps perdu, #12)
5* Albertine Disparue Vol 2 of 2 (À la recherche du temps perdu, #13)
5* Le temps retrouvé: Tome 1/2 (À la recherche du temps perdu, #14)
5* Le temps retrouvé: Tome 2/2 (À la recherche du temps perdu, #15)
5* Within a Budding Grove
5* Les Plaisirs et les Jours
4* L'affaire Lemoine
5* Pastiches et Mélanges
Profile Image for Henrik Jespersen.
101 reviews1 follower
December 3, 2023
Uuuh this reminds me of…:
"When I loved Albertine, I was well aware that she did not love me and that I had to put up with the fact that she only gave me the opportunity to experience what it means to suffer, to love and even at the beginning, to be happy"

Proust says it:
“It saddened me to think that my love, which had meant so much to me, would in my book be so separated from a living person that various readers would associate it, in every detail, with the love they themselves had felt for other women.”

Amen 💔

The mystery of old age is incredibly well described where the author dreams back to the young women and wonders who the old white-haired lady is...

On the trail of lost time:
"It would be a book that was perhaps as long as One Thousand and One Nights, but completely different."

Amen 🙏🏻
Thanks for a great piece of history Marcel Proust ❤️

……
Uuuh det her minder mig om…:
“Dengang jeg elskede Albertine, var jeg udmærket klar over at hun ikke elskede mig, og at jeg var nødt til at affinde mig med at hun kun gav mig mulighed for at erfare hvad det vil sige at lide, at elske og endda i begyndelsen, at være lykkelig”

Proust siger det:
“Det var trist for mig at tænke på at min kærlighed, som havde betydet så meget for mig, i min bog ville blive så adskilt fra et levende menneske at forskellige læsere ville forbinde den, i hver eneste detalje, med den kærlighed de selv havde følt for andre kvinder.”

Amen 💔

Alderdommens mysterie er utroligt godt beskrevet hvor forfatteren drømmer sig tilbage til de unge kvinder og undres over hvem den gamle hvidhårede dame er…

Om på sporet af den tabte tid:
“Det ville blive en bog som måske var lige så lang som Tusind og en nat, men helt anderledes.”

Amen 🙏🏻
Tak for et fantastisk stykke historie Marcel Proust ❤️
342 reviews1 follower
November 3, 2022
The aptly stunning final volume in a truly great work of literature. If I never used my French again, it would have been worth learning the whole language just to read Proust.

At the beginning of the book, war dominates the narrative and the author delivers some amazing reflections on the stereotype of virility (as held by gay men and society in general) in which real (military) men express no emotion at the death of a friend, but rather discuss strategy more loudly and with infinite precision. He paints the attitudes toward war, from the heroism of Robert de Saint-Loup, to the cowardice of Morel, to the ambiguity of M de Charlus, and sneaks us into a whorehouse during an air raid where men fear discovery more than death.

Finally, the narrator's maturity comes to fruition as discovers that true art lies where the present meets the past, where the specific meets the general and creates something out of time all together, something universal.
Profile Image for Hope.
Author 64 books3 followers
February 8, 2016
The aptly stunning final volume in a truly great work of literature. If I never used my French again, it would have been worth learning the whole language just to read Proust.

At the beginning of the book, war dominates the narrative and the author delivers some amazing reflections on the stereotype of virility (as held by gay men and society in general) in which real (military) men express no emotion at the death of a friend, but rather discuss strategy more loudly and with infinite precision. He paints the attitudes toward war, from the heroism of Robert de Saint-Loup, to the cowardice of Morel, to the ambiguity of M de Charlus, and sneaks us into a whorehouse during an air raid where men fear discovery more than death.

Finally, the narrator's maturity comes to fruition as discovers that true art lies where the present meets the past, where the specific meets the general and creates something out of time all together, something universal.
Profile Image for Emilie Andersen.
181 reviews17 followers
April 13, 2016
Marcel Proust's whole work just grows on you as you read your way through it! I've not read all the books in this amazing series but I plan on doing it and I expect it to be amazed, because if reading 4 of the books can already blow your mind then imagine what happens when you read the whole thing. For now I have to say goodbye to the books and save it for the summer break but I truly plan on reading it all! I didn't know I would love this but I truly do!
15 reviews34 followers
April 29, 2017
Absolument génial!

Ce dernier livre me fait comprendre tous les précédents.

Ces livres ne sont pas hors du Temps mais font partie du Temps comme la mémoire fait partie de nous sans être hors de nous. Même si la vieillesse cause des ennuis il restera toujours un parfum,une odeur,un son pour nous ramener à ce Temps d'avant,ce Temps qu'on a peut-être perdu.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews

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