tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1911087927983597831.post7371860466924635572..comments2024-01-02T15:37:04.858-05:00Comments on Caravana de recuerdos: In the Shadow of Young Girls in Flower #1Richardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01746599416342846897noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1911087927983597831.post-33183065781920703232011-08-17T07:53:54.668-04:002011-08-17T07:53:54.668-04:00I love your entry, you manage to give back the atm...I love your entry, you manage to give back the atmosphere of the book. He really caught something about adolescence didn't he? Especially that feeling to love to be in love more than to love someone in particular. <br />And that passage when he's ashamed of his grand-mother makes him more human. It's really part of that period of life: parents go down from their pedestal and become humanAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1911087927983597831.post-59163116725933322522011-08-14T17:39:45.591-04:002011-08-14T17:39:45.591-04:00*Caroline: Proust is making me wonder whether ther...*Caroline: Proust is making me wonder whether there's more of the teenaged dreamer left in gray-haired, middle-aged me than I'd care to admit, but I won't hold that gainst him since I'm not really sure that's all good or bad anyway. Love your little anecdote about the cherry blossoms and feel compelled to admit that Proust is probably the first writer who has ever breached my "manly" emotional defenses with writing about flowers and nature. Splendid stuff!<br /><br />*Emily: That scene on the train is indeed a crack-up and yet another example of what you say about the balance between tenderness and humor in the novel. Envy you your stay at the "Balbec hotel," of course--must follow suit some day if I can!<br /><br />*Jill: While you're getting quite a dull approximation of Proust's charms from these feeble and inelegant posts of mine, I appreciate your kind words and am trying to repay you in kind (so to speak!) with extended quotes and excerpts from the wordy master! I like what you say re: the Wanter and the Wantee, but I'll have no more to say about the matter since I have more experience in the former than the latter category alas. Cheers!<br /><br />*Frances: I am in love with Proust's prose and the contents of his neurotic but ever-insightful mind, yes. Really glad to hear from you that at least some of that came across in the post since it's hard to talk about some of Proust's intellectual splendors without worrying that the emotional weight of his writing will be lost on others who have yet to experience him for themselves (or worrying about the opposite problem: that I will just gush about Proust with no rhyme or reason). Only sorry that I couldn't have read more of the novel as part of your readalong, though.Richardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01746599416342846897noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1911087927983597831.post-66766855958219748632011-08-11T21:59:22.317-04:002011-08-11T21:59:22.317-04:00Richard, you sound like you are in love. And I so ...Richard, you sound like you are in love. And I so get that. Everything here is so infused with emotion - the quotes, your own thoughts. Loved your thought about a "teenaged daydreamer's feeling that falling in love with just about any girl is not only possible but maybe even desirable." And the tension between idealized love and real love. Envying your read right now.Franceshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12597485569740436880noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1911087927983597831.post-8369347536613791222011-08-10T13:08:17.694-04:002011-08-10T13:08:17.694-04:00From this and Bolano it is clear that you are not ...From this and Bolano it is clear that you are not put off by very very long sentences (which is fair play for you if you ever get arrested for a felony, I might add). I would add to the thought that "the narrative tension between the ideal and the real in love ... is constantly shifting in our memories and imaginations to the point that it's possible to confuse the real object of desire with its "emotional shadow" at times": I do believe that many relationships are kiboshed by the same confusion in real time, not just in memories, and I believe it is because of the procrustean shoving of reality into the role, as so nicely limned by Proust, that the Wanter has fashioned for the Wantee.<br /><br /> I love that you are publishing the highlights so that I don't have to slog through the long sentences on my own. Looking forward to hearing more!rhapsodyinbookshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07041412748239010264noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1911087927983597831.post-2886545021198224192011-08-10T11:32:32.635-04:002011-08-10T11:32:32.635-04:00the young protagonist's mood swings between bo...<em>the young protagonist's mood swings between boundless optimism and utter desperation</em><br /><br />One of my favorite moments in this regard is when he's on the train to Balbec for the first time and he's so despairing at having left his mother and made his grandmother unhappy that he goes to the dining car and gets completely wasted on, like, two beers, and then comes back and lolls around like an idiot with his mouth open. And then wakes up and rhapsodizes drunkenly over the sunset. <br /><br />The mix of tenderness and humor is pitch-perfect. I'm eager to revisit this one since David & I just stayed at the hotel where the Balbec portions are set!Emilyhttp://www.eveningallafternoon.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1911087927983597831.post-7509767039438190132011-08-10T03:01:17.689-04:002011-08-10T03:01:17.689-04:00Such a beautiful quote and, yes, very poetic. I li...Such a beautiful quote and, yes, very poetic. I like re-reading Proust through your posts but still don't dare to re-read the books themselves. I'm afraid that being less of a teenage dreamer than when I first read them might spoil them for me. At the time I could endlessly dwell on one sentence, one description.I wasn't interested in the analysis of the society and the humour eluded me completely. My copy is full of dried cherry blossoms... A habit I have left far behind. Come to think of it...Carolinehttp://beautyisasleepingcat.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.com