RMST 202 Blogs

  Perec's W is a fascinating read for a multitude of reasons. The book starts with a disclaimer warning readers about the dual nature of the upcoming story - an unusual thing to begin a story with!  I found the idea of calling the book 'W' because of the double 'V' incredibly smart. I came across another interpretation of how the choice of the double 'V' was creative because of how 'vie' in French translates to life in English. This is pertinent to the book because of the two parallel stories and how they influence each other.  Perec's description of pictures in the somewhat autobiographical portion of the book is what stood out to me the most. I would like to think that he went the extra mile with his descriptions of the images because of how desperately he wanted to remember his childhood and his parents. The idea of placing importance in memory is a very interesting concept for many reasons. The desperation to cling to one's childhood is u...

I dived into Proust's Combray completely unaware of what to expect. The first thing that caught my attention was the language. It was very descriptive, thus allowing me to envision every room and meal as the narrator experienced it. Secondly, I noticed the stream of consciousness that the narrator seemed to be traveling along while narrating. What started in a room with an insight into the intricacies of sleep and wakefulness turned into a formative childhood memory. This form of writing intrigued me immensely because of how naturally it flowed. I almost did not notice the transition until I read about the narrator's next idea! I must confess that I did get a little bit confused when the narrator switched to talking about his childhood experience from his ideologies as an adult. However, once I picked up on the difference I was able to enjoy the innocence with which the child craved to be with his mother. As seen in the scene below, Proust's description of the raw emotion ...