Marcel Proust, Sodome et Gomorrhe, part 1/2 (JAN-MAR 2025)
Monday 12 pm – 1:30 pm (NY time) / 10 weeks / January 6 – March 10, 2025.
Advanced (B2) and Expert levels (C1/C2).
23 pages to read each week in average. 233 pages in total.
10 weeks. 15 hours in total.
10 students.
We will read the pocket edition published in the “folio” collection. Other editions and Kindle versions are also possible.
This class is open to new readers of Proust and is designed for a slow and thorough reading experience. We will only read the first part of the volume as we will continue our reading from April up to June in another course.
Monday 12 pm – 1:30 pm (NY time) / 10 weeks / January 6 – March 10, 2025.
Advanced (B2) and Expert levels (C1/C2).
23 pages to read each week in average. 233 pages in total.
10 weeks. 15 hours in total.
10 students.
We will read the pocket edition published in the “folio” collection. Other editions and Kindle versions are also possible.
This class is open to new readers of Proust and is designed for a slow and thorough reading experience. We will only read the first part of the volume as we will continue our reading from April up to June in another course.
Monday 12 pm – 1:30 pm (NY time) / 10 weeks / January 6 – March 10, 2025.
Advanced (B2) and Expert levels (C1/C2).
23 pages to read each week in average. 233 pages in total.
10 weeks. 15 hours in total.
10 students.
We will read the pocket edition published in the “folio” collection. Other editions and Kindle versions are also possible.
This class is open to new readers of Proust and is designed for a slow and thorough reading experience. We will only read the first part of the volume as we will continue our reading from April up to June in another course.
In Sodome et Gomorrhe, the fourth volume of À la recherche du temps perdu, Marcel Proust delves deeper into the labyrinthine world of human relationships, desires, and social rituals. We follow the narrator’s complex encounters with characters like the enigmatic Baron de Charlus, whose charisma and concealed passions add layers to the narrative, and the ever-elegant Albertine, whose presence brings new depths of mystery to his life. As he moves between Paris and a second visit to the luminous Balbec, these characters—and others he meets along the way—illuminate the double lives and unspoken desires that lie beneath society’s polished facade.
Now accepted into the Parisian aristocratic social circles, the narrator faces both disenchantment and revelation. While he begins to perceive the disillusionment that comes with privileged access, he also discovers how homosexuality profoundly shapes the motives and secret lives of those around him. There is a sense of re-enchantment as he reflects on the mysteries of human nature, finding purpose through the lens of writing and embracing the idea that every man and woman is a mystery to be unraveled.
Through Proust’s sharp observations and richly descriptive style, Sodome et Gomorrhe invites readers into an exploration of love, jealousy, and the many facets of identity. For anyone interested in dissecting the subtleties of human nature and the social games we play, this volume promises a captivating, thought-provoking read.