Student Blogs

Marcel Proust meticulously described the town of Combray and I maybe loved it. While his drawn out monologues took several tries to decipher, the beauty he found in life’s simplicities helped me immerse myself into his childhood home. I’m not sure if any of you also relate but I found myself at times having to […] read full post >>

Hey everyone! I’m so excited to do this first blog entry and get started with the course! This week’s reading, Marcel Proust’s “Combray” was genuinely like stepping into a whole new universe and was so different compared to anything I’ve read before. It was tough and there were moments of difficulty reading the text but […] read full post >>

Initially delving into the pages of Proust’s “Combray” was confusing and complex for me, his text definitely requires a slow and careful read. I found his storytelling to be similar to a puzzle, a bit perplexing but equally enchanting. However, upon further reading, and being able to understand the text, I enjoyed the chaoticness of […] read full post >>

The work of Proust is a reflection of revisiting childhood memories, revealing the inherent inconsistencies that underscore our limited understanding as children. Essentially, it brings upon many ideas of what it’s like to look back upon the memories you have as a child. The inconsistencies, for example, show how small our minds were and our […] read full post >>

Marcel Proust has written a truly in-depth and meticulously detailed story with Swann’s Way. When I first began reading the chapter Combray, I honestly resented it a bit. This is because every sentence seemed to be enriched with too much detail. It was confusing to read or fully immerse myself in the next. More frustratingly, I was flip-flopping […] read full post >>

Impressions My first impression upon reading Combray was that it is one perplexing piece of literature, especially given that it is the first one we are reading. Not only was I met with a spiral of confusion, but also I would feel lost with the more pages I frantically read, although there were some parts […] read full post >>

“Combray” by Marcel Proust is easily a book that can be understood and interpreted in many ways. First I will begin by saying that I did not enjoy the writing structure of novel, the long and extreme descriptive writing made it hard to follow the narrative at some points. In the first part alone, many […] read full post >>

I would like to start off by saying I really had no idea what I was getting myself into as I started reading “Combray” by Marcel Proust but, I will say that I was both pleasantly and unpleasantly surprised. As with almost all things, “Combray” had both pros and cons, both of which I would […] read full post >>

Being sick and dealing with a headache while reading this book is like trying to make sense of the obscure patterns of a plaster ceiling while you lay in bed unable to sleep. As someone who isn’t usually challenged by works of literature like Combray or Swann’s Way, I often struggled to piece together the … Continue reading Thoughts on Combray read full post >>

Hi everyone!! I hope you’re staying warm 🙂 I don’t know about y’all, but for me, there is something about the cold weather and snow which puts me in a reading mood. So I loved that the weather has been cool and enhanced my reading experience!! Going into this week’s reading, I was a little […] read full post >>

    I particularly enjoyed this week's reading, especially his fresh narrative style. It allowed me to dive deep into my thoughts and emotions when looking at the characters. The way Proust uses super-rich descriptive language quickly de... read full post >>

    I particularly enjoyed this week's reading, especially his fresh narrative style. It allowed me to dive deep into my thoughts and emotions when looking at the characters. The way Proust uses super-rich descriptive language quickly de... read full post >>

Im sure you can tell from the title that much like the other people in this course, I did not enjoy the writing style of this book. But before I jump into ranting about it, I’ll talk about some more interesting aspects of the book first. The flow and focus of this books features a […] read full post >>

After finishing the book “Combray” by Proust, I found myself thinking about my nostalgic memories from the past. The narrative provided a rich tapestry of memories and sensations which transported me into the depths of the narrator’s childhood experiences in the French town of Combray. Though the writing was less structured with meandering prose and […] read full post >>

Hi everyone, welcome to my blog. I only joined this course yesterday hence why I’m a little bit late writing this introduction. Anyways, my name’s Rowan and I’m a 3rd year geological engineering student. I am particularly interested in slope stability problems and hope to work in that field after I graduate. I grew up […] read full post >>