Student Blogs

Marcel Proust’s ‘Combray’ begins with a descriptive nature of his sleeping habits. To be honest, such a detailed description of his sleeping habits heightened my curiosity to read the novel and find out what happens further. The way the author describes his paternal home ‘Combray’ is just beautiful. I, as a reader, could feel that […] read full post >>

To begin, “Combray” by Marcel Proust, as previously mentioned by my other classmates, was not the easiest read. As I started reading the novel I quickly realized that the story is written in very fine detail as every scene is described in depth. This made the story a bit hard to follow and stay in […] read full post >>

Marcel Proust’s “Combray” initially struck me as being both perplexing and full of long phrases that never seemed to finish, but it was also replete with wonderful images that allowed my imagination to go wild. In all honesty, even though it sounded like the author was making some deep points, I completely missed them. After […] read full post >>

When I initially started reading the book, my first thoughts were of uncertainty.  I deduced that the narrator was attempting to sleep but got drawn into a wormhole of memories, resulting in a sense of nostalgia coupled with anger over lost time (especially the loss of his mother’s goodnight kiss).  However, this work may be […] read full post >>

by Samantha Rogers I have very complex feelings over “Combray” by Marcel Proust. I overall, did not enjoy the book as I found it didn’t really have a plot, and it resembled more of a stream of consciousness about the author’s childhood. For example, the story is of the goodnight kiss was sidetracked by the […] read full post >>

Hello Everyone! This is my first blog post about a book that we read, Swann’s Way by Marcel Proust. This book was different to what I have read, and to be honest a little puzzling at first. I suggest reading the introduction of the book in order to get a little bit of insight on […] read full post >>

Hello everyone, welcome to my second blog! After reading Proust’s Combray this week, I have a lot of insights that I want to share with you.In this novel, the author mainly recounts a childhood memory in Combray. In the first part, the personal traits ... read full post >>

Hello everyone, welcome to my second blog! After reading Proust’s Combray this week, I have a lot of insights that I want to share with you.In this novel, the author mainly recounts a childhood memory in Combray. In the first part, the personal traits ... read full post >>

Marcel Proust’s “Combrary” is a beautiful reflection of Marcel’s past and how this shapes his current habits. Whether it is his sleeping habits that are influenced, or the way he views architecture, in this chapter, the past is truly recognized for its importance. The novel starts by describing his sleeping habits, which he connects back […] read full post >>

In Combray, the narrator invites us along his journey of reminiscence full of nostalgic details and layers. The intricate details about Combray help us get immersed in this town, although it can seem quite overwhelming at times, it is undeniable that the attention to detail paints a vivid picture of Combray. As a setting, the […] read full post >>

“I did not understand half the words the lady said, but my fear that there was some question concealed in them which it would have been impolite of me not to answer made me keep on listening to them with close attention, and this made me very tired.” (80).  This quote humorously sums up my […] read full post >>

“Combray” by Proust takes us through the nostalgia trip of our main character. This one was admittedly a harder read for me. I found myself passionately reading on and on with these very descriptive adjectives being thrown at me continuously. There were parts I found to be rather boring and others I found truly captivating. … read full post >>

My initial response to Marcel Proust’s “Combray” was that it was confusing and full of long sentences that never seemed to end, yet it was also filled with vivid imagery that let my imagination run wild. Specifically, I appreciated the details of the narrator’s reflection of his sleeping process and the thoughts that ran through […] read full post >>

Huh? That was my initial thought when I started reading this section. It seemed like the author was saying some profound things, but in all honesty they flew over my head. I had a hard time following what he was saying, but after re-reading some of the lines it started to make sense (a bit). […] read full post >>

After finishing “Combray,” my impression is that “I believe he didn’t write a book but rather his life.” I feel my emotions about this chapter are contradictory; I sense I can’t grasp the endpoint, yet I am drawn to this descriptive style. Most novels usually have a central theme as an unspoken agreement. However, this […] read full post >>