I still haven’t read any Proust, but I have read three books about reading Proust, or about Proust more generally. One was a few days ago (Proust’s Overcoat), and Phyllis Rose’s wonderful The Year of Reading Proust wasn’t that long ago. I’ve now made it a trio with 1997’s How Proust Can Change Your Life, published when Alain de Botton was only 28.
It’s an intriguing book that combines many different genres. It’s styled as some sort of self help guide – or rather a Proust help guide, where a reading of A la Recherche du Temps Perdu can help give life lessons. This covers all manner of things, from friendship to romance to how to read a book. But there are layers – and de Botton incorporates biographical details of Proust and a literary analysis of his writing. Indeed, it often seems like he is making no distinction between Proust’s letters, his fiction, and his actual life events – all are mixed together to draw out potential advice, filtered through a philosophical lens. Each section ends with a ‘the moral?’ conclusion.
The moral? To recognise that our best chance of contentment lies in taking up the wisdom offered to us in coded form through our coughs, allergies, social gaffes, and emotional betrayals, and to avoid the gratitude of those who blame the peas, the bores, the time, and the weather.
What holds it all together is de Botton’s engaging prose and his wit. And it’s often a very amusing book, being light with Proust’s life as well as the various friends, relatives, and critics who popped up in it. It’s all an odd concoction, and perhaps on that would make more sense reading after I’d read some Proust – but with enough verve and confidence to keep me enjoying it throughout.
I really liked this book… and my review has the Monty Python sketch featuring the All-England Summarise Proust Competition. If you’ve never seen that, do visit:)
https://anzlitlovers.com/2016/03/13/how-proust-can-change-your-life-by-alain-de-botton/
(For the sketch, I mean, not the review, because you’ve read the book!)
I read this a while back (after reading the first two volumes of Proust) and enjoyed it very much. And I second Lisa’s recommendation of the Python sketch – perfect! :D Mind you I’m very fond of the one where Mrs. Premise and Mrs. Conclusion (Cleese and Chapman in drag) visit Jean-Paul Sartre. I laugh like a drain… ;D
Oooh, I bought this one not long ago. I’ve not had a lot of luck with Alain de Botton in the past, but I wanted to give this one a go in the hopes that it would give me the courage and motivation to tackle volume one of Remembrance of Things Past. It’s calling to me from my TBR shelf right now… 😉
I think I have this buried in the shelves somewhere, but maybe I should do as you suggest and actually read some Proust first!
I read this decades ago. Thanks for the reminder.
I’m going to be reading Proust next year, so thanks for this, will get alongside!
If you want to chance your arm on a fourth pre-Proust prospectus, have a listen to the recent episode of The Backlisted Podcast. Larks, and quite encouraging, too.