True Proustians would like us to speak only of books. Those of their idol, “La Recherche”, they are content to say, or those of serious academics exploring his work again and again. In 2022, thanks to the year marking the centenary of the writer’s death, they had to resolve to see it declined in plays, comic strips or exhibitions… The majority of purists observed the phenomenon of good heart, delighted to welcome new followers, some with more disdain, annoyed to see their adored Proust adorning teacups or madeleines with different flavors. How many readers came to Searching for lost time by detours, side roads? Difficult to assess, but frequent. “There is a need to take some distance from the solemnity and monumentality of this work, to put it at the level of the profane public”, confirms Nicolas Ragonneau, founder of the Proustonomics blog.
No wrong ways to discover Proust
Certainly, according to the report drawn up by the latter in February, Marcel Proust’s works sold better in 2022 than in previous years: “With 72,000 copies in total, the sale of Proust’s works in the Folio collection experienced a clear increase: +28% compared to 2021.” But among the abundant publication, it is the graphic novels and comics that have won great success. So, Celestial. “Of course Mr. Proust” by Chloé Cruchaudet sold 11,300 copies and Mr. Proust by Stéphane Manel and Corinne Maier to 6,400 copies, according to Edistat. “It’s very visual, but also very faithful, with phrases from Proust, it allows people who had never gone beyond page 30 to The research to be interested in it”, notes Jacques Letertre, president of the society of literary hotels, including the Swann, in Paris. Another example, the novel by Stéphane Carlier, Clara reads Proust, at Gallimard, telling the story of a hairdresser discovering the writer, sold 23,500 copies. “There are no bad ways to discover Proust, I challenge value judgments,” adds Jérôme Bastianelli, president of the Society of Friends of Marcel Proust.
A song by Dave, a surname in James Bond
Among the three exhibitions devoted to the writer in Paris, that of the Carnavalet museum entitled Proust, a Parisian novel, attracted 99,000 people between December 2021 and April 2022, placing the work back in the capital of the Belle Epoque. The approach appealed to a diverse public, less initiated than that of the more specialized exhibitions presented at the Museum of Art and History of Judaism or at the BnF. And the success at Carnavalet has largely irrigated. Thus at the Théâtre de la Contrescarpe in Paris, where the play has been performed since 2021 In Search of Lost Time, attendance was multiplied by two or even three times when the actor towed in front of the museum. The form of the piece – 1h15 of excerpts from the work – seduces both purists and those who do not want or cannot manage to read the complete version. Less impressive than her august master, a more accessible gateway to the universe, Céleste Albaret, the governess of Proust’s last years, was also the heroine of several plays or books.
“The whole difficulty is to arouse curiosity so that people say to themselves: “it’s for me too”, without compromising on quality for the Proustiens”, notes Pierre Ivanoff, treasurer of the Friends of Vinteuil, who organize events around arts other than writing to encourage people to read Proust. Where is the border? Do madeleines, Marcel de Proust, socks and other by-products lead to The research ? With the exception of bad taste – like this unimaginable home fragrance for an allergy sufferer like Proust –, for many, the essential thing is to maintain the myth. Doesn’t it already inhabit our lives? Jacques Letertre reminds us: a song by Dave is called On the Swann side and, in the last two James Bonds, the character of Léa Seydoux is called Madeleine Swann. So many small pebbles that anchor the writer in the popular imagination, well beyond the single sphere, a bit elitist, asserted Proustians.