"'Was there a writer of the name of Bergotte at this dinner, Monsieur?' I asked timidly.
"'My son does not know him but admires his work immensely,' my mother explained.
"'Good heavens!' exclaimed M. de Norpois, inspiring me with doubts of my own intelligence far graver than those that ordinarily tormented me, when I saw that what I regarded as the most exalted thing in the world, was for him at the bottom of the scale of admiration.
"Shattered by what M. de Norpois had just said to me with regard to the fragment which I had submitted to him, and remembering at the same time the difficulties that I experienced when I attempted to write an essay or merely to devote myself to serious thought, I felt conscious once again of my intellectual nullity and that I was not cut out for the literary life."
He was "shattered" — what a descriptive word.
This is the second time Proust uses "nullity" to describe his intellectual prowess. Definitions of "null" include: "of no consequence, effect, or value; insignificant; amounting to nothing; absent or nonexistent." (The Free Dictionary)
This theme becomes important in the final volume.
I think it is interesting that you note how many times he refers to "nullity". He seems to feel completely up to the literary challenge until he is impugned or denounced by someone (aka, society). so if you take into account what Proust is saying about society (ie, proust in 5 words or less) then the impugnity may be as illusory as society. Therefore he must stand on his own conviction. MJSH
ReplyDeleteI only noticed nullity because it's such an odd word.
ReplyDeleteThe narrator constantly berates himself for having no talent, mainly no "ideas." He mentions having articles published over the years, here and there, but it does not fulfill him.
At the conclusion of the novel, he has a "eureka" moment and rushes home to write. Thus, this novel is born.