The Two Hundred Sixty-Seven Plants in the Writings of Marcel Proust (1871-1922): A Documentary Interpretation of the Botanical Influences on His Literature

The most complete scholarly work to study representations of plants in the writings of Marcel Proust. Proust took simple inspiration from the gardens he observed in his daily life. This book takes a different approach because it is based on the author’s fiction and correspondence. It also explains how Proust was a chronic asthmatic, whose passion for plants actually caused him to suffer. Proust used plants as a creative tool, yet they also led to his physical decline. THE TWO HUNDRED SIXTY-SEVEN PLANTS IN THE WRITINGS OF MARCEL PROUST (1871-1922): A Documentary Interpretation of the Botanical Influences on His Literature Copyright Page Dedication Analytical Table of Contents Foreword Preface Acknowledgements Introduction Chapter 1 - Childhood Chapter 2 - Adolescence Chapter 3 - A camellia button-hole period Chapter 4 - The demon of generosity Chapter 5 - Living a life Chapter 6 - A Ruskin interlude Chapter 7 - Human herbalist-moral botanist Chapter 8 - Time...and time again Postscript Illustrated Appendix List of Abbreviations Notes Notes to Preface Bibliography Indices Index to plant names, terms and topics Index to people and places, real and fictional creations of Proust