Using Bergson’s concept of duration to read Marcel Proust’s In Search of Lost Time (À la recherche du temps perdu) offers a powerful lens for understanding the novel’s exploration of memory, time, and consciousness. Proust and Bergson shared an interest in how time shapes human experience, and though their approaches differ, Bergson’s duration provides a way to make sense of the novel’s unique treatment of memory and the fluidity of past and present. Here’s how Bergson’s concept of duration can be applied to Proust’s work:
1. Fluidity of Past and Present: In In Search of Lost Time, Proust shows that the past is never truly “past”—it remains alive within the present. This idea aligns with Bergson’s duration, where past and present are not separated by fixed boundaries but instead coexist in a continuous flow. For Proust, memories are not static snapshots but part of a living, evolving consciousness. Moments from the past, such as when the narrator tastes the madeleine dipped in tea, spontaneously resurface and are experienced as part of the present moment. This merging of past and present echoes Bergson’s idea that true time (duration) is qualitative and continuous, not a sequence of separate moments.
2. Involuntary Memory as Access to Duration: Proust introduces the concept of involuntary memory (like the madeleine episode), where memories emerge spontaneously and vividly, often triggered by sensory experiences. These memories are not merely recollections but evoke a full, immersive reliving of past moments, collapsing the distance between past and present. Bergson’s duration helps us understand this phenomenon: in duration, time is an indivisible whole, and involuntary memory offers a way to access the depth and richness of one’s entire life. These experiences reconnect the narrator to a deeper, more continuous sense of self, breaking through the fragmented, linear experience of ordinary, voluntary memory.
3. Subjective Experience of Time: In Search of Lost Time can be seen as an exploration of subjective time as opposed to clock time. The novel’s length, detailed observations, and slow narrative pace mirror Bergson’s belief that true time is qualitative. By immersing the reader in the narrator’s internal world, Proust shows how each person’s experience of time is unique, shaped by emotions, memories, and consciousness. This subjective experience of time aligns with Bergson’s duration, where time is not measured by clocks but by the depth and intensity of lived experience.
4. Creative Evolution of Self: Bergson’s duration emphasizes the continuous, creative unfolding of reality, where each moment builds upon the past in new and unique ways. Similarly, Proust’s narrator undergoes a gradual transformation, rediscovering and reinterpreting his past in ways that deepen his self-understanding. By revisiting memories and reflecting on them, the narrator’s self is not static but continually evolving. This creative evolution resonates with Bergson’s idea of duration as a process of becoming, where time is not merely a backdrop but an active force that shapes identity.
5. Revelation of Essential Truths through Duration: For Bergson, duration allows us to move beyond surface-level perceptions and access deeper, essential truths. In Proust’s novel, involuntary memories and the exploration of the past lead the narrator to profound insights about love, art, and the nature of memory itself. This process mirrors Bergson’s belief that time as duration allows us to glimpse the essential nature of things, beyond rational or scientific understanding. By immersing himself in his memories, Proust’s narrator reaches a level of understanding that could not be achieved through ordinary, sequential experience.
6. Art as a Means to Capture Duration: Proust, like Bergson, saw art as a way to transcend ordinary experience and capture the essence of time and consciousness. In the novel, the narrator comes to believe that art is the only way to access and express the richness of lived experience. This echoes Bergson’s view that art, rather than science or ordinary perception, can capture the fluid, qualitative nature of duration. By writing In Search of Lost Time, the narrator attempts to recreate his inner experience of time, preserving the depth and unity of his life through art.
In essence, Bergson’s concept of duration can illuminate Proust’s In Search of Lost Time by highlighting the novel’s exploration of memory, subjective experience, and the interplay of past and present. Using duration as a lens reveals Proust’s work as a meditation on the richness of inner time, where memories and sensations blend into a continuous, evolving consciousness. This perspective allows readers to appreciate the novel not just as a narrative about time lost and regained, but as an attempt to capture the essence of time itself, as a seamless flow of lived experience.
