A new book and a separate exhibition in Paris focus on the Jewishness of the author of ‘In Search of Lost Time.’ ‘Everybody knew that he was half-Jewish and gay,’ one expert says, but the Jewish influence on his writing is only becoming clear now
Gaby LevinGet email notification for articles from Gaby LevinFollowMay. 5, 2022
“Proust is a journey into life,” my friend, the late Israeli poet Yotam Reuveni, once told me. Indeed, anybody who enters Proust’s world, deciphers it and wends through its winding musical prose will be captivated forever and leave richer – but also sadder.
Marcel Proust is elegant, fascinating, innovative, unique and a snob. In France he’s considered one of the greats alongside Balzac, Stendhal and Hugo; his work may be considered a little distant, elitist and challenging, but everyone recognizes his importance as a father of modern literature.
