The name of the first-person narrator in Swann's Way is never revealed. The closest Proust comes is in volume five, The Captive, where he writes "if we give the narrator the same name as the author of this book..." then calls him Marcel. Although the novel is loosely autobiographical, most critics are wary of calling 'I' 'Marcel', like Proust, in case it causes the reader some confusion between the fictional character of the narrator of In Search of Lost Time and the author. Therefore most people refer to this 'I' as 'the narrator', although this does seem a little clumsy.
Charles V, attrib. Lambert Sustris
Francis I by Jean Clouet
This is a complete list of all the locations which will appear in the Search. Considering the length of the novel, Proust restricts the action to only a few settings, of which Paris, Balbec and Combray are the most important. By listing these places here Proust is literally 'setting the scene' for what is to come.
In the medieval story of Geneviève de Brabant, the chaste Geneviève is falsely accused of infidelity by a rejected suitor, Golo. She is sentenced to death and escapes to the forest, spending six years hiding in a cave, cared for by a roe. Meanwhile, her husband Siegfried discovers Golo's treachery; after six years he finds her by following the roe to the cave where is she lives. The story was made into an operetta by Offenbach in 1859.
The Merovingians by Evariste-Vital LuminaisThe Merovingians were a dynasty of French kings founded in 481 by Clovis I, and lasting until 768. Proust was fascinated by them, and they had the same sort of romantic associations for him as the mythical Arthurian times had for contemporary Victorians in England.
Sixth Century Merovingian coinThe narrator's childhood fixation with his mother has been read in Freudian terms as an Oedipal complex (a sexual fixation with the mother and a corresponding desire to murder the father). However, Freud had no direct influence on Proust's work, although they were interested in similar ideas: the influence of childhood, involuntary memory, and the role of the unconscious.
Charles Haas, one of Proust's models for SwannSeveral of Proust's friends are considered the models for Charles Swann, including Charles Haas and Charles Ephrussi.
The Jockey-Club de Paris was a gathering place for the most celebrated members of nineteenth century Parisian society. It was above the terribly fashionable Grand Café, now the site of the Hotel Scribe at 1 Rue Scribe in Paris.
Élisabeth, Comtesse Greffulhe, one of Proust's models for the Duchesse de GuermantesThe Faubourg Saint-Germain was not simply an address in nineteenth century Paris; the phrase also referred to the aristocratic social class, a society of the elite with which Proust was fascinated. The height of this world is represented in Swann's Way by the character of the Duchesse de Guermantes and by the 'Guermantes Way', the walk around Combray.
Aristaeus by François-Joseph BosioIn Greek mythology, a sea-nymph with shape-shifting abilities. She was also worshipped as a God in some parts of Greece. She is known as the mother of Achilles, who dipped him into the waters of the Styx, making him immortal but for the heel with which she held him.
In French, 'princesse' does not necessarily mean the daughter of a king or queen, but also of a duke or marquis. There were therefore a lot of princesses floating around Parisian high society at this time.
Sévigné by Claude LefebvreMarie de Rabutin-Chantal, Marquise de Sévigné (1626-1696) was a celebrated letter-writer. Many of her letters were addressed to her daughter. Proust's mother and grandmother were fans, and would often quote her work to each other.
Official portrait of MacMahonPatrice de MacMahon (1808-93) was the first president of the Third Republic from 1875-79. He commanded the army during the Franco-Prussian War (which France lost) and led the brutal suppression of the Paris Commune. His presidency of France was not considered a success.
He was known for making unfortunate gaffes, such as saying "typhoid fever is a terrible sickness. Either you die from it or you become an idiot. And I know what I'm talking about, I had it."
