In Search of Lost Time · Chapter
II: The Verdurins Quarrel with M. de Charlus explained
The narrator reflects on Swann's death and his own failure to visit Gilberte as promised.
What happens
The narrator reflects on Swann's death and his own failure to visit Gilberte as promised. He visits the Verdurins' new home at Quai Conti, where Brichot recounts past 'pure buffooneries' by Elstir. The narrator leaves Albertine at home, feeling a possessive attachment. On the way, he encounters Morel weeping on a curbstone, distraught after insulting Jupien's niece, whom he had loved but now regrets his cruelty. Morel, a neurasthenic, fears for his health and his musical performance that evening. The narrator, repulsed by the afternoon's scene, avoids giving Morel a ride.
Themes in this chapter
Love and Jealousy
Morel's jealous rage and regret over Jupien's niece; the narrator's possessive jealousy toward Albertine.
Suffering and Transformation
Morel's emotional suffering and self-disgust; the narrator's reflection on Swann's death and the permanence of loss.
Memory and Time
The narrator's memories of Swann and Combray; the contrast between past and present in the Verdurins' circle.
Characters to notice
- Marcel
Reflects on Swann's death and his unfulfilled promise to Gilberte; visits the Verdurins; feels possessive attachment to Albertine; encounters Morel in distress.
- Albertine Simonet
Remains at home; the narrator notes her changed demeanor and his own jealous desire to keep her less attractive.
- Charles Morel
Found weeping on a curbstone after insulting Jupien's niece; regrets his cruelty but is also concerned about his health and upcoming performance.
- Brichot
Accompanies the narrator to the Verdurins; recounts past jokes by Elstir and describes the old Verdurin home.
- Charles Swann
Mentioned in the narrator's reflections on his death and his past at the Verdurins'.
- Gilberte Swann
Mentioned as the narrator failed to visit her as promised to Swann.
Key passages
“They had sufficed to make of a living man someone who can never again respond to what you say to him, to reduce him to a mere name, a written name, that has passed in a moment from the real world to the realm of silence.”
Death transforms a living person into a silent name, moving from reality to the realm of silence.
Reflection on Swann's death and the finality of loss.
“I regretted only that the style in which I had asked her to do her hair should appear to Albertine an additional bolt on the door of her prison.”
The narrator regrets that his request about her hairstyle feels like another restriction on Albertine's freedom.
The narrator's possessive jealousy and its effect on Albertine.
“I have grossly insulted, only today, a person for whom I had the very highest regard. It was a cowardly thing to do, for she loves me.”
Morel confesses he insulted someone who loves him, calling it cowardly.
Morel's regret and self-disgust after his outburst.