Marcel Proust and the Dynamism of Popular Culture: A Study of the History of Representations on the Genesis and Reception of the Novel

2021 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 18K00490
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Review Section: Basic Section 02040:European literature-related
• Research Institution: Rikkyo University
• Principal Investigator: Sakamoto Hiroya 立教大学, 文学部, 教授 (50533436)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): 小黒 昌文 駒澤大学, 総合教育研究部, 教授 (50438199)
• Project Period (FY): 2018-04-01 – 2022-03-31
• Keywords: フランス文学 / プルースト / 失われた時を求めて / 大衆文化 / 視覚文化 / 推理小説 / 大衆化 / 映像化

Outline of Final Research Achievements

This study examines the role of popular culture both in the writing process of Marcel Proust's novel "In Search of Lost Time" and in its reception by subsequent generations. In particular, the process of inscribing the literary theme of criminal investigation and the representation of posters in the novel were clarified. The problems of visual adaptation of his novel were also examined, and references to Proust in contemporary films and novels were also studied and their tendencies clarified.

Free Research Field

フランス文学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

プルースト研究においては、小説と芸術（とりわけ絵画や音楽）との関係について多くの調査がなされてきたが、本研究では、プルーストが同時代の大衆文化にたいして抱いていた関心を調査し、『失われた時を求めて』における大衆小説的な主題（犯罪）や視覚文化（ポスター）の位置づけを明らかにした。また受容研究の対象を拡大し、現代の映画や小説、さらには心理学におけるプルーストへの言及を考察の対象とする可能性を開いた。