Diegetic Narrators and Narrations in Proust’s <i>Recherche</i>

ABSTRACT There are many characters in Proust’s Recherche who are explicitly presented as diegetic narrators telling stories, explicitly mentioned as producers of anecdotes or mini-narratives designated as such. Some of them are important characters (Oriane, Odette, Swann), and some are little more than extras (M. de Bréauté, the Dowager Countess d’Argencourt). Some narrate more frequently than others, and some prove to be effective narrators whereas others do not. Whatever their source or value, the mini-narratives narrated in the diegesis fulfill a number of functions, including one of information, for example, and one of characterization. Above all, through their negative attributes, they serve as a counterpoint to the narrational qualities of the novel’s homodiegetic narrator and help to specify his attitude toward the narrative form itself.