Entre durée et instant : les enjeux de la temporalité dans quelques écrits de Marcel Schwob
Between Duration and Moment: Issues of Temporality in Several Writings of Marcel Schwob

Summary/Abstract: The aim of this article is to reflect on the features of textual time in three works of Marcel Schwob: Le Livre deMonelle, La Croisade des enfants, and Vies imaginaires. In Schwob’s writing, the concept of time serves to createand transform the meanings of the text. In order to analyse his idea of time, it seems necessary to revisit Bergson’sconcept of subjective time experienced through the mode of duration, which refers to time as it is experienced ormeasured by the consciousness of man. This subjective perception of time, along with the attitude of waiting, cometo the fore in Livre de Monelle. Moreover, the polyphonic presentation of the children’s crusade reflects Schwob’sdesire to reject traditional notions of temporality by juxtaposing fragmentary stories in accordance with the cult ofthe moment. Additionally, the depiction of the moment of birth in certain biographies from Vies imaginaires servesas a poetic and symbolic announcement of the moment of death.

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