The ethics of mourning in the narration of the self in the works of Marcel Proust and Andrei Tarkovsky

Thesis

This thesis gives a new reading of the works of Marcel Proust and Andrei Tarkovsky. First, this intention originates in the apparent oversight in Proustian studies with regard to the ethical dimension of A la recherche du temps perdu: the narrator's relationship with the other is predominantly given a psychoanalytic interpretation. Second, the research is driven by the misrepresentation of Tarkovsky's philosophy that is reflected in the emphasis often placed on the religious aspect of his artistic output. Instead, my research explores the nature and importance of ethics in the works of Proust and Tarkovsky and, for that reason, looks at the themes of death in the Proustian novel and a number of Tarkovsky's films: the thesis posits that our awareness of mortality and meditations on death stem from our encounters with the death of the other and thus are essentially reflections on alterity that, in turn, impact our relationship with it. The study of the philosophical works of Jankélévitch, Levinas, Derrida and Deleuze is undertaken to elaborate these ideas and help understand the meaning behind the aesthetic choices of the artists. Finally, the research employs a phenomenological approach to exploring the works of Proust and Tarkovsky as it appears to fit best the format and objectives of the thesis. In addition to the novelty of attempting the concurrent research of the oeuvre of the artists who lived and created in different periods, cultures and genres, studying Proust and Tarkovsky together within the same theoretical framework and from the same thematic perspective enables us to compare the two artists in a way that exposes and corrects the present misconceptions and misrepresentations about their works and contributes to both Proustian and Tarkovskian scholarship.

Authors: Artemenko, I

• DOI: 10.5287/ora-gp2epozyd
• Type of award: DPhil
• Level of award: Doctoral
• Awarding institution: University of Oxford