Page 544 - swanns-way

of his memory, divested themselves of their uniform dis-
guise of novelty. Swann listened to all the scattered themes
which entered into the composition of the phrase, as its
premises enter into the inevitable conclusion of a syllogism;
he was assisting at the mystery of its birth. ‘Audacity,’ he
exclaimed to himself, ‘as inspired, perhaps, as a Lavoisier’s
or an Ampere’s, the audacity of a Vinteuil making experi-
ment, discovering the secret laws that govern an unknown
force, driving across a region unexplored towards the one
possible goal the invisible team in which he has placed his
trust and which he never may discern!’ How charming the
dialogue which Swann now heard between piano and vi-
olin, at the beginning of the last passage. The suppression
of human speech, so far from letting fancy reign there un-
controlled (as one might have thought), had eliminated it
altogether. Never was spoken language of such inflexible
necessity, never had it known questions so pertinent, such
obvious replies. At first the piano complained alone, like
a bird deserted by its mate; the violin heard and answered
it, as from a neighbouring tree. It was as at the first begin-
ning of the world, as if there were not yet but these twain
upon the earth, or rather in this world closed against all the
rest, so fashioned by the logic of its creator that in it there
should never be any but themselves; the world of this so-
nata. Was it a bird, was it the soul, not yet made perfect, of
the little phrase, was it a fairy, invisibly somewhere lament-
ing, whose plaint the piano heard and tenderly repeated? Its
cries were so sudden that the violinist must snatch up his
bow and race to catch them as they came. Marvellous bird!

544 Swann’s Way