This Imagined Remoteness Of The Past

Societies differ from each other in, here is an understatement, huge ways. Especially when considering societies that exist in different geographical areas and in time periods separated by at least one hundred years, it begins to become like comparing Middle Earth to suburban New England. I've found myself constantly leaning back in my chair and saying, "whoa..." when the gravity of certain off-hand remarks about people and relationships in Proust's work are made.

There is a certain facet of the culture in France during Proust's life that I am having trouble fully understanding. This may display my naivete in regards to life and romance, but I simply cannot fathom a culture where prostitution, the keeping of multiple partners, and the proclivity of the upper echelon of society to accept certain choices as permissible, while some other inherent human attributes are deemed "immoral." In the case of Proust's culture, homosexuality was unacceptable, at least in the circles he moved during the writing of this novel, judging by the reactions of some characters when it arises as an issue in a social situation. However, the keeping of multiple mistresses by a married man, one who is likely influential politically or socially, is typically just one of those things that happens, and no one really has much to say about it beyond, "Well, I've heard..."

In the case of women, however, keeping multiple partners (even if the woman is not married) is frowned upon and a reason for ostracizing the woman in question. Prostitution was rampant in the sect of society Proust reflects on most, and he writes about it in such a way that it appears to be no big deal to anybody, anywhere. Discussions are had about certain brothels and certain girls being superior to others, and to the times friends would visit brothels together.

I suppose what I'm most struggling with here is the double standard. Of course, this is still prevalent today, but the societal choice to demonize certain types of sexual behaviors, or in even more unacceptable cases, sexual orientations, while permitting others based solely on political and economic stature and gender, is baffling. Proust spells it out so clearly that it begins to seem like he lived in a fantasy world where typical moral boundaries were largely ignored, while a few remained in place for no apparent reason.

I really wish I had something more intelligent to delve into today, but the past several pages have been, again,  focusing on this girl being had for this much money and this man keeping this many mistresses, and I could no longer contain my confusion. The culture present in these novels is so liberal in some ways, yet so conservative in others, and for no more particularly logical reason in either case, that it almost seems like he's writing from here, today.