24. Proust Questionnaire

Photography by Katerina 2353

In 1892, Marcel Proust answered a questionnaire that had become a popular party activity. This questionnaire was meant to reveal one's innermost thoughts and feelings. Proust answered the same questions many times throughout his life to determine how his thoughts had changed. Over the years, parts of this questionnaire have been used in interviewing and some questions can be seen on the back page of Vanity Fair and by James Lipton on Inside the Actor's Studio. I thought it might be interesting to answer the same questions that Proust answered at the end of the 19th century. They seem to be just as valuable now as they were then.

Where would you like to live?

On the beach.

What is your idea of earthly happiness?

Sharing a really good meal and a glass of wine with people I love.

To what faults do you feel most indulgent?

Procrastination, being hard on myself and overlooking faults in others

Who are your favorite heroes & heroines of fiction?

Mr. Darcy and Frederick Wentworth; Elizabeth Bennett, Anne Elliott & Marianne Dashwood

Who are your favorite heroes & heroines in real life?

Firefighters, Sully Sullenberger, Christiane Amanpour & other journalists, Mother Teresa

Your favorite painters?

Georgia O'Keefe, Edgar Degas, John Currin, Amadeo Modigliani, Auguste Renoir, Jackson Pollack 

Your favorite musicians?

Bruce Springsteen, Coldplay, Ingrid Michaelson, The Fray, Anna Nalick, Maroon 5, Imogen Heap 

The qualities you most admire in a man?

Honesty, tenderness, intellect, an open heart, a backbone, humor

The qualities you most admire in a woman?

Openness, humor, candor, understanding, caring

Your favorite occupation?

Writer

Who would you have liked to be?

Elizabeth I

What is your idea of the perfect day? 

A sunny one, in a bikini, on a beach chair, in front of the crashing waves...preferably with friends and something yummy to eat

What is your most marked characteristic?

Creativity

What to your mind would be the greatest of misfortunes?

To never have loved or been loved

Your favorite color?

Sea glass blue

Favorite flower?

Hydrangeas

Favorite bird?

Red breasted blackbird

Favorite prose writer?

Nicholas Kristoff, Frank Rich, Jeffrey Sachs

Favorite poets?

Jane Kenyon, Pablo Neruda, Robert Frost, Sylvia Plath

What natural gift would you like to possess?

The ability to play amazing music--maybe piano & violin

What is your present state of mind?

Relaxed, reflective, hopeful

What is your motto?

When life hands you lemons, make limoncello.