Exploring Personal Shadow with Black Moon Lilith - Marcel Proust
Marcel Proust is a legend in 20th-century literature; novelist, essayist, and critic, best known as the author of monumental work of fiction À la recherche du temps perdu (In Search of Lost Time; earlier rendered as Remembrance of Things Past) published in seven volumes, spanning some 3,200 pages and teeming with more than 2,000 literary characters. Sadly, many of his contemporaries regarded him as an immoral and decadent social climber who wasted his life on writing a book that no one can read. He became famous posthumously and is considered a literary genius who revolutionized 20th-century novels. The volume of literature written about Proust is even surpassing his work. His life and work fascinated literary critics, academics, and students of literature, psychoanalysts, and even theoretic of Marxism-Leninism.
With four planets in Cancer in the 4th house - the family theme is the most prominent in Proust's chart, and he was fortunate to have a close and supportive family. Marcel admired his hardworking stoic epidemiologist father famous for finding a cure for cholera and bubonic plague. He had an exceptionally close and intense relationship with his mother, who was a fascinating and complex person herself. For Marcel, she represented everything he wanted to see in the perfect partner; you can also see this in his natal chart where mother - Moon in Taurus, 7th house of marriage/intimate relationships both ruled by Venus. Perhaps she was the most meaningful and stable relationship in his life. But it is also natural that such a superb and glorious family has pretty high expectations of their offspring.
Marcel Proust Natal Chart July 10, 1871, 11:30 PM, Paris Source BC, Rating AA
Both Marcel and his younger brother Robert were model children, intelligent and hardworking; both did well in school and made their parents very proud. Robert grew up to be physically strong like his father and followed him professionally; he also became a famous doctor. He made the right choice in marriage and produced the only heir to the Proust family.
Marcel, on the other hand, was sickly and neurotic. His violent asthma attacks (sometimes lasting for hours) were a constant worry for his loved ones. He was a sensitive and imaginative (Neptune conjunct Ascendant) child who demonstrated literary talent pretty early. But his upper-middle-class parents had old fashioned values, considering a literary career as unacceptable. Marcel was persuaded to have a respectful career as a civil servant or diplomat. They were also hoping for him to make a good match in marriage, although Marcel always had the same excuse - his health problems. In his letters to close friend, Proust describes his normal state as "suspended between caffeine, aspirin, asthma, angina pectoris, and, altogether between life and death every six days out of seven." But it seems that family was in denial or could never bring the subject for discussion - Marcel's nontraditional sexual orientation.
I imagine Proust was aching for physical love, but physical love for him was a source of emotional pain. The desire for physical love and the need for social acceptance were two irreconcilable issues. As painful as it could be, he had to wear a mask all his life even in front of people he loved the most. I genuinely believe that there is a direct connection between his physical ailments and his inability to have satisfying intimate relationships. Proust's natal Mars positioned in the 6th house of health is in detriment by sign (Libra). It is a crucial element of his nativity as Mars symbolizes masculinity, sexual desire, ambition, and life force. Also, Mars is the ruler of Ascendant and the 8th house connected to sex. It is very heavily aspected by five squares and opposition to 12th house Chiron. The only relief Mars receives is a trine from Black Moon Lilith.
In Proust's chart, Lilith is in the 2nd house (of values) in Gemini (duality of nature), which manifests as the inability to reconcile personal values with social and parental; with BML being the midpoint of Moon and Uranus one feels incredibly frustrated. This placement, with hardly any planetary aspects, feels like complete isolation. However, trine to Mars saves Marcel from a fiasco; he throws himself into work (Mars is in the 6th) and compromises his social life by changing his daily routine; he works all night long and sleeps all afternoon. Self-sabotage one hand but spiritual freedom on the other. Also, Lilith sextiles Chiron in Pisces in the 12th – voluntary imprisonment, nowadays we call it spiritual retreat. The only time he can be himself is in his dreams and when he is writing. Proust is channeling Lilith through his characters that are breaking the social and sexual taboos. But still, I don't feel that he was able to set himself free from the fear that his readers (public, MC) may recognize him as a Narrator, in which case he creates Charlus and Saint-Loup as his alter egos. I think Proust unconsciously wanted to punish himself by making a scene in the novel where Charlus is chained whipped in the brothel or his death wish was granted by Saint-Loup glorious death on the battlefield.
The other challenge that I see with the 2nd house, Lilith, is his relationship with money. Marcel was very much attracted to high society lifestyle and had a history of lavish expenditures, such as frequent dining at Ritz (leaving enormous tips), expensive gifts for his friends. His excessive spending was also a very touchy subject with his parents and a constant source of their arguments. Even though his parents were well off, they lived pretty modestly and disapproved of his extravagant behavior. After his parent's death, Marcel inherited a significant estate which, in today's term, gave him a monthly income of $15,000; nevertheless, he was always worried about money. I see this behavior directly connected to second house shadow - insecurity overcompensated by extreme generosity.
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