All manner of comical or touching incidents are reported here, starting with a plea from young Marcel to his grandfather for thirteen francs. He writes: “I so desperately needed to see a woman in order to put an end to my bad habit of masturbating that papa gave me ten francs to go to a brothel. But first, in my agitation, I broke a chamber pot three francs and, second, in this same agitated state I was unable to screw. So here I am still awaiting each hour ten francs to satisfy myself and in addition three francs for the chamber pot.” And he assures grandpa that this request is unique: “it can’t happen twice in one lifetime that a person’s too upset to screw.”

Chez Proust