LACUNARY KNOWLEDGE IN SEBALD AND PROUST

This article proposes a comparative analysis ofMarcel ProustandW. G. Sebaldand explores the representation ofknowledgeandmemoryin their respective works. It shows how with both authors, mental processes are often dramatically represented, notably in terms of thefallibilityto which such processes give rise. In exploring the importance of theepistemologicaldimension of their writing, the article reflects on howunknowingness, often acting as a key narrative driver, lies at the heart of the sceptical view of knowledge in both corpora. The limitations of self-knowledge are seen to function at both private and collective/national levels.