As we continue on in Swann’s Way, we find Swann falling more obsessively in love with Odette, a woman of questionable reputation he met at the nightly salons hosted by the Verdurins. Beginning on page 376, we find that though the Verdurins and their “faithful” have become tired of Swann and say unkind things behind his back. Perhaps this has something to do with the new “friendship” Odette has struck up with Forcheville. Swann, consciously or not, has chosen to ignore these murmurings, continuing to “regard all their absurdities in a rosy light, through the admiring eyes of love” (378).

Is Swann’s love for Odette causing him to see the world through some kind of filter, or is it completely blinding him? He adheres to their traditional meeting schedule, seeing each other only at night. He would be pleased to see her at any hour but sticks to this schedule because he fears she will tire of him. Losing Odette’s affection is Swann’s single greatest insecurity and it is beginning to consume him. He remains mostly unaware of what she does during the day. Because he cannot see her during the day he keeps himself occupied thinking of other ways to please her. Each time he sees a flower or jewel he thinks she would like he immediately considers sending it to her, imagining that she would share the thrill he feels when seeing it (subjective moment of connection, anyone?) and the joy of the gift would make her love him more. Swann wishes to be in Odette’s life at all times and these gifts give him the illusion that, when she receives them, “he might somehow feel himself transported into her presence” (378). To be with her whenever possible, even if he is not there physically, is his highest priority.

When Swann sends these gifts he hopes that they arrive to her before she goes out for the night. He hopes that, if he has so recently bestowed something lovely onto her, she will act more kindly toward him when he arrives to the Verdurins to meet her. Even better, perhaps she would write a note or even drop by his place before she went out to thank him. He is testing her reactions to his generosity, “to elicit from her intimate scraps of feeling which she had not yet revealed to him” (378).

This arrangement works well for Odette. She’s not financially stable and often turns to Swann for money. Swann doesn’t mind this. He’s happy to do anything “that might impress Odette by his love for her” (379), whether it be money, gifts or social influence. One might surmise that Odette is a bit of a gold digger. Her expressions of love for him seem to have cooled down quite a bit since the night in the carriage. “If anyone had said to him at the beginning ‘It’s your position that attracts her’ or or at this stage, ‘It’s your money she’s really in love with’ he probably would not have believed the suggestion” (379). Swann is not open to the idea that Odette may be using him. But it’s not only that Swann would not have believed any of these accusations toward Odette, he feels that it wouldn’t be so horrible if she was mainly interested in his money or social standing. Even if her greatest motivation in being with Swann is what the Narrator refers to as “self interest”, Swann could be okay with that. As long as he continues to have things to offer her, and she continues to need him, she will continue to be bound to him. If no one else can give her all that he can, she will remain his. Good enough.

This ties into the interesting contrast between his relationship with Odette and his previous affairs. Generally Swann is noted to mostly seduce working women of lower classes- cooks and seamstresses, for example. His dalliances with them are never described as “love”, but seem to be motivated mostly by sex. Because of his wealth, social standing and the idea that, in relationships, “the person who cares the least has the most power”, it would appear that Swann has always had the upper hand with women in his past. This is not the case with Odette, who has incredible power over him whether he realizes it or not. This is a drastic change from what he is used to and could be what is feeding into his fixation and motivating his obsessive love, his need to be with her no matter what, at any price.

Swann relies on these gifts and favors because they have nothing to do with his charm, looks or intelligence. They are “advantages extraneous to his person” and “a relief from the endless, killing effort to make himself attractive to her” (379). He is now “living by love alone”, and when he sometimes doubts that this is indeed love he reminds himself how much he’s paying for it, “convinced by the rare quality and and absolute detachment of (his) own taste” (379). Swann has now come to terms, consciously or not, with the fact that he is buying Odette’s love. He decides that keeping her affections through material objects is acceptable because he has made the conscious, informed decision to do so. And because he cannot live without her love.

This realization leads him to one day recall that Odette was once referred to by someone as a “kept woman”. He finds his idea of a kept woman, a combination of mystery and evil, “poison dripping flowers interwoven with precious jewels” (380) in total opposition to his vision of Odette. She is a person able to feel emotions, capable of empathy, more in line with his mother and his friends than with a witch or some kind of evil temptress. After all, Odette shows interest in him, talks to him about his his home, his collections, his banker… which reminds him, he needs to call that banker to withdraw some funds. More money for Odette. This is almost funny, the fact that though “keeping” Odette is exactly what Swann is doing yet his image of a “kept woman” is something subhuman, dark and whorish. The opposite of how he views his love.

Swann has convinced himself that if he gives her any less than he already is, if he denies her the material things she longs for, she’s going to stop loving him. Her affections will wane because slowing or ending this generosity will make her think that he no longer loves her. But wait… isn’t that what “keeping a woman” actually is? Can you “keep a woman” without it being gross and shameful? Can the exchange of money and favors just be normal, an expression of love? Can she technically be a kept woman and still remain someone worthy of being respected, thought of as virtuous and deserving? There’s no way, he thinks, she’s accepted generosity of this caliber from any other man. He’s not keeping her. They just have a unique arrangement. More proof she loves him, surely.

It exhausts him to think too long about this quandary and his mind rejects it, seemingly shutting out the thought completely. He performs the habit inherited from his father, running his hand across his eyes. When he is able to think again, he is met with only one idea: this month he is going to send Odette even more money than usual.