Corners Summary and Analysis

Bachelard turns to the human intimacy associated with corners. Every corner or angle in a house or space where one hides symbolizes solitude for the imagination. A corner is a place of immobility, a sort of half-box that can illustrate the reasoning between inside and outside. One can be at peace in a corner, or can be cornered there.

Bachelard uses the text of the philosopher Sartre's writing on Baudelaire to point out the idea of "invented childhood" so prevalent in novels. The child Emily comes suddenly to a realization "she was she." Psychoanalysts refer to this duality as introvert and extrovert, where Emily finds in herself emerging herself as she leaves her house. The child knows herself as she moves toward the outside. Emily leaves the nook where she has been playing towards the rear of the boat before recognizing...