The Honeymoon and The Party

In Modiano's novel Honeymoon, the characters Rigaud and Ingrid turn off the light in their beach house whenever the neighbours approach. They anticipate that the neighbours will want to invite them to their house party, just as they have done many times before. The neighbours are always having parties and Rigaud and Ingrid are always trying to avoid them. The narrator asks whether they don’t like the neighbours. They reply that it is not about not liking the neighbours but a matter of not wanting to go to the parties. The narrator asks what they will do if the neighbours look through the windows and see them inside? We will pretend we are asleep, they reply. But what if the neighbours come in and try and wake them? We will pretend we are dead. The name they give to hiding from The Party is The Honeymoon and it has become a way of life.