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thoughtful man for a very long time, and these visions min-
gle with his dreams.
Paris, centre, banlieue, circumference; this constitutes
all the earth to those children. They never venture beyond
this. They can no more escape from the Parisian atmosphere
than fish can escape from the water. For them, nothing ex-
ists two leagues beyond the barriers: Ivry, Gentilly, Arcueil,
Belleville, Aubervilliers, Menilmontant, Choisy-le-Roi, Bil-
lancourt, Mendon, Issy, Vanvre, Sevres, Puteaux, Neuilly,
Gennevilliers, Colombes, Romainville, Chatou, Asnieres,
Bougival, Nanterre, Enghien, Noisy-le-Sec, Nogent, Gour-
nay, Drancy, Gonesse; the universe ends there.