Table of Contents
Who actually wrote Lolita?
Vladimir Nabokov
Lolita/Authors
Vladimir Nabokov’s “Lolita” is considered a masterpiece and these days, more than 60 years after it was published in the United States, a masterpiece to make people squirm. It is the narrative of middle-aged man Professor Humbert Humbert who is obsessed with Dolores Haze, a 12-year-old girl called Lolita.
What inspired Vladimir to write Lolita?
Nabokov was so inspired by Poe that he initially wanted Lolita to be titled The Kingdom by the Sea (a reference to a repeating line in “Annabel Lee”). A professor of literature, Nabokov sprinkled many literary allusions into Lolita for the adept reader to find.
Did Vladimir Nabokov write Lolita?
Origins. Vladimir Nabokov wrote Lolita over a period of 5 years, finally finishing the novel on December 6, 1953. The book was first published in 1955 (in Paris, France) and then in 1958 (in New York, New York). (The author also later translated the book back into his native tongue, Russian–later in his life.)
Did Nabokov write Lolita in Russian?
Nabokov translated many of his own early works into English, sometimes in cooperation with his son Dmitri. His trilingual upbringing had a profound influence on his artistry. Nabokov himself translated into Russian two books that he had originally written in English, Conclusive Evidence and Lolita.
How many languages does Vladimir Nabokov speak?
English
Russian
Vladimir Nabokov/Languages
Two facts of his childhood are vital to this study: firstly, he was raised a polyglot, speaking English and French fluently in addition to Russian; and secondly, international travel with his family exposed him to multiple European cultures from an early age.
Who did Nabokov hate?
Dostoevsky
And most interesting of all, he hated Dostoevsky. Nabokov is at his most provocative when he ranks the great Russians. Most of his own emotions, it seems, were poured into his worshipping of Tolstoy, on the one hand, and his vicious debunking of Dostoevsky, on the other.
Did Vladimir Nabokov cheat on his wife?
The one known affair, and one that had briefly threatened the Nabokov marriage, was with Irina Guadanini, whom he met in Paris in 1936, and with whom he subsequently fell in love. In the end Vladimir scuttled back to the safety of the nest, and Irina was dropped.
Why did Nabokov not like Dostoyevsky?
“Dostoyevsky never really got over the influence which the European mystery novel and the sentimental novel made upon him. The sentimental influence implied that kind of conflict he liked—placing virtuous people in pathetic situations and then extracting from these situations the last ounce of pathos.”
Was Dostoevsky popular?
Born in Moscow in 1821, Dostoevsky was introduced to literature at an early age through fairy tales and legends, and through books by Russian and foreign authors. For a time, he had to beg for money, but he eventually became one of the most widely read and highly regarded Russian writers.