The Controversial Lolita20.doc

1 the controversial lolita abstract：vladimir nabokov(18991977) is a russian-born american novelist, critic, poet, translator and stylist. he has been acknowledged as one of the most outstanding stylists and novelists of the 20th century. lolita is his most controversial work. this book has been a banned book. readers hold different views towards its controversial subject. some regard it as a pornographic book which is about an abnormal middle-aged man who is obsessed by a little girl. and they even think lolita is about pedophilia. while others hold an entirely different view that lolita is about true love. this essay prefers the latter. in modern times, “pornographic novels” refers to the second-class, commercial and vulgar novels. in pornographic novels, there must be some descriptions of sex scenes. besides, the sex scenes must obey a route which is gradually getting into the climax, and there should have new change, new combination and new content of sex. the author himself said that lolita wasnt a pornographic novel at all. so this essays subject is humberts true love to lolita. this essay is divided into four parts. the first part is the introduction of the author, the novel and the plot. the second part mainly demonstrates humberts true love to lolita in detail. this part first gives the definition and performance of pedophilia in order to prove that humbert is not a pedophile, and then demonstrates humberts true love to lolita and his performance out of true love. the following part discusses 2 the reasons why humbert loves lolita. the third part illustrates the reasons of humbert and lolitas tragic end. the last part is the conclusion. now lolita is one of the most classical books of the 20th century. key words: pedophilia nymphet true love 论文摘要论文摘要 弗拉基米尔纳博科夫(1899 1977)是一个出生于 俄罗斯的美国小说家、诗 人、文学批评家、翻译家、文体学家。 他曾被公认为二十世纪杰出 的小说家和 文体家。洛丽塔是他最具有争议性的 作品。这本书曾被列为禁书。 读者 对本书的主题争议激烈。一些读者认为这是一部色情小说：一个变态的中年男 人对一个小女孩 的痴迷，更有甚者说 洛丽塔是关于恋童癖的。而一些读者 却持有截然相反的观点，认为这是一本关于真爱的小说。此篇论文更 倾向于第 二个观点。在现代，色情 小说意指品质二流、商业 化、低级庸俗的小说。 在色 情小说里，必须有性描写场面。此外 ,书中描写性的场面还必须遵循一条渐渐进 入高潮的路线，不断要有新变化、新结合、新的性内容。纳博科夫本人也说， 洛丽塔根本不是色情小说。 所以本篇论文的主题就是亨伯特对洛丽塔的真爱。 此论文一共分为 四部分。第一部分 简单介绍作者，作品及主要情节。第二部分 详细论述亨伯特对洛丽塔的真爱。 这部分首先给出恋童癖的定义 和表现以此论 证亨伯特不是恋童癖，然后论证亨伯特对洛丽塔的真爱及表现，接着解释亨伯特 爱洛丽塔的原因。第三部分论述的是亨伯特与洛丽塔之间的悲剧的原因。最后一 部分总结，现在这本书已成为 20 世纪最经典著作之一。 关键词关键词：恋童癖； 性感的少女；真爱 3 contents i. introduction.1 a. the author.1 b. the works publication and reception .2 c. plot overview .3 ii. humberts true love to lolita.5 a. pedophilia or not .5 b. the manifestation of humberts true love.8 c. the reasons why he loves lolita.12 1. the influence of annabel.12 2. lolita in humberts eyes.14 iii. the reasons of the tragic end15 iv. conclusion.17 notes.20 bibliography22 4 the controversial lolita i. introduction a. the author vladimir vladimirovich nabokov was born on april 23, 1899, in st. petersburg, russia. the nabokovs were known for their high culture and commitment to public service, and the elder nabokov was an outspoken opponent of anti-semitism and one of the leaders of the opposition party, the kadets. in 1919, following the bolshevik revolution, he took his family into exile. four years later he was shot and killed at a political rally in berlin while trying to shield the speaker from right-wing assassins. the nabokov household was trilingual, and as a child nabokov was already reading wells, poe, browning, keats, flaubert, verlaine, rimbaud, tolstoy, and chekhov, alongside the popular entertainments of sir arthur conan doyle and jules verne. as a young man, he studied slavic and romance languages at trinity college, cambridge, taking his honors degree in 1922. for the next eighteen years he lived in berlin and paris, writing prolifically in russian under the pseudonym sirin and supporting himself through translations, lessons in english and tennis, and by composing the first crossword puzzles in russian. in 1925 he married vera slonim, with whom he had one child, a son named dmitri. having already fled russia and germany, nabokov became a refugee once more in 1940, when he was forced to leave france for the united states. 5 there he taught at wellesley, harvard, and cornell. he also gave up writing in russian and began composing fiction in english. in the afterword of lolita he claimed: “my private tragedy, which cannot, and indeed should not, be anybodys concern, is that i had to abandon my natural idiom, my untrammeled, rich, and infinitely docile russian tongue for a second-rate brand of english, devoid of any of those apparatusesthe baffling mirror, the black velvet backdrop, the implied associations and traditionswhich the native illusionist, frac-tails flying, can magically use to transcend the heritage in his own way.”1 yet nabokovs american period saw the creation of what are arguably his greatest works: bend sinister (1947), lolita (1955), pnin (1957), and pale fire (1962), as well as the translation of his earlier russian novels into english. he also undertook english translations of works by lermontov and pushkin and wrote several books of criticism. vladimir nabokov died in montreux, switzerland, in 1977. b. the works publication and reception lolita (1955) is a novel by vladimir nabokov, first written in english and published in 1955 in paris, later translated by the author into russian and published in 1958 in new york. the book is internationally famous for its innovative style and infamous for its controversial subject: the protagonist and unreliable narrator, middle-aged humbert, becomes obsessed and sexually involved with a twelve-year-old girl named dolores haze. 6 after its publication, nabokovs lolita attained a classic status, becoming one of the best-known and most controversial examples of 20th century literature. the name “lolita” has entered pop culture to describe a sexually precocious young girl. the novel was adapted to film in 1962 and again in 1997. lolita is listed in the time 100 best english-language novels from 1923 to 2005. it is fourth on the modern librarys 1998 list of the 100 best novels of the 20th century. c. plot overview lolita is narrated by humbert, a literary scholar born in 1910 in paris. in 1947, humbert moves to ramsdale, a small new england town, to write. he rents a room in the house of charlotte haze, a widow, mainly for the purpose of being near charlottes 12-year-old daughter, dolores (also known as dolly, lolita, lola, lo, and l), an archetypal nymphet, because he is deeply attracted by her and loves her at the first sight. she is humberts ideal combination of childishness and the first blushes of womanhood. and he quickly agrees to marry charlotte haze in order to continue living near lolita. charlotte is oblivious to humberts distaste for her and his lust for lolita until she reads his diary. she runs across the street in a state of shock. she is struck and killed by a passing motorist. 7 humbert, now widowed, has justifiably the reason to get into lolitas life. when in hotel, she consciously seduces humbert. he discovers that he is not her first lover, as she had sex with a boy at summer camp. lolita and humbert drive around the country, moving from state to state and motel to motel. after a year touring north america, the two settle down in another new england town. humbert is very possessive and strict, forbidding lolita to take part in after-school activities or to associate with boys. the towns people, however, see this as the action of a loving and concerned, if old fashioned parent. as lolita and humbert drive westward again, humbert gets the feeling that their car is being tailed and he becomes increasingly suspicious. lolita falls ill and must convalesce in a hospital. humbert stays in a nearby motel. one night, lolita disappears from the hospital. the staff tell humbert that lolitas “uncle” checks her out. humbert embarks upon a frantic search to find lolita and her abductor-clare quilty, but eventually he gives up his search. one day in 1952, at the age of 17, lolita writes him a letter which tells him that she has married, pregnant, and in desperate need money. humbert goes to see lolita, giving her money and hoping to kill the man who abducts her. she reveals the truth: clare quilty checks her out of the hospital and 8 attempts to make her a star in one of his pornographic films. when she refuses, he throws her out. humbert asks lolita to leave her husband and return to him, but she refuses, breaking humberts spirit. he leaves lolita forever, kills quilty in an act of revenge and is arrested. according to the novels fictional foreword, humbert dies of coronary thrombosis upon finishing his manuscript. lolita dies when giving birth to a stillborn girl on christmas day, 1952. ii. humberts true love to lolita a. pedophilia or not humberts sexual relationship with lolita is the main reason for the controversial character of the novels subject matter. if it were a mere “obsession”, with no sex involved, the novel would not have been shocking, and it would likely never have been censored or banned in some countries. if we restrict humbert to “sexual” obsession, we do not allow the possibility that his obsession is more than sexual, or for that matter the distinction between humbert and quilty (the latter having only a sexual interest in lolita). people who have read the novel can agree that “sexual obsession” is inadequate to describe humberts fascination with lolita, because humbert does in fact love lolita. immediately when lolita was published, there emerges the controversial subject: some people say humbert is only sexually obsessed with lolita. he 9 is the so-called pedophile. while others hold the view that humbert is not only sexually obsessed with lolita but also emotionally. this essay tends to the latter. the term pedophilia (or paedophilia) is derived from greek pedo means child and philis means love. it is defined “as a psychological disorder in which an adult or older adolescent experiences a sexual preference for prepubescent children. the major character: the sexual interest is toward prepubescent youths only and does not include teenagers. the sexual interest remains over time.”2the essay wants to explain that lolita isnt pre-pubescent. she was a sexually active 12-year-old girl. how many 12-year-old children are pre-pubescent? humbert makes it plain that nymphets are not pre- pubescent. it is controversial to say that whether humbert is pedophilia or not. most people think that he is pedophilia, but to a large extent he is not. if lolita had been 4 or 5 years old then he would be a pedophile. maybe im going to get attacked about this, but i stick to my guns. in many societies and even england in medieval times a twelve-year-old girl was considered of marriageable age. most twelve-year-old children are pubescent and have developed sexual feelings by that age. humbert and his first love annabel were both young at the time and she had sexual desire for him. humbert described them as pre-adolescent. but once the changes leading to 10 reproductive ability begin to occur, some one is no longer pre-pubescent. there are different definitions, but none would make lolita pre-pubescent. for example: “puberty: the period or age at which a person is first capable of sexual reproduction of offspring. in common law, its presumed to be 14 years old in the male and 12 years old in the female.”3 in law enforcement, the term “pedophile” is generally used to describe those accused or convicted of child sexual abuse. this is also a beneficial evidence to support that humbert is not pedophilia, because he doesnt abuse lolita and just because he loves her, he tries to do everything to please her and tolerates whatever she does. in fact, it is lolita who seduces humbert in a hotel. if she doesnt make this step and keep distance from him, humbert as a middle-aged scholar who is to some degree reasonable and has moral concept may dare not step further more. lolita does so because her lack of self-awareness. she never seems to realize that her sexual activities with humbert are very different from her fooling around with charlie in the bushes at summer camp. if we say humbert is pedophilia, who is the sufferer? can we say lolita is the sufferer? obviously we can not. there is no evidence supporting that humbert is pedophilia. as we know that pedophilia often involves violence and many different sufferers and the sufferers often have interpersonal difficulty due to the abuse. in lolita, either in terms of humbert or lolita, we can not say the 11 novel involves pedophilia. those people who say it involves pedophilia may not see the essence of the book. it is understandable that those people who hold this point of view. there are two major reasons. one is the age gap between humbert and lolita is great and the other one is their relationship is step-father and daughter. so i think we may say their relationship is immoral and illegal, but we cant say humbert is pedophilia or this book involves pedophilia. and the author says that lolita is not a pornographic one. to draw a conclusion, lolita isnt a book about pedophilia, but one completely different from other books about true love. b. the manifestation of humberts true love the view that humbert loves lolita is not unjustifiable. through the whole book，we can see humbert reveals his true feelings. from his words and behavior, we can see his deep love to lolita. “lolita, light of my life, fire of my loins. my sin, my soul. lo-lee-ta: the tip of the tongue taking a trip of three steps down the palate to tap, at three, on the teeth. lo. lee. ta.”4 this is the first paragraph of lolita. here lolita is compared to light of his life. in this sentence, humberts purpose is to tell the readers that if he doesnt own lolita, his life will become a completely dark one. as we know, if we compare someone to our light of life, then the one must be extremely important to us. he also says that lolita is his fire of loins. we know sexual desire is derived from love. hes not only sexually “obsessed” with lolita, but also emotionally. he says that lolita is his sin 12 means that he can do anything even commit a crime for lolita, and only lolita can make him do such things. from this sentence, we can realize he loves lolita deeply. he can do anything regardless of personal safety for lolita. this sentence may be a hint of his end: he kills quilty and is arrested. the detailed account of the pronunciation of her name is noticeable. in daily life, calling someones name is a very natural thing. however, usually we dont notice how to pronounce each letter exactly right. but to humbert, he notices this. he knows how to pronounce her name in terms of manner exactly and with a sense of beauty. just because he loves lolita deeply, he notices such minute detail. “she was lo, plain lo, in the morning, standing four feet ten in one sock. she was lola in slacks. she was dolly at school. she was dolores on the dotted line. but in my arms she was always lolita.”5the name “lolita” is used only by humbert in the novel. in the book she is referred to simply as “lo“ or “lola“ or “dolly“ by the other characters, as “lolita“ was humberts personal, endearing and lustful name for the nymphet. “despite our tiffs, despite her nastiness, despite all the fuss and faces she made, and the vulgarity, and the danger, and the horrible hopelessness of it all, i still dwelled deep in my elected paradise a paradise whose skies were the color of hell-flames but still a paradise.”6 lolita is just a twelve-year-old girl who is childish, stubborn and capricious. humbert loves her and tolerates whatever she does to him. when he is together with her, he is just like in 13 paradise, though a paradise whose skies were the color of hell-flames. from this paragraph, we can see humbert is crazy about lolita and loves her regardless of personal safety. “she was musical and apple-sweet . lola the bobby-soxer, devouring her immemorial fruit, singing through its juice . and every movement she made, every shuffle and ripple, helped me to conceal and to improve the secret system of tactile correspondence between beast and beauty-between my gagged, bursting beast and the beauty of her dimpled body in its innocent cotton frock.”7 this is a detailed description of lolita. humbert observes lolitas each and every move attentively. as for him, even the ordinary movement lolita makes is full of sense of beauty and the most charming. supposed he doesnt love her, can he observe her movement so attentively and regard all things related to her as wonderful ones? from this description, we can also see humbert is obsessed with her. “and i looked and looked at her, and knew as clearly as i know i am to die, that i loved her more than anything i had ever seen or imagined on earth, or hoped for anywhere else. i insist the world know how much i loved my lolita, this lolita, pale and polluted, and big with anothers child, but still gray-eyed, still sooty- lashed, still auburn and almond, still carmencita, still mine no matter, even if those eyes of hers would fade to myopic fish, and her nipples swell and crack, and her lovely young velvety delicate delta be tainted and torn even then i would go mad with tenderness at the mere sight of your dear wan 14 face, at the mere sound of your raucous young voice, my lolita.”8 this paragraph is humberts confession of his deep love to lolita. his love doesnt change, even three years later when lolita was pregnant, portrayed as much less attractive and married. he would still go mad with tenderness at the mere sight of her dear wan face, at the mere sound of her raucous young voice. lolita would fade and with