The Silver-tongued Rapist in Vladimir Nabokovs Lolita Essay -- Naboko

The Silver-tongued Rapist in Lolita You spate unendingly count on a murderer for a fancy prose style. So says Humbert Humbert at the start of Lolita in his account to the Ladies and gentlemen of the jury (9). He refers to himself as a murderer (he is, after all, guilty of killing Quilty), not as a rapist, the far more serious offense Lolita levels at him. That I, and everyone else who reads the book, diagnose Dolores Haze by the name Lolita demonstrates the efficacy of Humberts fancy prose style - on a lower floor the spell of his aesthetic mastery, we, the jury, must bend to his subjective vision by memory, and thus we see the twelve-year-old nymphet as Lolita, as she is in Humberts arms. It is difficult to rag Humbert when we see the world through his European eyes. Humberts main strength is his virtuoso of humor. Nabokov is sure to throw Humberts way all the American kitsch he can handle - mostly in the form of Charlotte Haze. His sly insults sail everywhere her head, but Humbert wins our approval by making sure we understand them. Similarly, we respect him be...