Carolyn Kunin: I can't explain Nabokov's explanations since I don't have access to "The Art of Translation" - the wickedness of wikipedia is something you'll have to look up for yourself. I have been looking through Eric Naiman's book on "Nabokov, Perversely" and I should re-name it "Nabokov, Smuttily."
 
Jansy Mello:  Unfortunately I cannot forward this link to you "off-list" but you can find it directly in the VN-L archives:
Access digital  text of VN's "Art of Translation” [August 4, 1941: archives from New Republic http://www.newrepublic.com/article/113310/vladimir-nabokov-art-translation  ] Cf. [NABOKV-L] internet access to digital "The Art of Translation" by V.Nabokov; 3 Oct. 2013
 
I found no wickedness reading about Pushkin and his poem on wikipedia. However, I agree with you about an excess of zeal, on E.Naiman's part, concerning the distortions of sexual symbolism as they're to be found in world literature (malicious verbal games are omnipresent since BC years, no need of Freud to understand them, the same applies to the abundant euphemisms used everywhere* ) .
 
 
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* intelligent smuttiness is often delightful to my ears, like Mae West's famous quip:“Is that a gun in your pocket, or are you just happy to see me?”
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