Vladimir Nabokov

NABOKV-L post 0026900, Sat, 5 Mar 2016 12:04:17 -0800

Subject
What's in the name Clare Quilty ?
From
Date
Body
(Thank you again for the help on VN checking his translations.
I hope to send another interim report in a month.)


I like deciphering names.

The name Humbert Humbert never bothered me
because I accepted it as European "William Wilson"
and ombre ombre (shadow, ghost).
"suivre comme son ombre"
"l’ombre de soi-même"

The same MeMe repeated like ManMan (Hombre Hombre)
H.H. (ache-ache, ashes to ashes) .........


The name Clare Quilty always bothered me.
Today, after chewing on this below, the name makes much more sense.

But I see that most of my notes are already in
[Annotated Lolita] (introduction, 33/9, 225/1).

I have the 1970 edition of [Annotated Lolita]. If there's something
new on this in the new edition, could someone let me know?


I don't think I see these two in [Annotated Lolita] :

1. Q by itself may be sexual (cul), as in LHOOQ.

2. que lair qu’il t’y (mene).

CQ's primary role in the story is the
[ man who takes (Lo) to his lair ].

and this gives me the alliteration (QQ) that I was missing.


(Page 225, in a letter from Lolita's friend, Mona, to Lolita. Knowing of
Lolita's secret with Quilty, Mona writes) "Ne manque pas de dire a ton
amant, Chimene, comme le lac est beau, car il faut qu’il t’y mene.
Lucky beau! Qu’il t’y — what a tongue twister!”

le lac est beau, qu’il t’y
Lucky beau Qu’il t’y

il faut qu’il t’y mene
(he) must be Guilty man. (or men)

(German Klar (adv.))
Clearly Guilty (man)


>>> In English, we produce a much greater puff with the release of an unvoiced stop than with a voiced stop. This causes trouble for speakers coming from languages where this isn't true such as French, Spanish, and Dutch. <<<

So, in terms of aspiration, French K and G are closer
(more similar than in English), making Kilty and Guilty closer.


Clear -- Guilty are the polar opposites,
a Janus word like felix-culpa, or

Chiaroscuro (Clear - Obscure / Dark)

At this point, I'd be much more satisfied if Kwilty or Kilty
sounded like a word that means Dark or Black,
in French, Russian, German, ...
but that's probably too much to ask.

HH

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