Subject
Nabokov's admirers: S. Millhauser
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Date
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Mr. Glick is quite right about Milhauser and "Edwin Mulhouse"; that
novel is
remarkably Nabokovian in style and design, and is truly a neglected
masterpiece. In addition to "Pale Fire" I recall elements of "The
Defense,"
"The Gift," "The Real Life of Sebastian Knight," and "Lolita." But the
mention of Milhauser brings up an interesting ambiguity in Dana's
inquiry:
does it seek writers who have expressed admiration for VN, or writers
whose
styles reveal VN's influence? If the former, I think the list could
include
many writers, such as Vidal, Updike, and Burgess, who have written
admiringly of VN's work but who developed as writers in the pre-"Lolita"
world; if the latter, I think we are limited to writers who came of age,
so
to speak, in the 1960s at the earliest (in the non-Russian speaking
world,
that is). Milhauser fits rather well into this rather dubious
framework,
as, if I recall correctly, "Edwin Mulhouse" was published in 1970 or 71,
when Milhauser was 29.
Of course, any discussion of this kind inevitably leads to the
interesting
question of how literary influence works; which, in turn leads to an
inquiry
into the nature of the creative process itself. Can a writer really
choose
which predecessors "influence" his or her work? Is it a matter of
consciously selecting other writers as models, or is it a matter of
finding
other writers with whom one shares certain innate sensibilities? The
thing
is rather mysterious. In any event I propose two further items for
discussion: which writers show similarities to VN in style or substance,
but
who could not have been influenced by his work? (e.g., Flann O'Brien);
and
which writers, or critics, have expressed disdain or loathing of VN's
work,
and why? For example, some years ago I read an article in the TLS in
which
the book under review (by Christopher Ricks?) fairly savaged VN's
novels,
and, incredibly, accused him of plain incompetence. Does anyone else
recall
this article?
> -----Original Message-----
> From: D. Barton Johnson [SMTP:chtodel@gte.net]
> Sent: Monday, February 19, 2001 10:10 AM
> To: NABOKV-L@LISTSERV.UCSB.EDU
> Subject: Nabokov's admirers: S. Millhauser
>
> -------------------
> How about Steven Millhauser?
> I'm surprised that nobody's mentioned him, since it was this list that
> led me
> to his works last year. Currently I'm about to finish -Edwin Mullhouse-,
> which
> is as direct an homage to PF as I've seen.
> John Glick
> Chicago IL
Mr. Glick is quite right about Milhauser and "Edwin Mulhouse"; that
novel is
remarkably Nabokovian in style and design, and is truly a neglected
masterpiece. In addition to "Pale Fire" I recall elements of "The
Defense,"
"The Gift," "The Real Life of Sebastian Knight," and "Lolita." But the
mention of Milhauser brings up an interesting ambiguity in Dana's
inquiry:
does it seek writers who have expressed admiration for VN, or writers
whose
styles reveal VN's influence? If the former, I think the list could
include
many writers, such as Vidal, Updike, and Burgess, who have written
admiringly of VN's work but who developed as writers in the pre-"Lolita"
world; if the latter, I think we are limited to writers who came of age,
so
to speak, in the 1960s at the earliest (in the non-Russian speaking
world,
that is). Milhauser fits rather well into this rather dubious
framework,
as, if I recall correctly, "Edwin Mulhouse" was published in 1970 or 71,
when Milhauser was 29.
Of course, any discussion of this kind inevitably leads to the
interesting
question of how literary influence works; which, in turn leads to an
inquiry
into the nature of the creative process itself. Can a writer really
choose
which predecessors "influence" his or her work? Is it a matter of
consciously selecting other writers as models, or is it a matter of
finding
other writers with whom one shares certain innate sensibilities? The
thing
is rather mysterious. In any event I propose two further items for
discussion: which writers show similarities to VN in style or substance,
but
who could not have been influenced by his work? (e.g., Flann O'Brien);
and
which writers, or critics, have expressed disdain or loathing of VN's
work,
and why? For example, some years ago I read an article in the TLS in
which
the book under review (by Christopher Ricks?) fairly savaged VN's
novels,
and, incredibly, accused him of plain incompetence. Does anyone else
recall
this article?
> -----Original Message-----
> From: D. Barton Johnson [SMTP:chtodel@gte.net]
> Sent: Monday, February 19, 2001 10:10 AM
> To: NABOKV-L@LISTSERV.UCSB.EDU
> Subject: Nabokov's admirers: S. Millhauser
>
> -------------------
> How about Steven Millhauser?
> I'm surprised that nobody's mentioned him, since it was this list that
> led me
> to his works last year. Currently I'm about to finish -Edwin Mullhouse-,
> which
> is as direct an homage to PF as I've seen.
> John Glick
> Chicago IL