Subject
Fwd: Nabokov and Holmes
From
Date
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------------------
As a Sherlockian of sorts and a Nabokovian of sorts, I think Mr. Womack
has
brought up a fairly important and, to my best
belief , so far unexplored problem. I think that one of the reasons why
no
analysis of Sherlockian allusions in Nabokoviana
has so far been attempted is that any comparison between the literary
merits
of the works by Vladimir Nabokov and
Arthur Conan Doyle is considered almost blasphemous, since Conan Doyle's
books and, particularly his Sherlock Holmes
stories are considered 'lower type of literary art' (something that even
Conan Doyle freely admits to in his autobiography) and
thus cannot be placed into the same context as the works of one of the
greatest writers of the century.
At the same time we know it for a fact that Nabokov not only admired the
stories about Sherlock Holmes (especially in his
childhood, which is of course reflected in The Defense) but also knew
them
remarkably well -- and, of course, from the very beginning
read them in the English original, rather than very inadequate early
translations into Russian. He was also, I am sure exposed to
the numerous and very vulgar Russian-language pastiches that were sold
around Russia in great quantities at the time. I have reasons
to believe that it was those pastiches that contributed to the images of
Shirly and Charlie Holmes in Lolita -- both of them personifications
of vulgarized romantic ideas (of unity with Nature and Love
accordingly).
I am not convinced that the example given by Mr. Womack is one of
'deliberate echoing' -- I fail to see conclusive evidence (something
that
Holmes and Nabokov shared a liking to), and I would very much welcome
more
about what he means by Holmes/Humbert nexus, but I think
that in a more general sense Mr. Wombat is right: Nabokov's habit of
piling
up circumstantial data and a hero's failure to use them
to the right end (something that is expected of the reader) might well
be
an inversion of Conan Doyle's straightforward presentation of relevant
data with no expectation that the reader will resolve the mystery
independently (Nabokov expects the reader to play Sherlock Holmes, while
Conan
Doyle offers him the role of Dr. Watson). Humbert's failure to discover
Quilty's identity, while the reader is provided with ample clues, is a
good
example.
As for direct quotations from Sherlock Holmes stories, I have so far
been
able to trace just one:
Was he in Sherlock Holmes, the fellow whose
Tracks pointed back when he reversed his shoes? (Lines 27--28)
cf.
I might, it is true, have reversed my boots, as I have done on similar
occasions, but the sight of three sets of tracks in one direction would
certainly
have suggested a deception. (The Adventure of the Empty House)
As a person planning to look deeper into the matter, I would very much
welcome any observations or comments from the other
Nabokovians.
Sincerely,
Alexandra Glebovskaya
Attention! Our new e-mail address: symposium@online.ru
----- Исходное сообщение -----
От: D. Barton Johnson <chtodel@gte.net>
Кому: <NABOKV-L@LISTSERV.UCSB.EDU>
Отправлено: 25 февраля 2001 г. 1:58
Тема: [Fwd: Nabokov and Holmes]
> EDITOR'S NOTE. A quick check of the NABOKV-L archive show 6 refs to
> Sherlock. I recall several notes on the matter in other sources. SEE
>
http://listserv.ucsb.edu/lsv-cgi-bin/wa?S2=nabokv-l&q=Sherlock+Holmes&s=&f=&
a=&b=
> Try a search of the Zimmer/Edmunds article bibliograpy on ZEMBLA as
> wellzembla <http://www.libraries.psu.edu/iasweb/nabokov/nsintro.htm>
>
> ------------------------------------------------
> From: redjames@commie.co.uk
>
> Dear All,
>
> I'm probably not the first person to think about this (and I suppose
> part of the reason in writing to you is to get you to tell me who else
> has thought about it), but has anyone given any detailed consideration
> to the relationship between Nabokov's works and Conan Doyle's Sherlock
> Holmes stories? This of course runs the risk of becoming an unwittingly
> patronising question, as people will no doubt inform me, politely, but
> briskly, that the Humbert/Holmes nexus, for example, is a fundamental
> point of Nabokov studies, but please forgive an amateur enquiry.
>
> My attention was attracted by the following moment -
>
> '"Mais qui est-ce?" I shouted at last, striking her on the knee with my
> fist; and she, without even wincing, stared at me as if the answer were
> too simple for words, then gave a quick shrug and pointed at the thick
> neck of the taxi driver. He pulled up at a small cafe and introduced
> himself' - Lolita
>
> '"Very good, very good," said Holmes, smiling. "The cabman may as well
> help me with my boxes. Just ask him to step up, Wiggins."
> I was surprised to find my companion speaking as though he were about to
> set out on a journey, since he had not said anything to me about it.
> There was a small poprtmanteau in the room, and this he pulled out and
> began to strap. He was busily engaged at it when the cabman entered the
> room.
> "Just give me a help with this buckle, cabman," he said, kneeling over
> his task, and never turning his head.
> The fellow came forward with a somewhat sullen, defiant air and put down
> his hands to assist. At that instant there was a sharp click, the
> jangling of metal, and Sherlock Holmes sprang to his feet again.
> "Gentlemen," he cried, with flashing eyes, "let me introduce you to Mr
> Jefferson Hope, the murderer of Enoch Drebber and of Joseph Stangerson."
> - A Study in Scarlet
>
> - which suggest a deliberate echoing by Nabokov of Conan Doyle, and
> serves (beautifully and subtly, of course) by putting Humbert in the
> position of the confused Watson ('too simple for words' hints at the
> teacher/pupil relationship between Holmes and Watson - cf. their
> exchanges at the beginning of many of the short stories) to help with
> the undermining of Humbert's self-image which Nabokov makes throughout
> the book.
>
> However, it would be interesting to know how far such parallels extend,
> and the use to which Nabokov put Conan Doyle's work. Any
> comments(elementary or otherwise) would be very welcome.
>
> Yours,
>
> James Womack
> ----------------------.
>
> ---------------------------------------------------------------------
> 20 email addresses from 15,000 domain names - free at
> http://www.another.com
As a Sherlockian of sorts and a Nabokovian of sorts, I think Mr. Womack
has
brought up a fairly important and, to my best
belief , so far unexplored problem. I think that one of the reasons why
no
analysis of Sherlockian allusions in Nabokoviana
has so far been attempted is that any comparison between the literary
merits
of the works by Vladimir Nabokov and
Arthur Conan Doyle is considered almost blasphemous, since Conan Doyle's
books and, particularly his Sherlock Holmes
stories are considered 'lower type of literary art' (something that even
Conan Doyle freely admits to in his autobiography) and
thus cannot be placed into the same context as the works of one of the
greatest writers of the century.
At the same time we know it for a fact that Nabokov not only admired the
stories about Sherlock Holmes (especially in his
childhood, which is of course reflected in The Defense) but also knew
them
remarkably well -- and, of course, from the very beginning
read them in the English original, rather than very inadequate early
translations into Russian. He was also, I am sure exposed to
the numerous and very vulgar Russian-language pastiches that were sold
around Russia in great quantities at the time. I have reasons
to believe that it was those pastiches that contributed to the images of
Shirly and Charlie Holmes in Lolita -- both of them personifications
of vulgarized romantic ideas (of unity with Nature and Love
accordingly).
I am not convinced that the example given by Mr. Womack is one of
'deliberate echoing' -- I fail to see conclusive evidence (something
that
Holmes and Nabokov shared a liking to), and I would very much welcome
more
about what he means by Holmes/Humbert nexus, but I think
that in a more general sense Mr. Wombat is right: Nabokov's habit of
piling
up circumstantial data and a hero's failure to use them
to the right end (something that is expected of the reader) might well
be
an inversion of Conan Doyle's straightforward presentation of relevant
data with no expectation that the reader will resolve the mystery
independently (Nabokov expects the reader to play Sherlock Holmes, while
Conan
Doyle offers him the role of Dr. Watson). Humbert's failure to discover
Quilty's identity, while the reader is provided with ample clues, is a
good
example.
As for direct quotations from Sherlock Holmes stories, I have so far
been
able to trace just one:
Was he in Sherlock Holmes, the fellow whose
Tracks pointed back when he reversed his shoes? (Lines 27--28)
cf.
I might, it is true, have reversed my boots, as I have done on similar
occasions, but the sight of three sets of tracks in one direction would
certainly
have suggested a deception. (The Adventure of the Empty House)
As a person planning to look deeper into the matter, I would very much
welcome any observations or comments from the other
Nabokovians.
Sincerely,
Alexandra Glebovskaya
Attention! Our new e-mail address: symposium@online.ru
----- Исходное сообщение -----
От: D. Barton Johnson <chtodel@gte.net>
Кому: <NABOKV-L@LISTSERV.UCSB.EDU>
Отправлено: 25 февраля 2001 г. 1:58
Тема: [Fwd: Nabokov and Holmes]
> EDITOR'S NOTE. A quick check of the NABOKV-L archive show 6 refs to
> Sherlock. I recall several notes on the matter in other sources. SEE
>
http://listserv.ucsb.edu/lsv-cgi-bin/wa?S2=nabokv-l&q=Sherlock+Holmes&s=&f=&
a=&b=
> Try a search of the Zimmer/Edmunds article bibliograpy on ZEMBLA as
> wellzembla <http://www.libraries.psu.edu/iasweb/nabokov/nsintro.htm>
>
> ------------------------------------------------
> From: redjames@commie.co.uk
>
> Dear All,
>
> I'm probably not the first person to think about this (and I suppose
> part of the reason in writing to you is to get you to tell me who else
> has thought about it), but has anyone given any detailed consideration
> to the relationship between Nabokov's works and Conan Doyle's Sherlock
> Holmes stories? This of course runs the risk of becoming an unwittingly
> patronising question, as people will no doubt inform me, politely, but
> briskly, that the Humbert/Holmes nexus, for example, is a fundamental
> point of Nabokov studies, but please forgive an amateur enquiry.
>
> My attention was attracted by the following moment -
>
> '"Mais qui est-ce?" I shouted at last, striking her on the knee with my
> fist; and she, without even wincing, stared at me as if the answer were
> too simple for words, then gave a quick shrug and pointed at the thick
> neck of the taxi driver. He pulled up at a small cafe and introduced
> himself' - Lolita
>
> '"Very good, very good," said Holmes, smiling. "The cabman may as well
> help me with my boxes. Just ask him to step up, Wiggins."
> I was surprised to find my companion speaking as though he were about to
> set out on a journey, since he had not said anything to me about it.
> There was a small poprtmanteau in the room, and this he pulled out and
> began to strap. He was busily engaged at it when the cabman entered the
> room.
> "Just give me a help with this buckle, cabman," he said, kneeling over
> his task, and never turning his head.
> The fellow came forward with a somewhat sullen, defiant air and put down
> his hands to assist. At that instant there was a sharp click, the
> jangling of metal, and Sherlock Holmes sprang to his feet again.
> "Gentlemen," he cried, with flashing eyes, "let me introduce you to Mr
> Jefferson Hope, the murderer of Enoch Drebber and of Joseph Stangerson."
> - A Study in Scarlet
>
> - which suggest a deliberate echoing by Nabokov of Conan Doyle, and
> serves (beautifully and subtly, of course) by putting Humbert in the
> position of the confused Watson ('too simple for words' hints at the
> teacher/pupil relationship between Holmes and Watson - cf. their
> exchanges at the beginning of many of the short stories) to help with
> the undermining of Humbert's self-image which Nabokov makes throughout
> the book.
>
> However, it would be interesting to know how far such parallels extend,
> and the use to which Nabokov put Conan Doyle's work. Any
> comments(elementary or otherwise) would be very welcome.
>
> Yours,
>
> James Womack
> ----------------------.
>
> ---------------------------------------------------------------------
> 20 email addresses from 15,000 domain names - free at
> http://www.another.com