Subject
Rosebud (fwd)
From
Date
Body
From: Brian Walter <bdwalter@artsci.wustl.edu>
Appel's essay "Nabokov's Dark Cinema" may not mention Welles, but his book
*Nabokov's Dark Cinema* (OUP, 1974) certainly does. Appel does in fact
verify that Nabokov loved *Citizen Kane*; apparently, Nabokov described it
as "Extraordinary! A masterpiece" (p. 57). Appel even asks Nabokov about
the famous "'Rosebud' ending," which Welles labeled "dollar-book Freud"; by
way of reply, Nabokov apparently "shrugged his shoulders, and the
conversation turned to soccer" (57-8).
Unfortunately for this line of inquiry, the same passage has Nabokov
rejecting any possibility of influence or allusion, as he informed Appel
that he had seen *Citizen Kane* only in 1972, on Swiss television (57).
It's probably a good idea to take any of Nabokov's insistent denials of
influence or allusion with a grain of salt (apart from Freud, few things
seem to have sparked Nabokov's competitive zeal more readily than a
suggestion that he was not self-engendered as a writer, one who effectively
skipped the gestation of apprenticeship and imitation that so many other
artists acknowledge; see, for instance, just about any interview in *Strong
Opinions*). But in this case, there seems no reason not to take Nabokov at
his word.
----- Original Message -----
From: Galya Diment <galya@u.washington.edu>
To: <NABOKV-L@LISTSERV.UCSB.EDU>
Sent: Thursday, March 08, 2001 10:40 AM
Subject: Rosebud (fwd)
From: Kiran Krishna <kiran@Physics.usyd.edu.au>
It just occured to me that in the following sentence (Part 1, Chapter 7,
Page 23 in the annotated edition):
"Next day, an asthmatic woman, coarsely painted, garrulous, garlicky, with
an almost farcical Provencal accent and a black mustache above a purple
lip, took me to what was her own domicile, and there, after explosively
kissing the bunched tips of her fat fingers to signify the delectable
rosebud quality of her merchandise, she theatrically drew aside a curtain
to reveal what I judged was that part of the room where a large and
unfastidious family usually slept."
Rosebud could be interpreted as a reference to Orson Welles' Citizen
Kane. Of course, allusions cannot really be discerned from single words,
but Welles, like a number of other great artists, has a fascination with
vulgarity (though in Citizen Kane, the vulgarity is closer to kitsch
than poshlost'). Ada (especially Dan Veen, the dream chapter - Part 2,
Chapter 3, and the dozen elderly townsmen of Part 1, Chapter 39, which
reminds me of the dozen vacationers in the west wing of Xanadu) suggests
Citizen Kane much more strongly. However, I find that Appel's essay (which
among other things is remarkable for its appreciation of Stravinsky's
Oedipus Rex), 'Nabokov's Dark Cinema' (collected, if you cannot find it by
itself, in 'The Bitter Air of Exile') makes no mention at all of Welles,
and neither, I notice, does Vladimir Nabokov: The American Years. Still, I
think it would be a fascinating area of research, and would be delighted
to hear other views on this subject.
Cheers!
yours
Kiran
http://www.physics.usyd.edu.au/~kiran
http://www.physics.usyd.edu/hienergy
Appel's essay "Nabokov's Dark Cinema" may not mention Welles, but his book
*Nabokov's Dark Cinema* (OUP, 1974) certainly does. Appel does in fact
verify that Nabokov loved *Citizen Kane*; apparently, Nabokov described it
as "Extraordinary! A masterpiece" (p. 57). Appel even asks Nabokov about
the famous "'Rosebud' ending," which Welles labeled "dollar-book Freud"; by
way of reply, Nabokov apparently "shrugged his shoulders, and the
conversation turned to soccer" (57-8).
Unfortunately for this line of inquiry, the same passage has Nabokov
rejecting any possibility of influence or allusion, as he informed Appel
that he had seen *Citizen Kane* only in 1972, on Swiss television (57).
It's probably a good idea to take any of Nabokov's insistent denials of
influence or allusion with a grain of salt (apart from Freud, few things
seem to have sparked Nabokov's competitive zeal more readily than a
suggestion that he was not self-engendered as a writer, one who effectively
skipped the gestation of apprenticeship and imitation that so many other
artists acknowledge; see, for instance, just about any interview in *Strong
Opinions*). But in this case, there seems no reason not to take Nabokov at
his word.
----- Original Message -----
From: Galya Diment <galya@u.washington.edu>
To: <NABOKV-L@LISTSERV.UCSB.EDU>
Sent: Thursday, March 08, 2001 10:40 AM
Subject: Rosebud (fwd)
From: Kiran Krishna <kiran@Physics.usyd.edu.au>
It just occured to me that in the following sentence (Part 1, Chapter 7,
Page 23 in the annotated edition):
"Next day, an asthmatic woman, coarsely painted, garrulous, garlicky, with
an almost farcical Provencal accent and a black mustache above a purple
lip, took me to what was her own domicile, and there, after explosively
kissing the bunched tips of her fat fingers to signify the delectable
rosebud quality of her merchandise, she theatrically drew aside a curtain
to reveal what I judged was that part of the room where a large and
unfastidious family usually slept."
Rosebud could be interpreted as a reference to Orson Welles' Citizen
Kane. Of course, allusions cannot really be discerned from single words,
but Welles, like a number of other great artists, has a fascination with
vulgarity (though in Citizen Kane, the vulgarity is closer to kitsch
than poshlost'). Ada (especially Dan Veen, the dream chapter - Part 2,
Chapter 3, and the dozen elderly townsmen of Part 1, Chapter 39, which
reminds me of the dozen vacationers in the west wing of Xanadu) suggests
Citizen Kane much more strongly. However, I find that Appel's essay (which
among other things is remarkable for its appreciation of Stravinsky's
Oedipus Rex), 'Nabokov's Dark Cinema' (collected, if you cannot find it by
itself, in 'The Bitter Air of Exile') makes no mention at all of Welles,
and neither, I notice, does Vladimir Nabokov: The American Years. Still, I
think it would be a fascinating area of research, and would be delighted
to hear other views on this subject.
Cheers!
yours
Kiran
http://www.physics.usyd.edu.au/~kiran
http://www.physics.usyd.edu/hienergy