And speaking of Pushkin, aren't Dante and Danthès homonyms in
Russian
pronunciation (spirals within spirals)?
Dear Carolyn,
No, the names Dante and d'Anthes are not
homonymous in Russian pronounciation. Moreover, Pushkin used to
make the former of them a monosyllable: "Dant" ("Surovyi Dant ne preziral
soneta, / Kamoens skorbnu mysl' im oblekal, / Ego igru liubil tvorets Makbeta...
etc.").
Alexey
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Tuesday, November 29, 2005 4:18
AM
Subject: Fwd: response to Alexey
Sklyarenko Re: Laura & Dante, Petrarch, Pushkin, and Preminger
----- Forwarded message from chaiselongue@earthlink.net
-----
Date: Mon, 28 Nov 2005 07:35:15
-0800
From: Carolyn Kunin <chaiselongue@earthlink.net>
Reply-To:
Carolyn Kunin <chaiselongue@earthlink.net>
Subject:
response to Alexey Sklyarenko Re: Laura & Dante, Petrarch, Pushkin,
and
Preminger
To: Vladimir Nabokov
Forum
So, maybe, Petrarch's Laura is meant, not
Dante's?
Alexey
Dear Alexey,
Sorry I wasn't clear - - by
"Dante's Laura" I really meant Petrarch's. I
was looking for a Laura who
might be linked to Dante and found this one. I
got to Petrarch through the
peacocks in VN's letter - - it was Petrarch you
see who reported that
while she was pregnant, Dante's mother dreamt that her
child would be
transformed into a peacock.
Your contributions would seem to confirm
that this is the track VN was on.
Preminger's Laura could also play a role
- - our author was never afraid to
tackle a double. By the way, Laura in
the film is a kind of "revenant,"
isn't she, seemingly returning from the
dead? And she is also a kind of a
muse like Petrarch's Laura (and of course
Dante's Beatrice).
And speaking of Pushkin, aren't Dante and Danthès
homonyms in Russian
pronunciation (spirals within spirals)?
For
possible links between Petrarch, Can Grande, peacocks and Dante I can
refer
you to a book by Mark MIrsky, "Dante, Eros, & Kabbalah" -
-
particularly pages 166-167 and possibly ff. (hint: themes of mortality
and
messianism are involved)
Sorry I took so long to respond to your
helpful hints.
Carolyn
p.s. (by the way, was there the original
of Petrarch's Laura, or the poet
invented her?).
This is discussed
on http://petrarch.petersadlon.com/laura.html
----- End forwarded
message -----
So, maybe, Petrarch's Laura
is meant, not Dante's?
Alexey
Dear
Alexey,
Sorry I wasn't clear - - by "Dante's Laura" I really
meant Petrarch's. I was looking for a Laura who might be linked to Dante and
found this one. I got to Petrarch through the peacocks in VN's letter - -
it was Petrarch you see who reported that while she was pregnant,
Dante's mother dreamt that her child would be transformed into a
peacock.
Your contributions would seem to confirm that this is the
track VN was on. Preminger's Laura could also play a role - - our author was
never afraid to tackle a double. By the way, Laura in the film is a kind of
"revenant," isn't she, seemingly returning from the dead? And she is also a
kind of a muse like Petrarch's Laura (and of course Dante's
Beatrice).
And speaking of Pushkin, aren't Dante and Danthès homonyms
in Russian pronunciation (spirals within spirals)?
For possible links
between Petrarch, Can Grande, peacocks and Dante I can refer you to a book by
Mark MIrsky, "Dante, Eros, & Kabbalah" - - particularly pages 166-167 and
possibly ff. (hint: themes of mortality and messianism are involved)
Sorry I took so long
to respond to your helpful hints.
Carolyn
p.s. (by the way, was there the original of Petrarch's
Laura, or the poet invented her?).
This is discussed on http://petrarch.petersadlon.com/laura.html