EDNote: A few weeks ago, a subscriber requested a new story discussion, as was done with "Signs and Symbols" in June. I asked for a suggestion, but did not receive one...so I propose "Spring in Fialta" for paragraph-by-paragraph discussion. Of course, the entire story should be read before discussing the sequential paragraphs, but I propose that we stick to discussion of the first paragraph or two until at least Wednesday. 

Jansy Mello: As a starter, I checked in Akiko Nakata’s paper to bring up at least two initial items:

“Fialta, an Adriatic resort whose name is a blend of Fiume and Yalta (Boyd Russian Years, 426), is associated with violets via fialka, the Russian word for violet (Lee 33, Parker 131). The first association of Fialta with violets occurs near the beginning of the story: "I am fond of Fialta […] because I feel in the hollow of those violaceous syllables [  ] and because the altolike name of a lovely Crimean town is echoed by its viola" A Failed Reader Redeemed: "Spring in Fialta" and The Real Life of Sebastian Knight Akiko Nakata, Nagoya, Japan

Btw: Fiume, in Italian, means “river”. The quote from its second paragraph stimulates synesthesia (sensations of dampness, colors, sounds, smells…) and, like the first, relies heavily on “personification/animation” devices.

I suppose the word “viola” not only sends us back to the damp purple aromatic violets, but also to the musical instrument.

Another indirect reference to violaceous colors might also indicate Lent and the resurrection of Christ (the forty-days interval between Mardi-Gras and Easter).