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Fwd: Re: Greece, Argus and Ulysses J-3 May
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On May 3, 2005, at 6:41 PM, Donald B. Johnson wrote:
> According to Wikipedia, there were five Arguses in Greek mythology.
> There are two, possibly three here. "Argus-eyed" refers to the
> giant with 100 eyes who Hermes lulled to sleep. Jansy points out
> that the reference to Argus at Van and Ada's reunion connects with
> Odysseus's dog Argus, which recognized him when he returned to
> Ithaca. That seems to refer to a car, but we can imagine the car
> is named for the builder of the _Argo_, Jason's ship. (And it's
> dark blue--is that anything like wine-dark?)
>
> I was hoping that made a clean sweep, since those are the three
> Arguses mentioned in Arthur C. Clarke's sf novel _Imperial Earth_
> (I'm afraid I don't get my information on mythology from the
> original sources), but apparently there are two more: the son of
> Zeus and Niobe who became king of Phoronea (named after Niobe's
> father) and renamed it Argos after himself, and someone who the
> Argonauts rescued and who helped them on their quest. If anyone
> wants to look for more Arguses.
>
> Speaking of Wikipedia, I wrote a good part of the article on
> _Pale Fire_. If that makes any of the experts here think it
> could use critical attention, I think it would be great if you
> revised that or any other Nabokov articles.
>
> Jerry Friedman
>
> --- "Donald B. Johnson" <chtodel@gss.ucsb.edu> wrote:
>
>> EDNOTE. This one was a surprise for me too.
>> ---------------------------------------------------
>>
>> ----- Forwarded message from jansy@aetern.us -----
>> Date: Mon, 2 May 2005 13:31:58 -0300
>> From: Jansy Berndt de Souza Mello <jansy@aetern.us>
>> Reply-To: Jansy Berndt de Souza Mello <jansy@aetern.us>
>> Subject: Greece, Argus and Ulysses J-3 May
>> To: Vladimir Nabokov Forum Dear List,
>>
>>
>>
>> There is always a surprise in store when re-reading Ada. Today I
>> realized the
>> reference to Argus/Penelope/Faithfulness and our Greek homecoming
>> Ulysses.
>> When Van and Ada prepare for their last encounter ( the "balcony scene
>> at the
>> Three Swans"), after which they will no longer separete, they almost
>> don´t make
>> it because " Ada´s Argus had not yet been delivered" ( Ada was not
>> ready?) and
>> she invited to depart to Greece instead. And added emphasis about
>> faithful/unfaithful comes with the repeated reference to "saw off" (
>> C.
>> husband´s antlers and a good-bye )
>>
>>
>>
>> I promise to get in touch with you in a day or two, and then we'll go
>> on
>> a
>> cruise to Greece with the Baynards - they have a yacht and three
>> adorable
>> daughters who still swim in the tan, okay?'(...) veterinaries had had
>> to
>> saw
>> off her husband's antlers (...) Ada's Argus had not yet been
>> delivered.
>> The
>> gloomy black gloss of the hackney Yak (...) He saw her off - and
>> ascended, like
>> a Cartesian glassman, like spectral Time standing at attention, back
>> to
>> his
>> desolate fifth floor.
>>
>>
>>
>> other references to Argus:
>>
>> 1. "Neither of them could imagine the partings that her professional
>> existence
>> 'on location' might necessitate, and neither could imagine their
>> traveling
>> together to Argus-eyed destinations and living together in Hollywood,
>> U.S.A.,
>> or Ivydell, England(...)
>>
>> 2. Today is Monday, July 14, 1922, five-thirteen p.m. by my wrist
>> watch,
>> eleven
>> fifty-two by my car's built-in clock, four-ten by all the timepieces
>> in
>> town
>> (...)He started working his way west in a dark-blue Argus, dearer to
>> him
>> than
>> sapphires and morphos because she happened to have ordered an exactly
>> similar
>> one to be ready for her in Geneva.
>>
>> Jansy Mello
>>
>> ----- End forwarded message -----
>>
> ---------------------------------
>
> Dear List,
>
>
>
> There is always a surprise in store when re-reading Ada. Today I
> realized
> the reference to Argus/Penelope/Faithfulness and our Greek homecoming
> Ulysses. When Van and Ada prepare for their last encounter ( the
> "balcony
> scene at the Three Swans"), after which they will no longer separete,
> they
> almost don´t make it because " Ada´s Argus had not yet been delivered"
> (
> Ada was not ready?) and she invited to depart to Greece instead. And
> added
> emphasis about faithful/unfaithful comes with the repeated reference to
> "saw off" ( C. husband´s antlers and a good-bye )
>
>
>
> I promise to get in touch with you in a day or two, and then we'll go
> on a
> cruise to Greece with the Baynards -- they have a yacht and three
> adorable
> daughters who still swim in the tan, okay?'(...) veterinaries had had
> to
> saw off her husband's antlers (...) Ada's Argus had not yet been
> delivered. The gloomy black gloss of the hackney Yak (...) He saw her
> off
> -- and ascended, like a Cartesian glassman, like spectral Time standing
> at
> attention, back to his desolate fifth floor.
>
>
>
> other references to Argus:
>
> 1. "Neither of them could imagine the partings that her professional
> existence 'on location' might necessitate, and neither could imagine
> their
> traveling together to Argus-eyed destinations and living together in
> Hollywood, U.S.A., or Ivydell, England(...)
>
> 2. Today is Monday, July 14, 1922, five-thirteen p.m. by my wrist
> watch,
> eleven fifty-two by my car's built-in clock, four-ten by all the
> timepieces in town (...)He started working his way west in a dark-blue
> Argus, dearer to him than sapphires and morphos because she happened to
> have ordered an exactly similar one to be ready for her in Geneva.
> Jansy Mello
>
>
>
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> ----- End forwarded message -----
>
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