Vladimir Nabokov

NABOKV-L post 0006704, Fri, 30 Aug 2002 19:57:01 -0700

Subject
Fw: refinement to alternate reading of Pale Fire
Date
Body
----- Original Message -----
From: "Carolyn Kunin" <chaiselongue@earthlink.net>
To: "Vladimir Nabokov Forum" <NABOKV-L@listserv.ucsb.edu>
Sent: Friday, August 30, 2002 8:23 AM
Subject: refinement to alternate reading of Pale Fire


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> ----------------- Message requiring your approval (31
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> To the list members,
>
> I misspoke when I said that the first appearance of the word "stroke"
occurs
> in Kinbote's note to "clockwork toy." The fourth canto of Shade's poem has
> that rather grisly shaving scene with its five, six, seven, eight, nine,
ten
> strokes. Does Shade's stroke happen at 10 o'clock?
>
> On further reflection, I also think that the reference to a gardener at
the
> end of the poem is to the toy/mememto mori, not to "Prince Balthazar,"
who,
> of course, is only a memory of that toy.
>
> I also now think that the commentary was written by Shade/Kinbote in the
> hospital, and the reference in the preface to "disjointed drafts none of
> which yields a definite text" refers to poem + commentary, which would
have
> been accessible to Shade's colleagues (with Sybil's concent) while he was
> hospitalized, of which fact the patient is apparently unaware.
>
> The preface reference to "Canto two, your favorite" is an intrusion of
> Shade's voice, and refers to Sybil.
>
> Also I think I failed to mention the interesting confusion expressed in
the
> "Shade" entry in the index in which "he" sometimes refers to Shade and
> sometimes to Kinbote.
>
> Canto four, which I found somewhat boring compared to the others, now
> becomes much more interesting.
>
> Carolyn Kunin
>
> p.s. Dr Sutton is probably Shade's psychiatrist.
>
>