Vladimir Nabokov

NABOKV-L post 0001206, Thu, 8 Aug 1996 18:05:07 -0700

Subject
VN Bibliography
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From: Nassim Berdjis <nwberdjis@ucdavis.edu>

I have received an ad from Fairleigh Dickinson University
Press with an order form for Andrew Brink, Obsession and Culture" A Study
of Sexual Obsession in Modern Fiction, 256 pages. ISBN 0-8386-3596-2.
$39.50. The book "proposes that male sexual obsessions are the driving
force of culture and are most clearly seen in fiction. Examples could be
multiplied many times, but the main objectives of this study are to show
how the work of five male authors coheres within a framework of
psychodynamic theory and to stimulate enquiry along these lines." The
blurb then refers to H.G. Wells's "Ann Veronica" and
"The New Machiavelli," Hermann Hesse's "Steppenwolf," Vladimir Nabokov's
"Lolita," John Fowles's "The Collector" and "Daniel Martin," and John
Updike's "Couples." With regard to Nabokov, it says that "Vladimir
Nabokov's 'Lolita' is a fictional unburdening of Nabokov's long
fascination with men who crave sex with prepubescent girls. The 'Lolita'
theme has pervaded culture, raising questions about the stability of
society's taboo against pedophilia."