Vladimir Nabokov

NABOKV-L post 0021616, Fri, 13 May 2011 19:12:36 -0300

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Re: konskie deti
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Alexey Sklyarenko: "With glowing cheekbones and that glint of copper showing from under her tight rubber cap on nape and forehead, she [Lucette] evoked the Helmeted Angel of the Yukonsk Ikon whose magic effect was said to change anemic blond maidens into konskie deti, freckled red-haired lads, children of the Sun Horse. (Ada, Part Three, 5)"


JM: In Ada, Nabokov doesn't forget that Lucette is a "russet" and Red Veen's daughter, therefore she is already freckled and red-haired, but a lassie.
What could be the intention behind Nabokov's image that links Lucette's rubber cap and the magic helmet that changes a blonde into red-haired boy? ( or the powerful force allied to the Sun Horse lies only with the Yukonsk Ikon, not in the helmet alone?)

Alexey's quotes accompanied by translations are a treat. Thank you, AS. After you mentioned "The Sun Horse" and the Slavic Sun god, adding lines 108-110 from the "Slovo" ("with you, sons of Rus, I wish/ either to lay down my head/ or drink helmetful of the Don", I was reminded of a DVD with a curious version of the Arthurian legend ( 2004; directed by Antoine Fuqua), because it suggests that Arthur's and Gallahad's loyalties were to Samarkand. They often hailed each other yelling "To Rus" hoping to return home, after having served Rome for several years, in the distant shores of Britain. That interpretation was totally new to me.

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