Subject
Evgeni Nabokov and "Prince Igor"?
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I came across several photographs of hockey player Evgeni Nabokov aparelled in sportive full glory.
Although the picture I selected is practically unrelated to Vladimir Nabokov, his regal armour, in its voluminous whites, golds and reds, reminded me of certain depictions of "Prince Igor." The defensive costumes (EN's and Igor's)struck me as belonging to the category of coincidences...(I wonder if the modern world Evgeni Nabokov would be flattered by this comparison.*)
"The Song of Igor's Campaign" was translated into English by Nabokov in 1960.
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* A breakfast-reader's experience with V.N's translation of this poem (signed by "Hamilton" at http://daughterofben.wordpress.com/2013/02/26/not-so-heroic-prince-igor/) makes a reference to the Kalevala, but not to the debates about its sources and authenticity. I cannot remember what was Kinbote's opinion about ancient epics, but he does express a few misgivings,mainly directed at the reception by their genteel readers...
Not-so heroic Prince Igor.
26 February 2013 Tags: breakfast reading, Nabokov.
"I spent much of last year reading a lot of medieval poems over breakfast - with the exception of the last month or so when Russian writers have snuck in a place at the table. The Song of Igor's Campaign neatly covers both. I'm a bit out of my depth on this one, so I don't really know how to comment on it. The poem is a relatively short one for the genre (861 lines in Nabokov's translation) and stylistically a cross between the Finnish epic Kalevala and other heroic songs. The central figures in Song of Roland and Song of the Cid, however, are errant in all the different meanings of that word, but are more or less celebrated and admired. Prince Igor, in contrast, seems very much an anti-hero. I'm interested in finding other representations of him in Russian literature. Nabokov, however, presents him as the leader of a disastrous and unnecessary campaign which ended in the defeat of his army and the subsequent invasion of parts of Russia, and ultimately sums him up: "History remembers Igor as an insignificant, shifty, and pugnacious prince (74n2)."
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Although the picture I selected is practically unrelated to Vladimir Nabokov, his regal armour, in its voluminous whites, golds and reds, reminded me of certain depictions of "Prince Igor." The defensive costumes (EN's and Igor's)struck me as belonging to the category of coincidences...(I wonder if the modern world Evgeni Nabokov would be flattered by this comparison.*)
"The Song of Igor's Campaign" was translated into English by Nabokov in 1960.
...................................................................................................................................
* A breakfast-reader's experience with V.N's translation of this poem (signed by "Hamilton" at http://daughterofben.wordpress.com/2013/02/26/not-so-heroic-prince-igor/) makes a reference to the Kalevala, but not to the debates about its sources and authenticity. I cannot remember what was Kinbote's opinion about ancient epics, but he does express a few misgivings,mainly directed at the reception by their genteel readers...
Not-so heroic Prince Igor.
26 February 2013 Tags: breakfast reading, Nabokov.
"I spent much of last year reading a lot of medieval poems over breakfast - with the exception of the last month or so when Russian writers have snuck in a place at the table. The Song of Igor's Campaign neatly covers both. I'm a bit out of my depth on this one, so I don't really know how to comment on it. The poem is a relatively short one for the genre (861 lines in Nabokov's translation) and stylistically a cross between the Finnish epic Kalevala and other heroic songs. The central figures in Song of Roland and Song of the Cid, however, are errant in all the different meanings of that word, but are more or less celebrated and admired. Prince Igor, in contrast, seems very much an anti-hero. I'm interested in finding other representations of him in Russian literature. Nabokov, however, presents him as the leader of a disastrous and unnecessary campaign which ended in the defeat of his army and the subsequent invasion of parts of Russia, and ultimately sums him up: "History remembers Igor as an insignificant, shifty, and pugnacious prince (74n2)."
Search archive with Google:
http://www.google.com/advanced_search?q=site:listserv.ucsb.edu&HL=en
Contact the Editors: mailto:nabokv-l@utk.edu,nabokv-l@holycross.edu
Visit Zembla: http://www.libraries.psu.edu/nabokov/zembla.htm
View Nabokv-L policies: http://web.utk.edu/~sblackwe/EDNote.htm
Visit "Nabokov Online Journal:" http://www.nabokovonline.com
Manage subscription options: http://listserv.ucsb.edu/
