Subject
Re: Nabokov on Tolstoy's timing in "Anna Karenina"
From
Date
Body
JM: How do you interpret Nabokov's observation about "relativity in literature"?
LT: There are other strange time asynchronizations between the plot lines in AK. Alexandrov, for instance, singles out several major knots of what he calls a “consistent temporal discontinuity between the major plot lines”, such as the timing of the fateful ball in Moscow, Anna’s becoming Vronsky’s lover, the steeplechase event, Kitty-Levin’s wedding and Anna-Vronsky’s leaving for Italy, and the list is still incomplete. To account for some discrepancies, Nabokov invents a “good Nabokovian term - time-team,” and he is very convincing in supporting his invention by describing the ‘spiritual’ union of Levin and Kitty as “the Milky Way” of the novel.” However, a ‘happy’ newlywed and father, Levin “feared suicide,” and he “was several times so close to suicide that he hid the rope lest he hang himself with it, and was afraid to go about with a rifle lest he shoot himself.” In my opinion, these ‘consistent temporal discontinuities’ help Tolstoy to prevent Levin and Anna from socializing (he grants them only one meeting), which is not easy since they not only belong to the same social circle but are in-law relatives. The two main protagonists seem to be strangely disconnected, and unhappy in their own way. As is well known, Tolstoy did not believe in marriage bliss.
On 26.3.2012, at 19.15, Jansy wrote:
> Ljuba Tarvi - "Nabokov insists in both Pnin and Lectures that “The action of the book starts in February, 1872, and goes on to July, 1876: in all, four years and a half” (Lectures, 148). A careful examinations of the novel makes, however, it possible to argue that the action starts in ‘mid-winter’, either in December 1873 or in January 1874, and goes on till the unquestionable (the Crimean war) end in July 1876, which reduces Nabokov’s timing by at least two years. As can be argued, not only the year of the beginning, which is 1874 rather than 1872, and not only the month, which is December rather than February, but even the day, which might be Thursday rather than Friday, could be disputed.Sorry for self-reference: Ljuba Tarvi, 2010. «В поисках замкового камня: загадки времени в «Анне Карениной» Толстого» [In Search of the Key Stone: Time Riddles in Tolstoy's «Anna Karenina»]. Helsinki: Literarus (3) 2011, 93-96.
>
> JM: How do you interpret Nabokov's observation about "relativity in literature" when he returns to the theme, when Pnin adds:" 'You will notice,' he said, 'that there is a significant difference between Lyovin's spiritual time and Vronski's physical one. In mid book, Lyovin and Kitty lag behind Vronski and Anna by a whole year. When, on a Sunday evening in May 1876, Anna throws herself under that freight train, she has existed more than four years since the beginning of the novel, but in the case of the Lyovins, during the same period, 1872 to 1876, hardly three years have elapsed. It is the best example of relativity in literature that is known to me'." ? The discrepancy between "physical and spiritual time" that engenders the aforementioned relativity might have arisen simply because Nabokov chose to ignore the different arguments about Tolstoy's novel timing?
> Google Search the archive Contact the Editors Visit "Nabokov Online Journal" Visit Zembla View Nabokv-L Policies Manage subscription options Visit AdaOnline View NSJ Ada Annotations Temporary L-Soft Search the archive
> All private editorial communications are read by both co-editors.
>
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/