When Hugh Person (the main character in VN¡¯s novel Transparent Things, 1972) visits Villa Nastia and rings the bell, nobody answers the door:

 

A little farther, an interval in the stone wall revealed a short flight of stairs and the door of a whitewashed bungalow signed Villa Nastia in French cursive. As happens so often in R.'s fiction, "nobody answered the bell." (chapter 12)

 

In VN¡¯s novel Lolita (1955) nobody answers the bell, when Humbert Humbert visits Mrs. Richard F. Schiller (Lolita¡¯s married name) in Coalmont:

 

I got out of the car and slammed its door. How matter-of-fact, how square that slam sounded in the void of the sunless day! Woof, commented the dog perfunctorily. I pressed the bell button, it vibrated through my whole system. Personne. Je resonne. Repersonne. From what depth this re-nonsense? Woof, said the dog. A rush and a shuffle, and woosh-woof went the door. (2.29)

 

Personne (Fr., nobody) and repersonne both have Person in them. In the Russian version (1967) of Lolita VN translates repersonne as nikovnov¡¯ (nikogo, ¡°nobody,¡± + vnov¡¯, ¡°again¡±):

 

§Á §ß§Ñ§Ø§Ñ§Ý §ß§Ñ §Ü§ß§à§á§Ü§å §Ù§Ó§à§ß§Ü§Ñ; §Ö§Ô§à §Ó§Ú§Ò§â§Ñ§è§Ú§ñ §á§â§à§ê§Ý§Ñ §á§à §Ó§ã§Ö§Þ§å §Þ§à§Ö§Þ§å §ã§à§ã§ä§Ñ§Ó§å. Personne: §ß§Ú§Ü§à§Ô§à. Je resonne, repersonne: §Ù§Ó§à§ß§ð §Ó§ß§à§Ó§î, §ß§Ú§Ü§à§Ó§ß§à§Ó§î. §°§ä§Ü§å§Õ§Ñ, §Ú§Ù §Ü§Ñ§Ü§Ú§ç §Ô§Ý§å§Ò§Ú§ß §ï§ä§à§ä §Ó§Ù§Õ§à§â-§á§à§Ó§ä§à§â? (2.29)

 

Vnov¡¯ and nikovnov¡¯ both have nov¡¯ (virgin soil) in them. Nov¡¯ (1877) is a novel by Turgenev. The characters in Turgenev¡¯s story Chasy (¡°The Watch,¡± 1875) include Nastasey Nastaseich, the narrator¡¯s godfather who gives the boy a silver watch as a name-day present. The action in Turgenev¡¯s story takes place in Ryazan:

 

§¥§Ö§Ý§à §á§â§à§Ú§ã§ç§à§Õ§Ú§Ý§à §Ó §ã§Ñ§Þ§à§Þ §ß§Ñ§é§Ñ§Ý§Ö §ß§í§ß§Ö§ê§ß§Ö§Ô§à §ã§ä§à§Ý§Ö§ä§Ú§ñ, §Ó 1801 §Ô§à§Õ§å. §®§ß§Ö §ä§à§Ý§î§Ü§à §é§ä§à §á§à§ê§×§Ý §ê§Ö§ã§ä§ß§Ñ§Õ§è§Ñ§ä§í§Û §Ô§à§Õ. §¨§Ú§Ý §ñ §Ó §²§ñ§Ù§Ñ§ß§Ú, §Ó §Õ§Ö§â§Ö§Ó§ñ§ß§ß§à§Þ §Õ§à§Þ§Ú§Ü§Ö, §ß§Ö§Õ§Ñ§Ý§Ö§Ü§à §à§ä §Ò§Ö§â§Ö§Ô§Ñ §°§Ü§Ú ¡ª §Ó§Þ§Ö§ã§ä§Ö §ã §à§ä§è§à§Þ, §ä§×§ä§Ü§à§Û §Ú §Õ§Ó§à§ð§â§à§Õ§ß§í§Þ §Ò§â§Ñ§ä§à§Þ.

 

It happened at the very beginning of this century, in 1801. I had just reached my sixteenth year. I was living at Ryazan in a little wooden house not far from the bank of the river Oka with my father, my aunt and my cousin. (chapter I)

 

Madame Chamar (n¨¦e Anastasia Petrovna Potapov, Armande¡¯s mother in TT) is the daughter of a wealthy cattle dealer from Ryazan:

 

Madame Charles Chamar, n¨¦e Anastasia Petrovna Potapov (a perfectly respectable name that her late husband garbled as "Patapouf"), was the daughter of a wealthy cattle dealer who had emigrated with his family to England from Ryazan via Kharbin and Ceylon soon after the Bolshevist revolution. (chapter 12)

 

In Lolita Humbert Humbert marries the girl¡¯s mother in order to get access to her twelve-year-old daughter. In Transparent Things Mr. R. debauched his step-daughter, Julia Moore, when she was thirteen:

 

A famous bar next to the theater proved hopelessly crowded and "in the radiance of an Edenic simplification of mores" (as R. wrote in another connection) our Person took the girl to his flat. Unwisely he wondered - after a too passionate kiss in the taxi had led him to spill a few firedrops of impatience - if he would not disappoint the expectations of Julia, who according to Phil had been debauched at thirteen by R. right at the start of her mother's disastrous marriage. (chapter 11)

 

The name of R.¡¯s step-daughter hints at Romeo and Juliet. In Turgenev¡¯s story Posle smerti (¡°After Death,¡± 1883) Aratov recalls his dream in which he kissed Klara Milich (the girl who committed suicide because of unrequited love for him) and thinks that even Romeo and Julia never knew such a kiss:

 

§´§à§Ý§î§Ü§à... §é§ä§à §Ø§Ö §Þ§à§Ø§Ö§ä §Ó§í§Û§ä§Ú §Ú§Ù §ä§Ñ§Ü§à§Û §Ý§ð§Ò§Ó§Ú? §£§ã§á§à§Þ§Ú§ß§Ñ§Ý §à§ß §ä§à§ä §á§à§è§Ö§Ý§å§Û... §Ú §é§å§Õ§ß§í§Û §ç§à§Ý§à§Õ §Ò§í§ã§ä§â§à §Ú §ã§Ý§Ñ§Õ§Ü§à §á§â§à§Ò§Ö§Ô§Ñ§Ý §á§à §Ó§ã§Ö§Þ §Ö§Ô§à §é§Ý§Ö§ß§Ñ§Þ. "§´§Ñ§Ü§Ú§Þ §á§à§è§Ö§Ý§å§Ö§Þ, - §Õ§å§Þ§Ñ§Ý§à§ã§î §Ö§Þ§å, - §Ú §²§à§Þ§Ö§à §Ú §¥§Ø§å§Ý§î§Ö§ä§ä§Ñ §ß§Ö §Þ§Ö§ß§ñ§Ý§Ú§ã§î! §¯§à §Ó §Õ§â§å§Ô§à§Û §â§Ñ§Ù §ñ §Ý§å§é§ê§Ö §Ó§í§Õ§Ö§â§Ø§å... §Á §Ò§å§Õ§å §à§Ò§Ý§Ñ§Õ§Ñ§ä§î §Ö§ð... §°§ß§Ñ §á§â§Ú§Õ§×§ä §Ó §Ó§Ö§ß§Ü§Ö §Ú§Ù §Þ§Ñ§Ý§Ö§ß§î§Ü§Ú§ç §â§à§Ù §ß§Ñ §é§×§â§ß§í§ç §Ü§å§Õ§â§ñ§ç...

§¯§à §Ü§Ñ§Ü §Ø§Ö §Õ§Ñ§Ý§î§ê§Ö? §£§Ö§Õ§î §Ó§Þ§Ö§ã§ä§Ö §Ø§Ú§ä§î §ß§Ñ§Þ §ß§Ö§Ý§î§Ù§ñ §Ø§Ö? §³§ä§Ñ§Ý§à §Ò§í§ä§î, §Þ§ß§Ö §á§â§Ú§Õ§Ö§ä§ã§ñ §å§Þ§Ö§â§Ö§ä§î, §é§ä§à§Ò§í §Ò§í§ä§î §Ó§Þ§Ö§ã§ä§Ö §ã §ß§Ö§ð? §¯§Ö §Ù§Ñ §ï§ä§Ú§Þ §Ý§Ú §à§ß§Ñ §á§â§Ú§ç§à§Õ§Ú§Ý§Ñ ¡ª §Ú §ß§Ö §ä§Ñ§Ü §Ý§Ú §à§ß§Ñ §ç§à§é§Ö§ä §Þ§Ö§ß§ñ §Ó§Ù§ñ§ä§î?

 

Only . . . what could come of such love? He recalled that kiss . . . and a delicious shiver ran swiftly and sweetly through all his limbs. ¡®Such a kiss,¡¯ was his thought, ¡®even Romeo and Juliet knew not! But next time I will be stronger¡­ I will possess her¡­ She shall come with a wreath of tiny roses in her dark curls.

¡®But what next? We cannot live together, can we? Then must I die so as to be with her? Is it not for that she has come; and is it not so she means to take me captive? (chapter XVIII)

 

In TT Hugh Person and Armande kiss for the first time after they had sex in the woods:

 

"Well, bad luck," she said finally but as she twisted against him trying to draw up her tights, he regained all at once the power to do what was expected of him. "One will go home now," she remarked immediately afterwards in her usual neutral tone, and in silence they continued their brisk downhill walk.

At the next turn of the trail the first orchard of Witt appeared at their feet, and farther down one could see the glint of a brook, a lumberyard, mown fields, brown cottages.

"I hate Witt," said Hugh. "I hate life. I hate myself. I hate that beastly old bench." She stopped to look the way his fierce finger pointed, and he embraced her. At first she tried to evade his lips but he persisted desperately. All at once she gave in, and the minor miracle happened. A shiver of tenderness rippled her features, as a breeze does a reflection. Her eyelashes were wet, her shoulders shook in his clasp. That moment of soft agony was never to be repeated - or rather would never be granted the time to come back again after completing the cycle innate in its rhythm; yet that brief vibration in which she dissolved with the sun, the cherry trees, the forgiven landscape, set the tone for his new existence with its sense of "all-is-well" despite her worst moods, her silliest caprices, her harshest demands. That kiss, and not anything preceding it, was the real beginning of their courtship. (chapter 15)

 

In Turgenev¡¯s story Aratov in his deathbed delirium calls himself Romeo:

 

§£ §á§â§Ö§Õ§ã§Þ§Ö§â§ä§ß§à§Þ §Ò§â§Ö§Õ§å §¡§â§Ñ§ä§à§Ó §ß§Ñ§Ù§í§Ó§Ñ§Ý §ã§Ö§Ò§ñ §²§à§Þ§Ö§à... §á§à§ã§Ý§Ö §à§ä§â§Ñ§Ó§í; §Ô§à§Ó§à§â§Ú§Ý §à §Ù§Ñ§Ü§Ý§ð§é§×§ß§ß§à§Þ, §à §ã§à§Ó§Ö§â§ê§×§ß§ß§à§Þ §Ò§â§Ñ§Ü§Ö; §à §ä§à§Þ, §é§ä§à §à§ß §Ù§ß§Ñ§Ö§ä §ä§Ö§á§Ö§â§î, §é§ä§à §ä§Ñ§Ü§à§Ö §ß§Ñ§ã§Ý§Ñ§Ø§Õ§Ö§ß§Ú§Ö.

 

In the delirium that preceded his death, Aratov spoke of himself as Romeo . . . after the poison; spoke of marriage, completed and perfect; of his knowing now what rapture meant. (chapter XVIII)

 

Hugh Person strangles Armande in a dream in which he dreams of Giulia Romeo, a girl whom he wants to save from falling out of the window:

 

His chance bedmate had flung the window wide open. Oh, who was she? She came from the past - a streetwalker he had picked up on his first trip abroad, some twenty years ago, a poor girl of mixed parentage, though actually American and very sweet, called Giulia Romeo, the surname means "pilgrim" in archaic Italian, but then we all are pilgrims, and all dreams are anagrams of diurnal reality. He dashed after her to stop her from jumping out. The window was large and low; it had a broad sill padded and sheeted, as was customary in that country of ice and fire. Such glaciers, such dawns! Giulia, or Julie, wore a Doppler shift over her luminous body and prostrated herself on the sill, with outspread arms still touching the wings of the window. (1.20)

 

In his essay on Turgenev (in ¡°The Silhouettes of Russian Writers¡±) Ayhenvald compares Turgenev¡¯s heroes to Podkolyosin, the main character in Gogol¡¯s play Zhenit¡¯ba (¡°The Marriage,¡± 1842) who at the last moment jumps out of the window:

 

§ª §Ö§ã§Ý§Ú §á§Ý§Ö§ß§ñ§ð§ä §à§ä§Õ§Ö§Ý§î§ß§í§Ö §ã§è§Ö§ß§í §Ý§ð§Ò§Ó§Ú, §Ö§ã§Ý§Ú §ß§Ñ §Ó§ã§ð §Ø§Ú§Ù§ß§î §Ñ§â§à§Þ§Ñ§ä§ß§í§Þ §Ó§à§ã§á§à§Þ§Ú§ß§Ñ§ß§Ú§Ö§Þ §à§ã§ä§Ñ§ð§ä§ã§ñ §Ù§Ö§Ý§×§ß§í§Ö §â§à§ë§Ú §¬§å§ß§è§Ö§Ó§Ñ §Ú §ä§Ñ §é§Ñ§ã§à§Ó§Ö§ß§Ü§Ñ, §Ô§Õ§Ö §å§Ù§Ü§å§ð, §â§à§Ù§à§Ó§å§ð §â§å§Ü§å §¦§Ý§Ö§ß§í §è§Ö§Ý§à§Ó§Ñ§Ý §ª§ß§ã§Ñ§â§à§Ó, §ä§à §Ó §à§Ò§ë§Ö§Þ §Ô§Ö§â§à§Ú §´§å§â§Ô§Ö§ß§Ö§Ó§Ñ §ß§Ö §ã§ä§à§Ý§î§Ü§à §Ó§Ý§ð§Ò§Ý§Ö§ß§í, §ã§Ü§à§Ý§î§Ü§à §Ó§Ý§ð§Ò§é§Ú§Ó§í, §Ú §Ó §Ú§ç §é§å§Ó§ã§ä§Ó§Ö §ß§Ö§ä §Õ§Ñ§Ø§Ö §ã§ä§â§Ñ§ã§ä§ß§à§Û §é§å§Ó§ã§ä§Ó§Ö§ß§ß§à§ã§ä§Ú, §Ñ §Ö§ã§ä§î §ã§Ö§â§Õ§Ö§é§ß§Ñ§ñ §ã§Ý§Ñ§Ò§à§ã§ä§î, §Ú §á§à§é§ä§Ú §Ó§ã§Ö §Ö§Ô§à §Þ§å§Ø§é§Ú§ß§í §ã§Ó§à§Ö§Û §ã§å§ë§Ö§ã§ä§Ó§Ö§ß§ß§à§Û §é§Ö§â§ä§à§Û §Ú§Þ§Ö§ð§ä §Ø§Ö§ß§à§Ý§ð§Ò§Ú§Ö, §Ü§à§ä§à§â§à§Ö §ã§à§Ö§Õ§Ú§ß§ñ§Ö§ä§ã§ñ §Ó §ä§à §Ø§Ö §Ó§â§Ö§Þ§ñ §ã §Ü§Ñ§Ü§Ú§Þ-§ä§à §á§à§Õ§Ü§à§Ý§×§ã§Ú§ß§ã§ä§Ó§à§Þ - §Ø§Ö§Ý§Ñ§ß§Ú§Ö§Þ §Ó §â§Ö§ê§Ú§ä§Ö§Ý§î§ß§å§ð §Þ§Ú§ß§å§ä§å §Ó§í§á§â§í§Ô§ß§å§ä§î §Ó §à§Ü§ß§à.

 

In his article on Turgenev's story Asya (1858), Russkiy chelovek na randevu (¡°A Russian Man at a Rendezvous,¡± 1858), Chernyshevski compares the anonymous narrator and Asya to Romeo and Juliet:

 

§®§í §Ó§Ú§Õ§Ú§Þ §²§à§Þ§Ö§à, §Þ§í §Ó§Ú§Õ§Ú§Þ §¥§Ø§å§Ý§î§Ö§ä§ä§å, §ã§é§Ñ§ã§ä§î§ð §Ü§à§ä§à§â§í§ç §ß§Ú§é§ä§à §ß§Ö §Þ§Ö§ê§Ñ§Ö§ä, §Ú §á§â§Ú§Ò§Ý§Ú§Ø§Ñ§Ö§ä§ã§ñ §Þ§Ú§ß§å§ä§Ñ, §Ü§à§Ô§Õ§Ñ §ß§Ñ§Ó§Ö§Ü§Ú §â§Ö§ê§Ú§ä§ã§ñ §Ú§ç §ã§å§Õ§î§Ò§Ñ,-- §Õ§Ý§ñ §ï§ä§à§Ô§à §²§à§Þ§Ö§à §Õ§à§Ý§Ø§Ö§ß §ä§à§Ý§î§Ü§à §ã§Ü§Ñ§Ù§Ñ§ä§î: "§Á §Ý§ð§Ò§Ý§ð §ä§Ö§Ò§ñ, §Ý§ð§Ò§Ú§ê§î §Ý§Ú §ä§í §Þ§Ö§ß§ñ?" §ª §¥§Ø§å§Ý§î§Ö§ä§ä§Ñ §á§â§à§ê§Ö§á§é§Ö§ä: "§¥§Ñ..." §ª §é§ä§à §Ø§Ö §Õ§Ö§Ý§Ñ§Ö§ä §ß§Ñ§ê §²§à§Þ§Ö§à (§ä§Ñ§Ü §Þ§í §Ò§å§Õ§Ö§Þ §ß§Ñ§Ù§í§Ó§Ñ§ä§î §Ô§Ö§â§à§ñ §á§à§Ó§Ö§ã§ä§Ú, §æ§Ñ§Þ§Ú§Ý§Ú§ñ §Ü§à§ä§à§â§à§Ô§à §ß§Ö §ã§à§à§Ò§ë§Ö§ß§Ñ §ß§Ñ§Þ §Ñ§Ó§ä§à§â§à§Þ §â§Ñ§ã§ã§Ü§Ñ§Ù§Ñ), §ñ§Ó§Ú§Ó§ê§Ú§ã§î §ß§Ñ §ã§Ó§Ú§Õ§Ñ§ß§Ú§Ö §ã §¥§Ø§å§Ý§î§Ö§ä§ä§à§Û?

 

In Part Four of VN¡¯s novel Dar (¡°The Gift,¡± 1937), Zhizn¡¯ Chernyshevskogo (¡°The Life of Chernyshevski¡±), Turgenev is mentioned:

 

§¦§ã§ä§î, §Ö§ã§ä§î §Ü§Ý§Ñ§ã§ã§à§Ó§í§Û §Õ§å§ê§à§Ü §Ó §à§ä§ß§à§ê§Ö§ß§Ú§Ú §Ü §¹§Ö§â§ß§í§ê§Ö§Ó§ã§Ü§à§Þ§å §â§å§ã§ã§Ü§Ú§ç §á§Ú§ã§Ñ§ä§Ö§Ý§Ö§Û, §ã§à§Ó§â§Ö§Þ§Ö§ß§ß§í§ç §Ö§Þ§å. §´§å§â§Ô§Ö§ß§Ö§Ó, §¤§â§Ú§Ô§à§â§à§Ó§Ú§é, §´§à§Ý§ã§ä§à§Û §ß§Ñ§Ù§í§Ó§Ñ§Ý§Ú §Ö§Ô§à "§Ü§Ý§à§á§à§Ó§à§ß§ñ§ð§ë§Ú§Þ §Ô§à§ã§á§à§Õ§Ú§ß§à§Þ", §Ó§ã§ñ§é§Ö§ã§Ü§Ú §Þ§Ö§Ø§Õ§å §ã§à§Ò§à§Û §ß§Ñ§Õ §ß§Ú§Þ §Ú§Ù§Þ§í§Ó§Ñ§ñ§ã§î. §¬§Ñ§Ü §ä§à §Ó §³§á§Ñ§ã§ã§Ü§à§Þ §á§Ö§â§Ó§í§Ö §Õ§Ó§à§Ö, §Ó§Þ§Ö§ã§ä§Ö §ã §¢§à§ä§Ü§Ú§ß§í§Þ §Ú §¥§â§å§Ø§Ú§ß§Ú§ß§í§Þ, §ã§à§é§Ú§ß§Ú§Ý§Ú §Ú §â§Ñ§Ù§í§Ô§â§Ñ§Ý§Ú §Õ§à§Þ§Ñ§ê§ß§Ú§Û §æ§Ñ§â§ã. §£ §ã§è§Ö§ß§Ö, §Ô§Õ§Ö §Ô§à§â§Ú§ä §á§à§ã§ä§Ö§Ý§î, §Ó§â§í§Ó§Ñ§Ý§ã§ñ §´§å§â§Ô§Ö§ß§Ö§Ó §ã §Ü§â§Ú§Ü§à§Þ... §à§Ò§ë§Ú§Þ§Ú §Õ§â§å§Ø§Ö§ã§Ü§Ú§Þ§Ú §å§ã§Ú§Ý§Ú§ñ§Þ§Ú §Ö§Ô§à §å§Ô§à§Ó§à§â§Ú§Ý§Ú §á§â§à§Ú§Ù§ß§Ö§ã§ä§Ú §á§â§Ú§á§Ú§ã§í§Ó§Ñ§Ö§Þ§í§Ö §Ö§Þ§å §ã§Ý§à§Ó§Ñ, §Ü§à§ä§à§â§í§Þ§Ú §Ó §Þ§à§Ý§à§Õ§à§ã§ä§Ú §à§ß §à§Õ§ß§Ñ§Ø§Õ§í §Ò§å§Õ§ä§à §Ò§í §à§Ò§Þ§à§Ý§Ó§Ú§Ý§ã§ñ §Ó§à §Ó§â§Ö§Þ§ñ §á§à§Ø§Ñ§â§Ñ §ß§Ñ §Ü§à§â§Ñ§Ò§Ý§Ö: "§³§á§Ñ§ã§Ú§ä§Ö, §ã§á§Ñ§ã§Ú§ä§Ö, §ñ §Ö§Õ§Ú§ß§ã§ä§Ó§Ö§ß§ß§í§Û §ã§í§ß §å §Þ§Ñ§ä§Ö§â§Ú". §ª§Ù §ï§ä§à§Ô§à §æ§Ñ§â§ã§Ñ §Ó§á§à§Ý§ß§Ö §Ò§Ö§Ù§Õ§Ñ§â§ß§í§Û §¤§â§Ú§Ô§à§â§à§Ó§Ú§é §Ó§á§à§ã§Ý§Ö§Õ§ã§ä§Ó§Ú§Ú §ã§Õ§Ö§Ý§Ñ§Ý §ã§Ó§à§ð (§Ó§á§à§Ý§ß§Ö §á§Ý§à§ã§Ü§å§ð) "§º§Ü§à§Ý§å §Ô§à§ã§ä§Ö§á§â§Ú§Ú§Þ§ã§ä§Ó§Ñ", §ß§Ñ§Õ§Ö§Ý§Ú§Ó §à§Õ§ß§à §Ú§Ù §Ý§Ú§è, §Ø§Ö§Ý§é§ß§à§Ô§à §Ý§Ú§ä§Ö§â§Ñ§ä§à§â§Ñ §¹§Ö§â§ß§å§ê§Ú§ß§Ñ, §é§Ö§â§ä§Ñ§Þ§Ú §¯§Ú§Ü§à§Ý§Ñ§ñ §¤§Ñ§Ó§â§Ú§Ý§à§Ó§Ú§é§Ñ: §Ü§â§à§ä§à§Ó§í§Ö §Ô§Ý§Ñ§Ù§Ñ, §ã§Þ§à§ä§â§Ö§Ó§ê§Ú§Ö §Ü§Ñ§Ü §ä§à §Ó§Ò§à§Ü, §å§Ù§Ü§Ú§Ö §Ô§å§Ò§í, §á§â§Ú§á§Ý§ð§ã§ß§å§ä§à§Ö, §ã§Ü§à§Þ§Ü§Ñ§ß§ß§à§Ö §Ý§Ú§è§à, §â§í§Ø§Ö§Ó§Ñ§ä§í§Ö §Ó§à§Ý§à§ã§í, §Ó§Ù§Ò§Ú§ä§í§Ö §ß§Ñ §Ý§Ö§Ó§à§Þ §Ó§Ú§ã§Ü§Ö §Ú §ï§Ó§æ§Ö§Þ§Ú§é§Ö§ã§Ü§Ú§Û §Ù§Ñ§á§Ñ§ã §á§Ö§â§Ö§Ø§Ø§×§ß§ß§à§Ô§à §â§à§Þ§Ñ. §­§ð§Ò§à§á§í§ä§ß§à, §é§ä§à §á§â§Ö§ã§Ý§à§Ó§å§ä§í§Û §Ó§Ù§Ó§Ú§Ù§Ô ("§³§á§Ñ§ã§Ú§ä§Ö" §Ú §ä. §Õ.) §Õ§Ñ§ß §Ü§Ñ§Ü §â§Ñ§Ù §¹§Ö§â§ß§å§ê§Ú§ß§å, §é§Ö§Þ §á§à§à§ë§â§ñ§Ö§ä§ã§ñ §Þ§í§ã§Ý§î §³§ä§â§Ñ§ß§ß§à§Ý§ð§Ò§ã§Ü§à§Ô§à §à §Ü§Ñ§Ü§à§Û §ä§à §Þ§Ú§ã§ä§Ú§é§Ö§ã§Ü§à§Û §ã§Ó§ñ§Ù§Ú §Þ§Ö§Ø§Õ§å §¹§Ö§â§ß§í§ê§Ö§Ó§ã§Ü§Ú§Þ §Ú §´§å§â§Ô§Ö§ß§Ö§Ó§í§Þ. "§Á §á§â§à§é§×§Ý §Ö§Ô§à §à§ä§Ó§â§Ñ§ä§Ú§ä§Ö§Ý§î§ß§å§ð §Ü§ß§Ú§Ô§å (§Õ§Ú§ã§ã§Ö§â§ä§Ñ§è§Ú§ð), -- §á§Ú§ê§Ö§ä §á§à§ã§Ý§Ö§Õ§ß§Ú§Û §Ó §á§Ú§ã§î§Þ§Ö §Ü §ä§à§Ó§Ñ§â§Ú§ë§Ñ§Þ §á§à §ß§Ñ§ã§Þ§Ö§ê§Ü§Ö. -- §²§Ñ§Ü§Ñ! §²§Ñ§Ü§Ñ! §²§Ñ§Ü§Ñ! §£§í §Ù§ß§Ñ§Ö§ä§Ö, §é§ä§à §å§Ø§Ñ§ã§ß§Ö§Ö §ï§ä§à§Ô§à §Ö§Ó§â§Ö§Û§ã§Ü§à§Ô§à §á§â§à§Ü§Ý§ñ§ä§Ú§ñ §ß§Ö§ä §ß§Ú§é§Ö§Ô§à §ß§Ñ §ã§Ó§Ö§ä§Ö". "§ª§Ù §ï§ä§à§Ô§à "§â§Ñ§Ü§Ñ", §ã§å§Ö§Ó§Ö§â§ß§à §Ù§Ñ§Þ§Ö§é§Ñ§Ö§ä §Ò§Ú§à§Ô§â§Ñ§æ, §á§à§Ý§å§é§Ú§Ý§ã§ñ §ã§Ö§Þ§î §Ý§Ö§ä §ã§á§å§ã§ä§ñ §²§Ñ§Ü§Ö§Ö§Ó (§Ø§Ñ§ß§Õ§Ñ§â§Þ§ã§Ü§Ú§Û §á§à§Ý§Ü§à§Ó§ß§Ú§Ü, §Ñ§â§Ö§ã§ä§à§Ó§Ñ§Ó§ê§Ú§Û §á§â¨®§Ü§Ý§ñ§ä§à§Ô§à), §Ñ §ã§Ñ§Þ§à§Ö §á§Ú§ã§î§Þ§à §Ò§í§Ý§à §´§å§â§Ô§Ö§ß§Ö§Ó§í§Þ §ß§Ñ§á§Ú§ã§Ñ§ß§à §Ü§Ñ§Ü §â§Ñ§Ù 12-§Ô§à §Ú§ð§Ý§ñ §Ó §Õ§Ö§ß§î §â§à§Ø§Õ§Ö§ß§Ú§ñ §¹§Ö§â§ß§í§ê§Ö§Ó§ã§Ü§à§Ô§à"... (§ß§Ñ§Þ §Ü§Ñ§Ø§Ö§ä§ã§ñ, §é§ä§à §³§ä§â§Ñ§ß§ß§à§Ý§ð§Ò§ã§Ü§Ú§Û §á§Ö§â§Ö§Ò§Ñ§â§ë§Ú§Ó§Ñ§Ö§ä).

 

There was quite definitively a smack of class arrogance about the attitudes of contemporary wellborn writers toward plebeian Chernyshevski. Turgenev, Grigorovich and Tolstoy called him ¡°the bedbugstinking gentleman¡± and among themselves jeered at him in all kinds of ways. Once at Turgenev¡¯s country place, the first two, together with Botkin and Druzhinin, composed and acted a domestic farce. In a scene where a couch was supposed to catch fire, Turgenev had to come out running with the cry¡­ here the common efforts of his friends had persuaded him to utter the unfortunate words which in his youth he had allegedly addressed to a sailor during a fire on board ship: ¡°Save me, save me, I am my mother¡¯s only son.¡± Out of this farce the utterly talentless Grigorovich subsequently concocted his completely mediocre School of Hospitality, where he endowed one of the characters, the splenetic writer Chernushin, with the features of Nikolay Gavrilovich: mole¡¯s eyes looking oddly askance, thin lips, a flattened, crumpled face, gingery hair fluffed up on the left temple and a euphemistic stench of burnt rum. It is curious that the notorious wail (¡°Save me,¡± etc.) is attributed here to Chernushin, which gives color to Strannolyubski¡¯s idea that there was a kind of mystic link between Turgenev and Chernyshevski. ¡°I have read his disgusting book [the dissertation]¡± writes the former in a letter to his fellow mockers. ¡°Raca! Raca! Raca! You know that there is nothing in the world more terrible than this Jewish curse.¡±

This ¡®raca¡¯ or ¡®raka,¡¯ ¡± remarks the biographer superstitiously, ¡°resulted seven years later in Rakeev (the police colonel who arrested the anathematized man), and the letter itself had been written by Turgenev on precisely the 12th of July, Chernyshevski¡¯s birthday ¡­¡± (it seems to us that Strannolyubski is stretching it a bit).

 

The characters in ¡°The Life of Chernyshevski¡± include Potapov, the chief of the Third Department:

 

5 §Ú§ð§Ý§ñ §Ö§Þ§å §á§â§Ú§ê§Ý§à§ã§î §á§à §á§à§Ó§à§Õ§å §ã§Ó§à§Ö§Û §Ø§Ñ§Ý§à§Ò§í §á§à§Ò§í§Ó§Ñ§ä§î §Ó §ä§â§Ö§ä§î§Ö§Þ §à§ä§Õ§Ö§Ý§Ö§ß§Ú§Ú. §±§à§ä§Ñ§á§à§Ó, §ß§Ñ§é§Ñ§Ý§î§ß§Ú§Ü §à§ß§à§Ô§à, §à§ä§Ü§Ý§à§ß§Ú§Ý §Ö§Ô§à §Õ§à§Þ§à§Ô§Ñ§ä§Ö§Ý§î§ã§ä§Ó§à, §ã§Ü§Ñ§Ù§Ñ§Ó, §é§ä§à, §á§à §Ö§Ô§à §ã§Ó§Ö§Õ§Ö§ß§Ú§ñ§Þ, §å§Ý§Ñ§ß §Ô§à§ä§à§Ó §Ú§Ù§Ó§Ú§ß§Ú§ä§î§ã§ñ. §´§à§Ô§Õ§Ñ §¹§Ö§â§ß§í§ê§Ö§Ó§ã§Ü§Ú§Û §ã§å§ç§à
§à§ä§Ü§Ñ§Ù§Ñ§Ý§ã§ñ §à§ä §Ó§ã§ñ§Ü§Ú§ç §á§â§Ú§ä§ñ§Ù§Ñ§ß§Ú§Û §Ú, §á§Ö§â§Ö§Þ§Ö§ß§Ú§Ó §â§Ñ§Ù§Ô§à§Ó§à§â, §ã§á§â§à§ã§Ú§Ý: "§³§Ü§Ñ§Ø§Ú§ä§Ö, -- §Ó§à§ä §ñ §ä§â§Ö§ä§î§Ö§Ô§à §Õ§ß§ñ §à§ä§á§â§Ñ§Ó§Ú§Ý §ã§Ö§Þ§î§ð §Ó §³§Ñ§â§Ñ§ä§à§Ó, §Ú §ã§Ñ§Þ §ã§à§Ò§Ú§â§Ñ§ð§ã§î §ä§å§Õ§Ñ §ß§Ñ §à§ä§Õ§í§ç ("§³§à§Ó§â§Ö§Þ§Ö§ß§ß§Ú§Ü" §å§Ø§Ö §Ò§í§Ý §Ù§Ñ§Ü§â§í§ä) ; §ß§à §Ö§ã§Ý§Ú §Þ§ß§Ö §ß§å§Ø§ß§à §Ò§å§Õ§Ö§ä §å§Ó§Ö§Ù§ä§Ú §Ø§Ö§ß§å §Ù§Ñ§Ô§â§Ñ§ß§Ú§è§å, §ß§Ñ §Ó§à§Õ§í, -- §à§ß§Ñ, §Ó§Ú§Õ§Ú§ä§Ö §Ý§Ú §ã§ä§â§Ñ§Õ§Ñ§Ö§ä §ß§Ö§â§Ó§Ú§é§Ö§ã§Ü§Ú§Þ§Ú §Ò§à§Ý§ñ§Þ§Ú, -- §Þ§à§Ô§å §Ý§Ú §Ó§í§Ö§ç§Ñ§ä§î §Ò§Ö§ã§á§â§Ö§á§ñ§ä§ã§ä§Ó§Ö§ß§ß§à?" "§²§Ñ§Ù§å§Þ§Ö§Ö§ä§ã§ñ, §Þ§à§Ø§Ö§ä§Ö", -- §Õ§à§Ò§â§à§Õ§å§ê§ß§à §à§ä§Ó§Ö§ä§Ú§Ý §±§à§ä§Ñ§á§à§Ó; §Ñ §é§Ö§â§Ö§Ù §Õ§Ó§Ñ §Õ§ß§ñ §á§â§à§Ú§Ù§à§ê§Ö§Ý §Ñ§â§Ö§ã§ä.

 

On July 5th he had to visit the Secret Police Department in connection with his complaint. Potapov, its chief, refused his petition, saying that according to his information the Uhlan was prepared to apologize. Chernyshevski curtly renounced any claims and changing the subject asked: ¡°Tell me, the other day I sent my family off to Saratov and am preparing myself to go there for a rest [The Contemporary had already been closed]; but if I should need to take my wife abroad, to a spa¡ªyou see she suffers from nervous pains¡ªcould I leave without hindrance?¡± ¡°Of course you could,¡± replied Potapov good-naturedly; and two days later the arrest took place.

 

In Transparent Things Potapov is the maiden name of Armande¡¯s mother. In VN¡¯s novel Pale Fire (1962) July 5 is Shade¡¯s, Kinbote¡¯s and Gradus¡¯ birthday (Shade was born in 1898, Kinbote and Gradus were born in 1915). Shade¡¯s, Kinbote¡¯s and Gradus¡¯ ¡°real¡± name seems to be Botkin.

 

While Jakob Gradus (Shade¡¯s murderer in Pale Fire) has the same first name as Yakov Aratov (the main character in Turgenev¡¯s ¡°After Death,¡± a story also known as Klara Milich), Klara Milich brings to mind Klara (a character in VN¡¯s novel Mashenka, 1926), Clare Bishop (in VN¡¯s novel The Real Life of Sebastian Knight, 1941, Sebastian¡¯s girlfriend) and Clare Quilty (Humbert Humbert¡¯s double in Lolita). In an attempt to save his life Quilty tries to seduce Humbert Humbert with his collection of erotica:

 

¡°Oh, another thing - you are going to like this. I have an absolutely unique collection of erotica upstairs. Just to mention one item: the in folio de-luxe Bagration Island by the explorer and psychoanalyst Melanie Weiss, a remarkable lady, a remarkable work - drop that gun - with photographs of eight hundred and something male organs she examined and measured in 1932 on Bagration, in the Barda Sea, very illuminating graphs, plotted with love under pleasant skies - drop that gun - and moreover I can arrange for you to attend executions, not everybody knows that the chair is painted yellow -¡± (2.35)

 

General Bagration was felled in the battle of Borodino. In Turgenev¡¯s story ¡°The Watch¡± Davyd (the narrator¡¯s cousin) dies in the battle of Borodino:

 

§£§à§ä §Ú §Ü§à§ß§Ö§è §Þ§à§Ö§Û §Ú§ã§ä§à§â§Ú§Ú §ã §é§Ñ§ã§Ñ§Þ§Ú. §¹§ä§à §Ö§ë§× §ã§Ü§Ñ§Ù§Ñ§ä§î §Ó§Ñ§Þ? §±§ñ§ä§î §Ý§Ö§ä §ã§á§å§ã§ä§ñ §¥§Ñ§Ó§í§Õ §Ø§Ö§ß§Ú§Ý§ã§ñ §ß§Ñ §ã§Ó§à§Ö§Û §¹§Ö§â§ß§à§Ô§å§Ò§Ü§Ö, §Ñ §Ó 1812 §Ô§à§Õ§å, §Ó §é§Ú§ß§Ö §Ñ§â§ä§Ú§Ý§Ý§Ö§â§Ú§Û§ã§Ü§à§Ô§à §á§à§â§å§é§Ú§Ü§Ñ, §á§à§Ô§Ú§Ò §ã§Ý§Ñ§Ó§ß§à§Û §ã§Þ§Ö§â§ä§î§ð §Ó §Õ§Ö§ß§î §¢§à§â§à§Õ§Ú§ß§ã§Ü§à§Û §Ò§Ú§ä§Ó§í, §Ù§Ñ§ë§Ú§ë§Ñ§ñ §º§Ö§Ó§Ñ§â§Õ§Ú§ß§ã§Ü§Ú§Û §â§Ö§Õ§å§ä.

 

So this is the end of my tale of the watch. What more have I to tell you? Five years after David was married to his Black-lip, and in 1812, as a lieutenant of artillery, he died a glorious death on the battlefield of Borodino in defence of the Shevardinsky redoubt. (chapter XXV)

 

In Gogol¡¯s Myortvye dushi (¡°Dead Souls¡± 1842) Sobakevich (one of the landowners visited by Chichikov) has a portrait of Bagration:

 

§£§à§ê§Ö§Õ §Ó §Ô§à§ã§ä§Ú§ß§å§ð, §³§à§Ò§Ñ§Ü§Ö§Ó§Ú§é §á§à§Ü§Ñ§Ù§Ñ§Ý §ß§Ñ §Ü§â§Ö§ã§Ý§Ñ, §ã§Ü§Ñ§Ù§Ñ§Ó§ê§Ú §à§á§ñ§ä§î: «§±§â§à§ê§å!» §³§Ñ§Õ§ñ§ã§î, §¹§Ú§é§Ú§Ü§à§Ó §Ó§Ù§Ô§Ý§ñ§ß§å§Ý §ß§Ñ §ã§ä§Ö§ß§í §Ú §ß§Ñ §Ó§Ú§ã§Ö§Ó§ê§Ú§Ö §ß§Ñ §ß§Ú§ç §Ü§Ñ§â§ä§Ú§ß§í. §¯§Ñ §Ü§Ñ§â§ä§Ú§ß§Ñ§ç §Ó§ã§× §Ò§í§Ý§Ú §Þ§à§Ý§à§Õ§è§í, §Ó§ã§× §Ô§â§Ö§é§Ö§ã§Ü§Ú§Ö §á§à§Ý§Ü§à§Ó§à§Õ§è§í, §Ô§â§Ñ§Ó§Ú§â§à§Ó§Ñ§ß§ß§í§Ö §Ó§à §Ó§Ö§ã§î §â§à§ã§ä: §®§Ñ§Ó§â§à§Ü§à§â§Õ§Ñ§ä§à §Ó §Ü§â§Ñ§ã§ß§í§ç §á§Ñ§ß§ä§Ñ§Ý§à§ß§Ñ§ç §Ú §Þ§å§ß§Õ§Ú§â§Ö, §ã §à§é§Ü§Ñ§Þ§Ú §ß§Ñ §ß§à§ã§å, §®§Ú§Ñ§å§Ý§Ú, §¬§Ñ§ß§Ñ§â§Ú. §£§ã§Ö §ï§ä§Ú §Ô§Ö§â§à§Ú §Ò§í§Ý§Ú §ã §ä§Ñ§Ü§Ú§Þ§Ú §ä§à§Ý§ã§ä§í§Þ§Ú §Ý§ñ§Ø§Ü§Ñ§Þ§Ú §Ú §ß§Ö§ã§Ý§í§ç§Ñ§ß§ß§í§Þ§Ú §å§ã§Ñ§Þ§Ú, §é§ä§à §Õ§â§à§Ø§î §á§â§à§ç§à§Õ§Ú§Ý§Ñ §á§à §ä§Ö§Ý§å. §®§Ö§Ø§Õ§å §Ü§â§Ö§á§Ü§Ú§Þ§Ú §Ô§â§Ö§Ü§Ñ§Þ§Ú, §ß§Ö§Ú§Ù§Ó§Ö§ã§ä§ß§à §Ü§Ñ§Ü§Ú§Þ §à§Ò§â§Ñ§Ù§à§Þ §Ú §Õ§Ý§ñ §é§Ö§Ô§à, §á§à§Þ§Ö§ã§ä§Ú§Ý§ã§ñ §¢§Ñ§Ô§â§Ñ§ä§Ú§à§ß, §ä§à§ë§Ú§Û, §ç§å§Õ§Ö§ß§î§Ü§Ú§Û, §ã §Þ§Ñ§Ý§Ö§ß§î§Ü§Ú§Þ§Ú §Ù§ß§Ñ§Þ§×§ß§Ñ§Þ§Ú §Ú §á§å§ê§Ü§Ñ§Þ§Ú §Ó§ß§Ú§Ù§å §Ú §Ó §ã§Ñ§Þ§í§ç §å§Ù§Ö§ß§î§Ü§Ú§ç §â§Ñ§Þ§Ü§Ñ§ç. §±§à§ä§à§Þ §à§á§ñ§ä§î §ã§Ý§Ö§Õ§à§Ó§Ñ§Ý§Ñ §Ô§Ö§â§à§Ú§ß§ñ §Ô§â§Ö§é§Ö§ã§Ü§Ñ§ñ §¢§à§Ò§Ö§Ý§Ú§ß§Ñ, §Ü§à§ä§à§â§à§Û §à§Õ§ß§Ñ §ß§à§Ô§Ñ §Ü§Ñ§Ù§Ñ§Ý§Ñ§ã§î §Ò§à§Ý§î§ê§Ö §Ó§ã§Ö§Ô§à §ä§å§Ý§à§Ó§Ú§ë§Ñ §ä§Ö§ç §ë§Ö§Ô§à§Ý§Ö§Û, §Ü§à§ä§à§â§í§Ö §ß§Ñ§á§à§Ý§ß§ñ§ð§ä §ß§í§ß§Ö§ê§ß§Ú§Ö §Ô§à§ã§ä§Ú§ß§í§Ö.

 

At length they reached the drawing-room, where Sobakevich pointed to an armchair, and invited his guest to be seated. Chichikov gazed with interest at the walls and the pictures. In every such picture there were portrayed either young men or Greek generals of the type of Movrogordato (clad in a red uniform and breaches), Kanaris, and others; and all these heroes were depicted with a solidity of thigh and a wealth of moustache which made the beholder simply shudder with awe. Among them there were placed also, according to some unknown system, and for some unknown reason, firstly, Bagration ¡ª tall and thin, and with a cluster of small flags and cannon beneath him, and the whole set in the narrowest of frames ¡ª and, secondly, the Greek heroine, Bobelina, whose legs looked larger than do the whole bodies of the drawing-room dandies of the present day. (chapter V)

 

In VN¡¯s novel Pnin (1957) Sobakevich is the Cockerells¡¯ cocker spaniel:

 

Brilliant Cockerell also told of the strange feud between Pnin and his compatriot Komarov--the mediocre muralist who had kept adding fresco portraits of faculty members in the college dining hall to those already depicted there by the great Lang. Although Komarov belonged to another political faction than Pnin, the patriotic artist had seen in Pnin's dismissal an anti-Russian gesture and had started to delete a sulky Napoleon that stood between young, plumpish (now gaunt) Blorenge and young, moustached (now shaven) Hagen, in order to paint in Pnin; and there was the scene between Pnin and President Poore at lunch--an enraged, spluttering Pnin losing all control over what English he had, pointing a shaking forefinger at the preliminary outlines of a ghostly muzhik on the wall, and shouting that he would sue the college if his face appeared above that blouse; and there was his audience, imperturbable Poore, trapped in the dark of his total blindness, waiting for Pnin to peter out and then asking at large: 'Is that foreign gentleman on our staff?' Oh, the impersonation was deliciously funny, and although Gwen Cockerell must have heard the programme many times before, she laughed so loud that their old dog Sobakevich, a brown cocker with a tear-stained face, began to fidget and sniff at me. (Chapter Seven, 6)

 

The name Sobakevich comes from sobaka (dog). Dogs play an important part in Lolita. In TT Hugh Person, on the evening of his death, moves to Floor Three (to room 313 where Armande once visited him) of the Ascot Hotel because of a little dog:

 

Mais! (a jot stronger than "but" or even "however") she had some good news for him. He had wanted to move to Floor Three, hadn't he? He could do so tonight. The lady with the little dog was leaving before dinner. It was a history rather amusing. It appeared that her husband looked after dogs when their masters had to absent themselves. The lady, when she voyaged herself, generally took with her a small animal, choosing from among those that were most melancholic. This morning her husband telephoned that the owner had returned earlier from his trip and was reclaiming his pet with great cries. (chapter 25)

 

Dama s sobachkoy (¡°The Lady with the Little Dog,¡± 1899) is a story by Chekhov. As he speaks to his daughter, Gurov (the story¡¯s main character) uses the phrases tri gradusa tepla (three degrees above zero) and na poverkhnosti zemli (close to the ground):

 

§°§Õ§ß§Ñ§Ø§Õ§í §à§ß §ê§×§Ý §Ü §ß§Ö§Û §ä§Ñ§Ü§Ú§Þ §à§Ò§â§Ñ§Ù§à§Þ §Ó §Ù§Ú§Þ§ß§Ö§Ö §å§ä§â§à (§á§à§ã§í§Ý§î§ß§í§Û §Ò§í§Ý §å §ß§Ö§Ô§à §ß§Ñ§Ü§Ñ§ß§å§ß§Ö §Ó§Ö§é§Ö§â§à§Þ §Ú §ß§Ö §Ù§Ñ§ã§ä§Ñ§Ý). §³ §ß§Ú§Þ §ê§Ý§Ñ §Ö§Ô§à §Õ§à§é§î, §Ü§à§ä§à§â§å§ð §ç§à§ä§Ö§Ý§à§ã§î §Ö§Þ§å §á§â§à§Ó§à§Õ§Ú§ä§î §Ó §Ô§Ú§Þ§ß§Ñ§Ù§Ú§ð, §ï§ä§à §Ò§í§Ý§à §á§à §Õ§à§â§à§Ô§Ö. §£§Ñ§Ý§Ú§Ý §Ü§â§å§á§ß§í§Û §Þ§à§Ü§â§í§Û §ã§ß§Ö§Ô.

¡ª §´§Ö§á§Ö§â§î §ä§â§Ú §Ô§â§Ñ§Õ§å§ã§Ñ §ä§Ö§á§Ý§Ñ, §Ñ §Þ§Ö§Ø§Õ§å §ä§Ö§Þ §Ú§Õ§×§ä §ã§ß§Ö§Ô, ¡ª §Ô§à§Ó§à§â§Ú§Ý §¤§å§â§à§Ó §Õ§à§é§Ö§â§Ú. ¡ª §¯§à §Ó§Ö§Õ§î §ï§ä§à §ä§Ö§á§Ý§à §ä§à§Ý§î§Ü§à §ß§Ñ §á§à§Ó§Ö§â§ç§ß§à§ã§ä§Ú §Ù§Ö§Þ§Ý§Ú, §Ó §Ó§Ö§â§ç§ß§Ú§ç §Ø§Ö §ã§Ý§à§ñ§ç §Ñ§ä§Þ§à§ã§æ§Ö§â§í §ã§à§Ó§ã§Ö§Þ §Õ§â§å§Ô§Ñ§ñ §ä§Ö§Þ§á§Ö§â§Ñ§ä§å§â§Ñ.

 

One winter morning he went to see her as usual (the messenger had been to him the evening before, but had not found him at home). His daughter was with him for her school was on the way, and he thought he might as well see her to it.

¡°It is three degrees above zero,¡± said Gurov to his daughter, ¡°and yet it is snowing. You see it is only above zero close to the ground, the temperature in the upper layers of the atmosphere is quite different.¡± (chapter IV)

 

Zemli is Gen. of zemlya (earth). In Pale Fire Kinbote (Shade¡¯s mad commentator) imagines that he is Charles the Beloved, the last self-exiled king of Zembla. According to Kinbote (note to Line 894), the name Zembla is a corruption not of the Russian zemlya, but of Semberland, a land of reflections, of ¡®resemblers.¡¯ In Lolita Humbert Humbert affirms that Quilty resembles his uncle Gustave Trapp. In his translation of Gustave Flaubert¡¯s La l¨¦gende de Saint-Julien l'hospitalier ("Saint Julian the Hospitalier," 1877) Turgenev mentions vsevozmozhnye zapadni (all sorts of traps):

 

§£§ã§Ö§Ó§à§Ù§Þ§à§Ø§ß§í§Ö §Ù§Ñ§á§Ñ§Õ§ß§Ú §Ò§í§Ý§Ú §Ù§Ñ§Ô§à§ä§à§Ó§Ý§Ö§ß§í §Ó §Ú§Ù§à§Ò§Ú§Ý§Ú§Ú: §Ú §ä§Ö§ß§×§ä§Ñ, §Ú §Ü§â§ð§Ü§Ú, §Ú §Ø§Ö§Ý§Ö§Ù§ß§í§Ö §Ý§à§Ó§å§ê§Ü§Ú, §Ú §á§à§Õ§Ó§Ú§Ø§ß§í§Ö §Ù§Ö§â§Ü§Ñ§Ý§î§è§Ñ §Õ§Ý§ñ §Ý§à§Ó§Ý§Ú §Ø§Ñ§Ó§à§â§à§ß§Ü§à§Ó.

 

Zapadni is plural of zapadnya (trap, snare). Zapadnya is the Russian title of Zola¡¯s novel L¡¯Assommoir (1877). Zola¡¯s article in defense of Dreyfus was entitled "J'accuse" (¡°I accuse,¡± 1898). Clare Quilty and his murderer, Humbert Humbert, are clearly guilty.

 

Alexey Sklyarenko

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