I traced drinking through the story. Although the trail began as a way to follow culture and examine communion between characters, alcohol and intoxication begins to completely encompass Humbert's state of mind near the end of the account.
At the beginning, alcohol is not very prevalent, although it appears on the first page, as Humber’s father “sold wine”(Nabokov, 9). It’s clear Humbert’s absolute obsession with Annabell and the Lolita is a kind of intoxication, many times similar to drunkness. On page 26, Humbert discusses how in Europe they ate many times at a resteraunt “where there were wine stains on the table cloth and a good deal of foreign babble”(Nabokov, 26). This contributes to the presence of alcohol in Humbert’s surroundings and his fondness for it, although it is in a very normal and casual setting. two pages later, the man his wife is leaving Humbert for “ordered wine”(Nabokov, 28), trying to preserve a sense of normalcy and politeness amid the awkward situation. Again, when Mrs. Humbert realizes his obession with Lo, H scrambles to restore the situation. “I opened a bottle of Schotch. She could never resist Scotch”(Nabokov, 96). Alcohol begins to be the social grease, a tool for him. Only three pages later “I was so drunk that I slept as soundly as the child who had slept in that bed.”(Nabokov, 99). Alcohol as a desperation, as a crutch. When he finally traps Lo at the hotel, almost immediately he notes “In common parlance, I needed a drink”(Nabokov, 125). Later in the story, alcohol becomes more present as Humbert’s countenance begins to slip. As his relationship with Lolita lengthens, his portrayal that she is actually obedient and fine with his abuse begins to fade, and we see Lolita as rebellious, emotionally distant, and altogether odd. Humbert drinks more and more, only mentioning it in certain spots, but contributing to the overarching motif that he drinks very very frequently. For example, when he reluctantly lets Lo have a party at the house, “I had drunk a little too much in preparation for the ideal”(Nabokov, 198). Obviously no responsible adult gets wasted before their daughter’s friends come over. On page 209, although he claims it is a joke, he even threatens her, (“The tour of your thigh, you know, should not exceed seventeen and a half inches. More might b fatal”(Nabokov, 209)) something he would have never done a year before. His paranoia also plays into his drinking, his deadly sense that Lo is conniving against him. Intoxication of alcohol and jealousy begin a dangerous cycle for him, revealing a more animalistic persona than he puts on in his show at the beginning. Eventually this culminates when H pulls over, “Lo looked up with a semi-smile of surprise and without a word I delivered a tremendous backhand cut that caught her smack on her hot hard little cheek bone”(Nabokov, 227). Although H had always been demanding in bed, this is the first time he physically abuses her out of pure anger that he admits. He begins to hallucinate Trapp everywhere, and when Cue replaces him in tennis it is too much for him to take, causing him to vomit and “lay in a lounge chair swallowing pony upon pony of gin”(Nabokov, 238). Next, when Lo gets sick and he has to take her to the hospital, he is drunk. This begs the question of how much driving does he do while drunk. At the hospital, he reflects “knowing I was drunk, I decided to withhold the information till later if necessary”(Nabokov, 240). The next day, “I was shivering, and boozing, and dying in the hotel bed she had used”(Nabokov, 244). He recognizes he is very sick, intoxicated, and even hallucinating, yet drives the next day to see her, desperate “sideswiped a parked car… the gin kept my heart alive but bemazed my brain, and after some lapses and losses common to dream sequences, I found myself in the reception room, trying to beat up the doctor, and roaring at people under chairs…”(Nabokov, 246). At this point his drunkenness has overtaken him. He has lost all sense of that humorous, sly poet from before and is now erratic. He goes off the deep end, hunts trapp, hires a detective, and then is lost, until he meets Rita. Although he doesn’t specifically say it, the next two years are spent with her mostly in a drunken haze, after he picks her up at “a darkishly burning bar under the sign of the Tigermoth, where she was amiably drunk”(Nabokov, 258). As he hunts down Trapp, then meets Dolly and hunts down Quincy, he is essentially drunk the whole time, even if it is not specifically mentioned. At the climax of it all, when he reaches the Manor, he announces “The elaborate and decrepit house seemed to stand in a kind of daze, reflecting as it were my own state, for I could not help realizing, as my feet touched the springy and insecure ground, that I had overdone the alcoholic stimulation business”(Nabokov, 293). Keeping his incessant intoxication in mind, H.H.’s character develops further, establishing a man that is not who he claims at the beginning, and is in fact hopelessly depressed, ashamed, and in love with forbidden fruit he spoiled himself. Alcohol's effect on Humbert is crucial to understanding his actions and complements his irrationality with a self-confident rigor. His isolation is heightened and adds to the drama of his pitiful cross-country escapade, haunting his own demons. Ultimately, it pokes the holes in his appeal to the jury, and proves that he is truly insane, not simply to be pitied as a man afflicted but to be avoided as a twisted soul.
At the beginning, alcohol is not very prevalent, although it appears on the first page, as Humber’s father “sold wine”(Nabokov, 9). It’s clear Humbert’s absolute obsession with Annabell and the Lolita is a kind of intoxication, many times similar to drunkness. On page 26, Humbert discusses how in Europe they ate many times at a resteraunt “where there were wine stains on the table cloth and a good deal of foreign babble”(Nabokov, 26). This contributes to the presence of alcohol in Humbert’s surroundings and his fondness for it, although it is in a very normal and casual setting. two pages later, the man his wife is leaving Humbert for “ordered wine”(Nabokov, 28), trying to preserve a sense of normalcy and politeness amid the awkward situation. Again, when Mrs. Humbert realizes his obession with Lo, H scrambles to restore the situation. “I opened a bottle of Schotch. She could never resist Scotch”(Nabokov, 96). Alcohol begins to be the social grease, a tool for him. Only three pages later “I was so drunk that I slept as soundly as the child who had slept in that bed.”(Nabokov, 99). Alcohol as a desperation, as a crutch. When he finally traps Lo at the hotel, almost immediately he notes “In common parlance, I needed a drink”(Nabokov, 125). Later in the story, alcohol becomes more present as Humbert’s countenance begins to slip. As his relationship with Lolita lengthens, his portrayal that she is actually obedient and fine with his abuse begins to fade, and we see Lolita as rebellious, emotionally distant, and altogether odd. Humbert drinks more and more, only mentioning it in certain spots, but contributing to the overarching motif that he drinks very very frequently. For example, when he reluctantly lets Lo have a party at the house, “I had drunk a little too much in preparation for the ideal”(Nabokov, 198). Obviously no responsible adult gets wasted before their daughter’s friends come over. On page 209, although he claims it is a joke, he even threatens her, (“The tour of your thigh, you know, should not exceed seventeen and a half inches. More might b fatal”(Nabokov, 209)) something he would have never done a year before. His paranoia also plays into his drinking, his deadly sense that Lo is conniving against him. Intoxication of alcohol and jealousy begin a dangerous cycle for him, revealing a more animalistic persona than he puts on in his show at the beginning. Eventually this culminates when H pulls over, “Lo looked up with a semi-smile of surprise and without a word I delivered a tremendous backhand cut that caught her smack on her hot hard little cheek bone”(Nabokov, 227). Although H had always been demanding in bed, this is the first time he physically abuses her out of pure anger that he admits. He begins to hallucinate Trapp everywhere, and when Cue replaces him in tennis it is too much for him to take, causing him to vomit and “lay in a lounge chair swallowing pony upon pony of gin”(Nabokov, 238). Next, when Lo gets sick and he has to take her to the hospital, he is drunk. This begs the question of how much driving does he do while drunk. At the hospital, he reflects “knowing I was drunk, I decided to withhold the information till later if necessary”(Nabokov, 240). The next day, “I was shivering, and boozing, and dying in the hotel bed she had used”(Nabokov, 244). He recognizes he is very sick, intoxicated, and even hallucinating, yet drives the next day to see her, desperate “sideswiped a parked car… the gin kept my heart alive but bemazed my brain, and after some lapses and losses common to dream sequences, I found myself in the reception room, trying to beat up the doctor, and roaring at people under chairs…”(Nabokov, 246). At this point his drunkenness has overtaken him. He has lost all sense of that humorous, sly poet from before and is now erratic. He goes off the deep end, hunts trapp, hires a detective, and then is lost, until he meets Rita. Although he doesn’t specifically say it, the next two years are spent with her mostly in a drunken haze, after he picks her up at “a darkishly burning bar under the sign of the Tigermoth, where she was amiably drunk”(Nabokov, 258). As he hunts down Trapp, then meets Dolly and hunts down Quincy, he is essentially drunk the whole time, even if it is not specifically mentioned. At the climax of it all, when he reaches the Manor, he announces “The elaborate and decrepit house seemed to stand in a kind of daze, reflecting as it were my own state, for I could not help realizing, as my feet touched the springy and insecure ground, that I had overdone the alcoholic stimulation business”(Nabokov, 293). Keeping his incessant intoxication in mind, H.H.’s character develops further, establishing a man that is not who he claims at the beginning, and is in fact hopelessly depressed, ashamed, and in love with forbidden fruit he spoiled himself. Alcohol's effect on Humbert is crucial to understanding his actions and complements his irrationality with a self-confident rigor. His isolation is heightened and adds to the drama of his pitiful cross-country escapade, haunting his own demons. Ultimately, it pokes the holes in his appeal to the jury, and proves that he is truly insane, not simply to be pitied as a man afflicted but to be avoided as a twisted soul.
Well Nyar/Demarco Murray/Ryan Prestangen,
ReplyDeleteLet me say that I’m deeply impressed with the way you were able to both analyze and emotionally connect with this text. As a person who doesn’t necessarily read for quality prose, I’ve scoffed at my sister and other friends who have told me that Lolita was worth reading because the “writing is beautiful,” but, through this reading, I’ve become convinced that I was mistaken in my rush to judgment. Your snippets of excerpts, very well chosen, and descriptions of Nabokov’s writing as “vivid and precise,” of Nabokov “creating a world in which nothing from reality exists” (I’d love for you to expand more on that point, for the sake of my curiosity), make it seem quite appealing.
I think in the first blog post, you got so caught up in the writing and style that you skirted around some more meaningful conclusions. How could I blame you for that? For all of our discussions of “remaining aloof” and cold to characters so we can analyze them from afar, there’s something to be said for being moved by art, and, judging by your responses, it seems (or at least, I hope) that you were by this novel. Besides, you started to delve into deeper subtexts in the later blog posts, discussing the duality of the “sick” nature and pitiful insanity of Humbert Humbert, intertextuality to Catcher in the Rye (which, by the way, I think you’ve convinced me to reread), and, best of all, the discussion of the use of French as a tool for humor/irony for Nabokov. Moving beyond this accumulation of details and patterns though, is there an overarching meaning, do you think, to this text; are there any clear themes? Perhaps the answer is no, but I’d like to know what you think.
As we’ve talked about, there is a level of haphazardness to your blog posts, they are lacking in an organized and precise structure, most end up referring back to similar points about the character of Humbert Humbert (though, since that’s central to the story, that’s not that bad). That’s definitely an area to improve in for next quarter. But don’t hold this against yourself. You made some awesome points of analysis and traced alcohol and the descent of Humbert Humbert into insanity in a model way. I think I want Lolita to be, if not my 2nd Quarter Independent Reading, then my 3rd, and I hope I can have the reverence for Nabokov’s creation and the analytical skills that you showed in here.
-Ben Foutty