Speak, Memory by Vladamir Nabokov

Through an exploration of the boundaries between social constraint and inner compulsion, Melville and Chekov reveal the restrictions forced upon one’s personal desires as they struggle to find a balance between conflicting values and social norms. Anna and Gurov in ‘The Lady with the Dog’ are restrained by the socially expected conventions in their marriages, inhibiting their ability to express their inner compulsion of desire. Chekov reveals their yearning to escape their individual lives as they cope with personal troubles by distancing themselves from marriage

Pale Fire has spawned a wide variety of interpretations and a large body of written criticism, which Finnish literary scholar Pekka Tammi estimated in 1995 as more than 80 studies.(Wiki) Although no “correct” interpretation exists, a strong case can be made for interpreting the novel in terms of Kinbote’s insanity. His mental decline, paired with his academic unfulfillment, sparked by harsh criticism by his colleagues leads him to murder John Shade in order to obtain the author’s most recent poem and redeem himself through its thoughtful commentary and analysis. This interpretation entails that the world of Zembla is entirely fictional and the comically careless assassin Gradus is nothing more but an impersonation of Kinbote’s delirious

Vladimir Nabokov was born to Vladimir Dmitrievich Nabokov, the leader of the pre-Revolutionary liberal Constitutional Democratic Party (Kadets) in Russia, and Yelena Ivanovna née Rukavishnikova, the granddaughter of a millionaire coal-mine founder. Nabokov had 4 younger siblings, Sergey, Elena, Kiril, and Olga. Sergey was killed in a concentration camp for speaking out against Hitler. Elena was later said to have been his favorite sister, as she had published a book with Nabokov. Growing up in an aristocratic family, Nabokov rode to school in a Rolls

Throughout his novel Everything Flows, Vasily Grossman provides numerous occasions for defining freedom. In the midst of attempting to give meaning to freedom, Grossman greatly invests in wrestling with the issue of why freedom is still absent within Russia although the country has seen success in many different ways. Through the idea and image of the Revolution stems Capitalism, Leninism, and Stalinism. Grossman contends that freedom is an inexorable occurrence and that “to live means to be free”, that it is simply the nature of human kind to be free (200-204). The lack of freedom expresses a lack of humanity in Russia, and though freedom never dies, if freedom does not exist in the first place, then it has no chance to be kept alive. Through Grossman’s employment of the Revolution and the ideas that stem from it, he illustrates why freedom is still absent from Russian society, but more importantly why the emergence of freedom is inevitable.

Bulgakov deals with the interplay of innocence and guilt, good and evil, courage and cowardice. Mysticism, black magic, satire and romance all wraped up into an incredible twist.

“Memories are inside me-they’re not things or a place-I can take them anywhere.” writes Olivia Newton-John. Memories are significant in the novel Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson, as well as in the two pieces of literature, The Third and Final Continent by Jhumpa Lahiri and The Art of Resilience by Hara Estroff Marano. In the novel, Speak, horrific memories give Melinda troubling conflicts. The text in The Third and Final Continent, little things symbolize big changes in people’s lives. Finally, The Art of Resilience states that one’s memories are used to seek hidden powers inside themselves, which may show a recurring message. In each of the passages, memories show recurring messages, symbolize growth, and show character conflicts. The

Nabokov used conflict in the story to enhance the theme. For example, the son is constantly conflicted with himself and his surroundings because he believes that natural and man-made objects are conspiring against him. He imagines that clouds exchange detailed information about him and at night the

In Lolita, by Vladimir Nabokov, the main character Humbert Humbert writes a memoir of the rape, incest, and murder he becomes involved in. Throughout the novel the chaos is swept under a carpet that consists of manipulative and linguistic trickery. Instantly in the foreword, the author opens up calling the novel Lolita the “Confession of a White Widowed Male” as an attempt to highlight Humbert’s good side, being a husband, rather than explaining why the novel is named after a girl Humbert raped. Humbert addresses Dolores as Lolita and a nymphet, labels assigned to enable control and possession over her. Meticulous word choice allows Humbert to beguile the audience in a similar manner to the way he manipulated Lolita. Humbert becomes manipulative and feeds off of sympathy that strengthens his reason for committing these immoral acts. Lolita, narrated by Humbert, is being contorted to present Humbert as the victim. Humbert plays victim and the audiences’ reactions are predictable to him. Using this to his advantage, on top of his manipulative strategies, allows Humbert control over the emotions evoked while reading the memoir. Without uncovering the manipulative and linguistic puns Humbert provides, the audience will be at risk of forgetting the reason why Humbert is on trial in the first place.

The book relies on your knowing about Nabokov. The book’s origin within periodical journalism accounts for its episodic quality, a convenient analog for the fragmentary way in which memory actually works. Instead of following a strictly chronological line, the memoir unfolds like the images of a lantern slide, with poetical portraits of Nabokov’s mother, father, uncle, teachers, and other figures from his childhood. Better are his detailed portraits of his many tutors, whether admired or hated. Fairly early in the book Nabokov spends pages and pages creating an exquisite picture of the vast figure of Mademoiselle, his childhood nanny, everything detailed, from her voice to her chins, then he reverses course and says: Did I get her all wrong? Is she a fiction? Who but Nabokov could get away

In literature, the structure and narrative style of a text plays a vital role in how it functions thematically throughout the overall text. It helps in identifying and contributing to the book's main ideas. Nabokov's classic novel, Lolita is a perfect example. Lolita is Nabokov's most famous and controversial novel. But despite the overwhelming criticism that it received when it was first published in 1955, Lolita still serves as one of the most skillfully written novels of its time. If one looks past the pedophilia and vulgar language, it becomes pure genius, if it's not already. Although many people dismiss Lolita as purely disgusting, the use of sophisticated language and an omniscient narrator helps to deceive the reader from the text's

Mikhail Bulgakov’s imaginative novel, The Master and Margarita has been considered to be one of the best novels of the twentieth century. The Master and Margarita has focused on Bulgakov’s cosmology and how the events of the novel can be seen as a mirror of his world view. One of the characters, Ivan Nikolayevich Ponyrev appears in the very first chapter of the novel as a very young, antichristian poet and also in the “Epilogue” as a wiser historian and philosopher. In terms of Ivan’s role, he is a transmitter of the Master’s messages and also the elaboration of Bulgakov’s vision of history. (add more details)

After his encounter with Nastenka, the narrator finds contentment for the happiness he gains from not being lonely. Dostoyevsky portrays his belief that hope is not necessary for existence because the narrator gains satisfaction from reminiscing on happy memories of the past. He juxtaposes the lofty, idealistic thoughts of the narrator to the more grounded thoughts of Nastenka to emphasize the difference of character between the two. This departure that the author creates through juxtaposition shows the narrator’s belief that the definition of hope is fluid based on differences of personal perspective and thus the value of hope as a moral value varies in importance among different individuals. The narrator values hope for the future less than the satisfaction he gains from the past, so he gains fulfillment through reflection with no expectation for the

In the lecture titled Fathers and Children—Turgenev and the Liberal Predicament, Isaiah Berlin draws our attention to Turgenev's ambivalent attitude towards the hero of the novel, Bazarov. Turgenev is no doubt fascinated by Bazarov's destructive energy, and yet remains unable to stand firmly on Bazarov's side. Bazarov is not a revolutionist dreaming to build a utopian empire on the ruin of existing orders—he does not care to analyse what is it that he swears to destroy—but is a self-proclaimed nihilist vowing to clear the ground. The author almost wishes that the sheer force in Bazarov could be smoothened, be tempered and be steered to something constructive; but in his attempt to reshape Bazarov by subjecting him to the ordeal of love, he finds himself with no other choice but to shatter Bazarov altogether. Love ties one to the mundane in life at the present moment and renders one vulnerable to all the sentimentalism that a nihilist should contempt. Consequently a Bazarov in love must die.

Despite Pavel being the one to actively challenge Bazarov, the disagreements revolve around disputing the nihilistic philosophy itself; Nikolai’s character is Bazarov’s true opposite. His romantic philosophy depicts the strong contrast between the two different views and hence the essence of the novel. This is accomplished with Nikolai’s love for nature, poetry, appreciation of beauty in the simple things, such as art and music with his leisure practice of the cello, his character seeks the active implementation of the prior definition of romanticism in his life. Despite Nikolai’s willing accepting attitude towards the new generation Bazarov still perceives Nikolai as an unprogressive individual and even subtly criticizing him to Arkady saying “His quoting poetry isn’t up to much and he doesn’t understand a great deal about estate management but he’s a good sort.”(18) The quotation illustrates more insight on Bazarov’s character, despite that he just arrives as a guest, he already begins inspecting imperfections of the setting around him. As Bazarov is a figure of admiration for Arkady, and Arkady is on a journey of proving his own supposedly nihilist nature, Arkady tries to implement his views onto Nikolai in attempts of progressing him rather than understanding his father’s nature. Nevertheless Nikolai’s patience, love and devotion for his son

In the writing of their fictional works, novelists often have to reflect on the functioning of memory, for memory lies at the heart both of inner life and of human experience in general. It is indeed in the works of writers such as Marcel Proust or Jorge Luis Borges that the best exemplifications of the subjective experience of memory are to be found. However, from a strictly mnemonic point of view, literature provides more than a means of reflecting on memory: it is also the site of the rebirth and construction of individual and collective memories, which can then serve as a foundation