Vladimir Nabokov

NABOKV-L post 0017723, Sat, 21 Feb 2009 14:15:26 -0300

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[NABOKOV-L] Sighting (celadon eyes; light of my life)
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I wondered how common were certain apparently simple associations of words, created by Nabokov, to warrant a "sighting" when they appear in another author's work, or if they are then merely unrelated recurring images.

1. Celadon eyes ( RLSK and "a cat with celadon eyes") could indicate John Dryden's play Astrea ( through her lover, Celadon), Chinese blue-green porcelain and, after Eric Rohmer's movie Celadon et Astrée, fashionable items such as brands of wine [Cf. 2005 Topanga Vineyards, 'Celadon',CA: a shadowy girl with smoky celadon eyes as frigid as glacier ice ( files.meetup.com/397296/Nectar_wine_glass_list_marina.pdf0.] or make-up [ Celadon Pure Eyes Matte Eyeshadow: A rich mid-deep toned green matte shadow...]

2. Light of my life ( Lolita ) with its whiff of tango. There are several songs in Portuguese titled "Luz da minha vida" (Bosco & Vinicius and two other country music lyrics) and in Spanish "Luz de Mi Vida" Cf. www.metrolyrics.com/luz-de-mi-vida-lyrics-los-lobos.html ;cifras.clickgratis.com.br/marcos_witt_-_gospel/luz_de_mi_vida-18269.html; letras.terra.com.br/patricia-sosa/495645/
The most surprising is the "Gospel" by Marcos Witt: "Luz de mi vida, aliento en mi ser/ tu amor me consume, es fuego en mi ser/ y nada podrá apagar este amor/ Luz de mi vida eres tú/ al contemplarte te quiero adorar, tu voz seduce mi voluntad/ tú eres mi primer amor, y yo anhelo tu gloria en mí", also because it mentions "light of my life/ fire in my being (fuego en mi ser)"

The curious sighting/references (?) I came across today came from Dean Koontz: "From the Corner of his Eye" ( 2000 Bantam Books):
1. "A man with beautiful celadon eyes, his face beaded with jewels of rain, reached through the cut-away door and removed the blanket from Agnes." (p.59)
2."Get this through your head, you shit-for-brains. I lost a daughter, a precious daughter, my Naomi, the light of my life." (p.169).

I haven't yet progressed enough and wonder if I will go on but these two references stood out in its initial chapters. The new-born hero is called Bartholomew ( is there also something in common with Lolita's and Pnin's St.Bart?)



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