Vladimir Nabokov

NABOKV-L post 0002092, Tue, 6 May 1997 15:01:35 -0700

Subject
Re: VN and the Shakespeare authorship "problem" (fwd)
Date
Body
---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Wed, 07 May 1997 01:53:22 +0400
To: Vladimir Nabokov Forum <NABOKV-L@UCSBVM.ucsb.edu>
Subject: Re: VN and the Shakespeare authorship "problem" (fwd)

From: "Peter A. Kartsev" <petr@glas.apc.org>


What immediately comes to mind is a poem, written in Dec. 1924 and
entitled "Shekspir", that is, "Shakespeare". It addresses the
anonymous, but obviously aristocratic, real author of the plays,
while mentioning that "thy works were habitually signed - for a
fee - by a money-lender, that Will Shakespeare who used to play
the Ghost in 'Hamlet'". It's one of my (many) favourite poems by VN.
I do hope it's been translated into English by himself or DN, but
I have no means for checking this right now.

The problem here is whether we should distinguish between the author
and the "I" of the poem. Elsewhere, I think Nabokov always referred
to the author of the plays very conventionally as Shakespeare, not
mentioning the authorship conundrum.

--
Peter A. Kartsev
Moscow, Russia
Phone: (095) 471-5457
E-mail: petr@glas.apc.org

En cada instante puede revelarte su amor Helena de Troya. -- JLB