[ JM: "there is a point in C.Kunin's
observation: why spare Shade from the kind of investigation ( already outlined
by VN himself, through Kinbote) Nabokov's other works stimulate
commentators to dwell on?]
Sergei
Soloviev wrote : ... the point is, probably, not this
abstract alternative "spare/not spare". More serious question is how these
comments are based on the character, as it was presented by VN, and there
is little convincing evidence in case of Shade. What stimulates commentators is
an open problem. (Cf. Kinbote.)
JM: In Kinbote's case there is "reason to his madness",
I suppose, and we cannot always say the same about some of Shade's other
commentators.
As to its being " based on the character" -
and I'm certain you mean "fictional character" - I still think that
on of VN's choices when creating Kinbote was to stimulate readers also
to become "commentators" who will try to question Shade's poem
and "self-confessional" indulgencies.
Victor Fet wrote (
responding Matt Roth's posting) the last sentence of Matt Roth's last post, "Strain into an old
fashioned glass and serve" scans as Shade's poem's 1000th line (only the rhyme
migrated to its beginning)... :)
JM:
[Literal minds & rhymes]: "serve into an old fashioned glass and
strain" is also strained,even adding lemmon and more inversions.
Metaphorically, though, thanks for the welcome "spirit".