My mind always turns to lepidoptera when colors are brought to view in Nabokov.  In my reading and teaching of the novel I have always called upon the holarctic (found in Massachusetts in the main) butterly nymphalis antiopa, vulgarly known as the "Mourning Cloak," along with the pother excellent notes already given by other subscribers.  Makes a good deal of gisty sense for Charlotte.  And leads to a thread on the Theban princess, raped by Zeus in the guise of satyr.  If Nabokov is Zeus, and HH the satyr (and he knows he is to adore nymphets), then...  

On Wed, Dec 23, 2015 at 12:56 PM, Hyman, Eric <ehyman@uncfsu.edu> wrote:

It might be simple formal symmetry (beginning=end).  Or the same clothes are parentheses to her life (that is, her life with HH).  And let us always recall that HH is  a not-quite reliable narrator, who has a habit of imposing his own patternings on the females he encounters.

 

Eric Hyman

Professor of English

Department of English

Butler 133

Fayetteville State University

1200 Murchison Road

Fayetteville, NC 28301-4252

(910) 672-1901

ehyman@uncfsu.edu

 

From: Vladimir Nabokov Forum [mailto:NABOKV-L@LISTSERV.UCSB.EDU] On Behalf Of Sadie Powers
Sent: Tuesday, December 22, 2015 9:28 PM
To: NABOKV-L@LISTSERV.UCSB.EDU
Subject: Re: [NABOKV-L] QUERY: Lolita: harlotte's "maroon slacks, yellow silk blouse"

 

My take on the maroon pants is it being a pun, as Humbert has basically marooned Charlotte below the waist in a loveless marriage.


On Dec 22, 2015, at 9:09 PM, "NABOKV-L, English" <nabokv-l@HOLYCROSS.EDU> wrote:

My first response is that those colors are a garish combination, suggesting again Charlotte's vulgarity.

 

SES

 

.


Didier Machu: ...I have a query regarding Lolita. On that fateful day when Charlotte is killed, .Humbert remarks that she is wearing "the yellow blouse and maroon slacks she had on when [he] first met her." Indeed "maroon slacks, yellow silk blouse" appear to him in that order when she comes down the stairs to greet her lodger-to-be. Why is she dressed identically on the first and last days of their shared life? Why is she made to wear those particular colors? I have been considering several explanations (none of which quite satisfies me) and would like to hear you all on the matter. Thanks.”


--

Susan Elizabeth Sweeney
Co-Editor, NABOKV-L

 

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