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Re: QUERY: Spiral / Helical Staircases
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>In both Pale Fire and Ada, the spiral staircase is either in the
>library or connects to a library.
>
>---Suellen
Thanks, Suellen. I suppose I should say that my interest in these
staircases began with the notion (vague, persistent, unlikely) that the
Wordsmith library, as presented in the Gradus scene, resembles a brain, at
least at the upper reaches. (It's a metaphor suggested by Kinbote, who
say that Billy Reading--modeled after William Reading, librarian of Sion
College--has a mind that is "a library, not a debating hall.") The upper
floors: a beautiful rare books room with no doors, just a draped entrance,
then the "circular room" where Pnin sits with his dog (would they allow a
dog in the library?). At this point Gradus descends the "helical
staircase" (a spine?) and ends up in Vault P. I locate Vault P as
somewhere between the bowels and the testicles. Why? Because we learn in
the index that young Charles II broke into the room of statued catamites
through "Bower P"--access to the libido. Gradus, on the other hand,
follows a corridor with white-washed pipes (intestines?) to the restroom
where he relieves himself.
Given the weirdness of this idea, which struck me because of the
biological image of the helix, I thought I'd best search out all the rest
of these staircases to see if there is some other, better purpose or
connection.
Best,
Matt Roth
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>library or connects to a library.
>
>---Suellen
Thanks, Suellen. I suppose I should say that my interest in these
staircases began with the notion (vague, persistent, unlikely) that the
Wordsmith library, as presented in the Gradus scene, resembles a brain, at
least at the upper reaches. (It's a metaphor suggested by Kinbote, who
say that Billy Reading--modeled after William Reading, librarian of Sion
College--has a mind that is "a library, not a debating hall.") The upper
floors: a beautiful rare books room with no doors, just a draped entrance,
then the "circular room" where Pnin sits with his dog (would they allow a
dog in the library?). At this point Gradus descends the "helical
staircase" (a spine?) and ends up in Vault P. I locate Vault P as
somewhere between the bowels and the testicles. Why? Because we learn in
the index that young Charles II broke into the room of statued catamites
through "Bower P"--access to the libido. Gradus, on the other hand,
follows a corridor with white-washed pipes (intestines?) to the restroom
where he relieves himself.
Given the weirdness of this idea, which struck me because of the
biological image of the helix, I thought I'd best search out all the rest
of these staircases to see if there is some other, better purpose or
connection.
Best,
Matt Roth
Search the archive: http://listserv.ucsb.edu/archives/nabokv-l.html
Search archive with Google:
http://www.google.com/advanced_search?q=site:listserv.ucsb.edu&HL=en
Contact the Editors: mailto:nabokv-l@utk.edu,nabokv-l@holycross.edu
Visit Zembla: http://www.libraries.psu.edu/nabokov/zembla.htm
View Nabokv-L policies: http://web.utk.edu/~sblackwe/EDNote.htm