Subject
New England or Virginia?
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Date
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Matt describes here one of the many inconsistencies in PF. Kinbote
actually
says that New Wye is "at the latitude of Palermo" (p. 19/29), not
specifying
Italy. Palermo, Italy, is approximately 38 degrees 30 minutes latitude,
which is roughly equivalent to Roanoke, Virginia, in the U.S. But,
Palermo,
Ontario, Canada is at approximately 43 degrees 45 minutes latitude,
which is
roughly equivalent to central New York state. Kinbote does refer to "New
Wye
in New England," but as Gradus prepares to leave New York City, he
discovers
that the train "left at 5:13 a.m. ... And took eleven hours to cover the
four hundred miles to Exton" (p. 195/277). No point in New York State is
400
miles from New York City; however, Roanoke, Virginia, is. Kinbote
finally
reinforces this fact by saying that the newspapers say that "Jack Grey
had
been given a ride from Roanoke, or somewhere" (p. 200/284). Ultimately,
one
cannot say for certain where New Wye is; there are enough clues to both
locations to make the matter unsolvable.
(All this from my ancient Master's thesis, ca. 1977)
David Roach
Silver Spring, Maryland
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actually
says that New Wye is "at the latitude of Palermo" (p. 19/29), not
specifying
Italy. Palermo, Italy, is approximately 38 degrees 30 minutes latitude,
which is roughly equivalent to Roanoke, Virginia, in the U.S. But,
Palermo,
Ontario, Canada is at approximately 43 degrees 45 minutes latitude,
which is
roughly equivalent to central New York state. Kinbote does refer to "New
Wye
in New England," but as Gradus prepares to leave New York City, he
discovers
that the train "left at 5:13 a.m. ... And took eleven hours to cover the
four hundred miles to Exton" (p. 195/277). No point in New York State is
400
miles from New York City; however, Roanoke, Virginia, is. Kinbote
finally
reinforces this fact by saying that the newspapers say that "Jack Grey
had
been given a ride from Roanoke, or somewhere" (p. 200/284). Ultimately,
one
cannot say for certain where New Wye is; there are enough clues to both
locations to make the matter unsolvable.
(All this from my ancient Master's thesis, ca. 1977)
David Roach
Silver Spring, Maryland
Search the archive: http://listserv.ucsb.edu/archives/nabokv-l.html
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