Vladimir Nabokov

NABOKV-L post 0005105, Wed, 24 May 2000 09:55:01 -0700

Subject
Trixie in Sebastian Knight
Date
Body
EDITOR's NOTE. The reference pertains to the 1991 Russian edition of VN
with Alexander Dolin's notes.

----- Original Message -----
From: <naiman@socrates.berkeley.edu>
>
> ---------------- Message requiring your approval (122
lines) ------------------
>
> Dolinin has an interpretive note on Trixie in his commentary to
> the Russian translation by Gorianin and Meilakh. It is the best gloss I've
> seen to the passage.
>
>
> On Tue, 23 May 2000, D. Barton Johnson wrote:
>
> > EDITOR's NOTE. The Nabokv-l archive contains the item below sent by the
estimable Jeff Edmunds
(Master of ZEMBLA) answers item 3 of Aki Miyoshi's query.
> > --------------------------
> > >>> Posting number 308, dated 26 Jul 1994 19:33:01
> > Date: Tue, 26 Jul 1994 19:33:01 -0700
> > Reply-To: Vladimir Nabokov Forum <NABOKV-L@UCSBVM.BITNET>
> > Sender: Vladimir Nabokov Forum <NABOKV-L@UCSBVM.BITNET>
> > From: Donald Barton Johnson <chtodel@humanitas.ucsb.edu>
> > Subject: Trixie, horses, and yogis (fwd)
> >
> > An addendum to the recent post concerning RLSKn. Two of the books that
V.
> > notices in scanning the shelves of his late half-brother's study ("The
> > Author of Trixie" and "About Buying a Horse") do in fact exist. The
first
> > is a novel by William Caine (1875-1925) published by Jenkins in London a
> > year before the author's death. The second is one title in a collection
by
> > Sir Francis Cowley Burnand (1836-1917) entitled "About Buying a Horse,
&c.
> > &c." published in London in 1875 by Bradbury, Agnew. One wonders what
> > relevance these might have had for Sebastian Knight.
> >
> > On the topic of book titles in VN's work: I was pleased to discover that
> > the enigmatic "Kak sdelat'sia iugom" [_How to become a Yogi_] (title of
a
> > pamphlet at Luzhin's future bride's bedside in Zashchita Luzhina) also
> > exists. Originally written in English by Swami Adedananda, the Russian
> > version was published in Berlin (the locus for most of ZL's action) in
the
> > 20's [exact date unknown] by Izdatel'stvo O. Diakova.
> >
> > Jeff Edmunds
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: "D. Barton Johnson" <chtodel@GTE.net>
> > To: <nabokv-l@listserv.ucsb.edu>
> > Sent: Tuesday, May 23, 2000 11:57 AM
> > Subject: Fw: Queries: Selected Letters of VN
> >
> >
> > > EDITOR's NOTE. I answer questions 2&5 below. Perhaps some helpful
> > soul(s)
> > > could take on one or more others.
> > > ----- Original Message -----
> > > From: "akiyoshi miyake" <aki-myk@bcomp.metro-u.ac.jp>
> > > >
> > > > ----------------- Message requiring your approval (52
> > > lines) ------------------
> > > > Nabokovians:
> > > >
> > > > I am rereading Selected Letters of VN 1940-1977.I will be grateful
if
> > > > someone reply, personally or on the list, to my questions below:
> > > >
> > > > 1)p.471:In the case of Nakhamkes, a well-known figure of Fun and an
> > > > impudent boor,....
> > > > I do not know who Nakhamkes is, Judging from the context, he seems a
Jew
> > > > or a Jewish person, but I could not find his name in any biological
> > > > dictionaries. Was he an acquaintance of VN's father?
> > > >
> > > > 2)p.483, footnote 6:"Alexander Turgenev, Ambassador of Russian
Culture
> > > > in _Partibus Infidelium_.
> > > >
> > > > I can't read Latin, I will be grateful if someone kindly put the
> > > > "Partibus Infidelium" into English.
> > > -----------------------------------
> > > EDITOR: The Latin means "In Foreign lands"
> > > >
> > > > 3)p.501: _The Author of Trixie_ is by Caine (lesser known Caine) and
is
> > > > about an archbishop (which would have provided Mr Olcott with yet
> > > > another piece for mythical chess set) who secretly writes a
frivolous
> > > > novel...
> > > >
> > > > Who is "the lesser known Caine"? I found the book itself in my Univ.
> > > library,
> > > > but there is no author's name on the book. And is Mr Olcott Henry
Steel
> > > > Olcott(1832-1907) a theosophist? Indeed, I can't understand what VN
is
> > > > saying in the parenthesized phrase.
> > > >
> > > > 4)p.552: And my butterfly net remains hanging on the branch of a fir
at
> > > > 1900 metres like Ovid's lyre.
> > > >
> > > > I will appreciate you if you tell me the details of the episode of
> > > > "Ovid's lyre". I am ashamed of my being a man of no culture. Anyway,
the
> > > > above is a beautiful image.
> > > >
> > > > 5)p.558:the other lecturer at Dartmouth was Stefansson of the
Wolves.
> > > >
> > > > Would you tell me please what the "of the Wolves" means.
> > >
> > > EDITOR's REPLY. Vilhjalmur Stefansson was a Canadian, born of
Icelandic
> > > parents, and later taught at Dartmouth. He spent some years living
among
> > > Eskimos and wrote both ethnological studies and many popular books on
> > them.
> > > While none of the titles mention "wolves" I imagine his _My Life with
the
> > > Eskimos_ includes mention. Oddly, one of his titles is _Ultima Thule_.
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > > Sorry that these queries are very trivial ones, but I would like
some
> > > > one to solve them.
> > > >
> > > > Thank you very much.
> > > > Cordially,
> > > >
> > > >
Aki
> > > >
> > > > ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
> > > > akiyoshi miyake
> > > > $B&N (B akimyk@mx3.ttcn.ne.jp
> > > > $B"# (BP aki-myk@bcomp.metro-u.ac.jp
> > > > ~ $B!1 (B~ http://www.bcomp.metro-u.ac.jp/~aki-myk/
> > > > ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
> > >
> >
>