Subject
Fairy Chess and Multiple Solutions
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*Jerry Friedman* [to Dave]: "...*When people take the idea seriously that a
Nabokov story is like a chess problem, they may still be right to think
there's only one key, but it may be worth repeating that much of the
interest in a problem can be in other "phases" of play, namely what would
happen if it were Black's move and how Black refutes White's incorrect but
tempting attempts. Or so I'm told. Thus finding the key doesn't end the
esthetic enjoyment of a problem."*
*Jansy Mello*: Good to learn that, although it's probably correct to think
there's only one key to Pale Fire (to adopt the theory of one or two
fictional authors or even to include a real maiden or toad), the enjoyment
with variants can go on, by shifting one's interest to the other "phases"
(as potential narrative developments, perhaps related to what, in ADA, Van
Veen describes as "time forks").
In that case, I suppose, we'd be following closer to VN's mind: his irony,
traps and schemes.
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Nabokov story is like a chess problem, they may still be right to think
there's only one key, but it may be worth repeating that much of the
interest in a problem can be in other "phases" of play, namely what would
happen if it were Black's move and how Black refutes White's incorrect but
tempting attempts. Or so I'm told. Thus finding the key doesn't end the
esthetic enjoyment of a problem."*
*Jansy Mello*: Good to learn that, although it's probably correct to think
there's only one key to Pale Fire (to adopt the theory of one or two
fictional authors or even to include a real maiden or toad), the enjoyment
with variants can go on, by shifting one's interest to the other "phases"
(as potential narrative developments, perhaps related to what, in ADA, Van
Veen describes as "time forks").
In that case, I suppose, we'd be following closer to VN's mind: his irony,
traps and schemes.
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
Visit "Nabokov Online Journal:" http://www.nabokovonline.com
Manage subscription options: http://listserv.ucsb.edu/