----- Original Message -----
From: Alexey Sklyarenko
To: Vladimir Nabokov Forum
Cc: D. Barton Johnson
Sent: Saturday, April 09, 2005 6:24 PM
Subject: Fw: Fw: Bras d ŽOr ?? - J-4

 
Dear Don, Jansy and the List,
 
I don't know if "donkey" lurks in Baron d'Onsky, but a horse (Onegin's Don stallion, "donskoi zherebets": see EO: Canto Two: V: 4) certainly does. Brian Boyd wrote a brilliant article on the name d'Onsky, "d'O You Get the Joke?" (The Nabokovian no. 47), but it seems to me (sorry, Brian!) that he failed to see that particular one (namely, that Baron d'O., like a certain character in a story by Chekhov, has an "equine" name). I would even suggest that not only has d'Onsky an equine name; he is, in some sense, a horse. His (one-way) nickname is "Skonky," which is an anagram of "konsky" ("of a horse" in Russian), his physical appearence ("an easy-going, lanky, likeable fellow") might somewhat resemble that of a horse and, finally, he wears a hat ("that's my [Demon's] hat, his is older, but we have the same London hatter." Cf.: "did you remember that horses wore hats - yes, hats - when heat waves swept Manhattan?" (Part Five, chapter 5).
 
best,
Alexey  
----- Original Message -----
From: Donald B. Johnson
To: NABOKV-L@LISTSERV.UCSB.EDU
Sent: Saturday, April 09, 2005 10:39 PM
Subject: Fw: Bras d ŽOr ?? - J-4



----- Forwarded message from jansy@aetern.us -----
    Date: Sat, 9 Apr 2005 09:29:06 -0300
    From: Jansy Berndt de Souza Mello <jansy@aetern.us>
Reply-To: Jansy Berndt de Souza Mello <jansy@aetern.us>
 Subject: Fw: Bras d ŽOr - J-4
      To: Vladimir Nabokov Forum

Dear List,

There are frequent references in Ada to "Bras dŽOr" which have certainly nothing
to do with "Brasil" and, geographically doesnŽt even come close to it.
I wonder if this "dŽO"  is to add more emphasis to the other "dŽO" characters (
Baron  DŽO or Skonky )  or if it is a reference to a famous vintage cognac,
HennessyŽs " Bras dŽOr".
Jansy

----- End forwarded message -----
EDNOTE. I think ADAOnline has something on this. I suspect your cognac
suggestion is quite plausible and perhaps "donkey" lurks somewhere in Baron
D'Onsky.

Dear List,
 
There are frequent references in Ada to "Bras dŽOr" which have certainly nothing to do with "Brasil" and, geographically doesnŽt even come close to it. 
I wonder if this "dŽO"  is to add more emphasis to the other "dŽO" characters ( Baron  DŽO or Skonky )  or if it is a reference to a famous vintage cognac, HennessyŽs " Bras dŽOr".
Jansy