Sergey Karpukhin:
I think this refers to Plato's theory
that knowledge/learning is a form of recollection (anamnesis), which in Phaedo
(72 e) is part of a larger argument for the immortality of the soul. It
could also be a play on the name of the Walt Disney dog, Pluto.
JM: A wonderful connection: Plato
and "Phaedo."
What could have been Nabokov's
intention by introducing "Phaedo," in this
depreciatory way, while he'd been arguing about memory
and imagination as "a negation of time"?
Mere wordplay ( &, in that case, both Pluto,
Plato and Phaedo must be considered
together)?