In Love With a Child: Vladimir Nabokov’s Lolita
The main reason why this novel was banned was due to it’s sexaul views on young girls. The main character of this book, Humbert Humbert, spends the majority of his time having seductive thoughts about many little girls. His obsession with them soon becomes the reason why he even takes jobs. Toward the middle of the novel, he takes a job in a woman’s home and marries her due to the attraction he has for her young daughter who he calls, Lolita. For these reasons, Nabokov’s novel was seen as,” repulsive, disgusting, revolting, and corrupt,”(Romney), or even as a “dangerous book,” in France until 1958 (Nabokov’s).
Vladimir Nabokov was a Russian writer. He studied at Cambridge University, and soon …show more content…
Humbert Humbert becomes so obsessed with young girls and has spent so much of his time thinking about them, that he even creates a name for their presence. He calls them, “nymphets.” “Between the age limits of nine and fourteen...I propose to designate as “nymphets” (Nabokov pg.16). He would find himself sitting in a park just to catch a glimpse of them. He describes being in the park as “marvelous adventures as I sat on a hard park bench pretending to be immersed in a trembling book. Around the quiet scholar, nymphets played freely…” (Nabokov pg.20). When he met Lolita, it was like nothing else mattered to him. He described her as the, “light of his life, his “soul”, and his “sin” (Nabokov pg.9). In literature, butterflies are often used to describe a person’s character. When Humbert Humbert speaks of nymphets, such as Lolita, he calls them “fragile, fairy-like, supple,” He also describes how their bodies haven’t undergone development, “but nymphets do not have acne… the silky shimmer above her temple(Nabokov pg.41).” The development of a little girl into a woman can compare to the development of a caterpillar into a butterfly. He also compares nymphets to butterflies because they have a similar representation. In movies and books for children, butterflies are always seen as magical. At times, butterflies are even used to represent dark magic, or an evil presence. As Humbert Humbert explains what nymphets are he describes them as,”demoniac,”and,” chosen creature” (Nabokov
The main reason why this novel was banned was due to it’s sexaul views on young girls. The main character of this book, Humbert Humbert, spends the majority of his time having seductive thoughts about many little girls. His obsession with them soon becomes the reason why he even takes jobs. Toward the middle of the novel, he takes a job in a woman’s home and marries her due to the attraction he has for her young daughter who he calls, Lolita. For these reasons, Nabokov’s novel was seen as,” repulsive, disgusting, revolting, and corrupt,”(Romney), or even as a “dangerous book,” in France until 1958 (Nabokov’s).
Vladimir Nabokov was a Russian writer. He studied at Cambridge University, and soon …show more content…
Humbert Humbert becomes so obsessed with young girls and has spent so much of his time thinking about them, that he even creates a name for their presence. He calls them, “nymphets.” “Between the age limits of nine and fourteen...I propose to designate as “nymphets” (Nabokov pg.16). He would find himself sitting in a park just to catch a glimpse of them. He describes being in the park as “marvelous adventures as I sat on a hard park bench pretending to be immersed in a trembling book. Around the quiet scholar, nymphets played freely…” (Nabokov pg.20). When he met Lolita, it was like nothing else mattered to him. He described her as the, “light of his life, his “soul”, and his “sin” (Nabokov pg.9). In literature, butterflies are often used to describe a person’s character. When Humbert Humbert speaks of nymphets, such as Lolita, he calls them “fragile, fairy-like, supple,” He also describes how their bodies haven’t undergone development, “but nymphets do not have acne… the silky shimmer above her temple(Nabokov pg.41).” The development of a little girl into a woman can compare to the development of a caterpillar into a butterfly. He also compares nymphets to butterflies because they have a similar representation. In movies and books for children, butterflies are always seen as magical. At times, butterflies are even used to represent dark magic, or an evil presence. As Humbert Humbert explains what nymphets are he describes them as,”demoniac,”and,” chosen creature” (Nabokov