Halina Murphy

Honors 212
May 3, 2016

Nabokovs American Years: Midterm

I: Speak, Memory

I do agree with Brian Boyds assessment that Vladimir Nabokovs Speak, Memory blends

impersonal art form with a personal life story. Speak, Memory is historically accurate but also

beautifully poetic; one can understand Nabokovs deepest passions in the details of his writing

and the topics he dwells most on. His work creates the distance and detachment required to be a

successful autobiography along with the feelings and thoughts that most define him. His

emotional and detached forms of writing are difficult to separate, as each major person or

passion he describes is written about in both manners, woven together. Nabokov writes about his

Uncle Ruka, his mother, and butterflies in the most precise but artistic of ways, and this is why

his autobiography is successful.

Vladimir Nabokov writes about his childhood relationship with his Uncle Ruka in

emotional and removed manners, blending the writing styles into both an impersonal art and

personal story. Much of what he says about his Uncle Ruka is descriptive of his everyday life. He

describes what he looked like and what he wore: I remember him as a slender, neat little man

with a dusky complexion, gray-green eyesand a mobile Adams apple (Speak, Memory 69).

Nabokov reflects on his worldly travels and his speech, a blend of French, English, and Italian.

Even Nabokovs description of his sexual abuse seems almost nonchalant: When I was eight or

nine, he would invariably take me upon his knee after lunch and fondle me, with crooning

sounds and fancy endearments (68). However, while much of his description of Uncle Ruka

seems impersonal, Nabokov still seems to harbor some resentment toward him. In some of his

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memories, Nabokov treats his uncle in a seemingly condescending matter. For instance, he says,

Uncle Ruka appeared to me in my childhood to belong to a world of toys, gay picture books,

and cherry trees laden with glossy black fruit (68). Compared to Nabokovs descriptions of

his other family members, Uncle Rukas memory seems to be the least comforting. Nabokov

admits that his recollection of Uncle Ruka gave him the sense of having been ungrateful to him,

and he notes the general attitude of smiling condescension that even those who liked him took

toward him (69). He speaks of Uncle Ruka begrudgingly and with clear discomfort, but he

seems to also feel some pity towards him. Nabokovs description of his Uncle Ruka begins to

define Speak, Memory as the most artistic of autobiographies, as it blends simple descriptive

writing of everyday activities with the sincere writing of the pain of an abusive relationship.

Nabokov sees his mother much more positively than his Uncle Ruka but employs the

same writing styles to display two very different sides of her. He describes her more maternal,

nurturing side and her role as more than a mother. Nabokov describes her maternal side,

contributing to the emotional component of Speak, Memoryhis personal life story. This

description displays her in the traditional, motherly manner. Nabokov notes, my mother did

everything to encourage the general sensitiveness I had to visual stimulation and later mentions

how she would show him a mass of jewelry for his bedtime amusement (36). It is clear that

Nabokov looks up to her and recognizes the care she showed him. Nabokov also emphasizes the

closeness of their relationship, as he shared an artistic and poetic mind with her. He notes that

numerous childhood illnesses brought them closer together. Beneath the delirium of his illnesses,

he recalls, she [recognized] sensations she had known herself (37). His mother is perhaps the

person Nabokov connects with most in his life; his descriptions of his lovers and his other family

members fail to show the respect and affection he clearly has for his mother. Nabokovs writing

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of his mother is one of the most artistic parts of his autobiography; it is here that a reader truly

sees the radiance of a personal past (Boyd). Nabokov concludes his emotional description of

his mother by noting that she cherished her own past with the same retrospective fervor that I

now do her image and my past (40). He remembers her more fondly than any other person

described in his work and attempts to imitate her. While much of Nabokovs description of his

mother is heartfelt, he also emphasizes her role as more than a mother, contributing to the

detached component of Speak, Memoryimpersonal art form. As more than a mother, Nabokov

notes, she is fairly untraditional. Nabokov describes her beliefs and traits in a distant manner,

noting that she found a deep appeal in the moral and poetical side of the Gospels, but felt no

need in the support of any dogma (39). Her untraditional habits, like games of skill and

gambling, seem to contribute to Nabokovs adoration of her, although he describes them with

less sentiment. Nabokov says she is clever and competitive; regarding her passion of mushroom

hunting, he says that like her other passions and hobbies, this quest had rules (43).

Untraditional of a housewife, his mother, Nabokov notes, never visited servant spaces. In his less

emotional descriptions of his mother, Nabokov seems to highlight her quirks, like her love of

brown dachshunds. However, even these descriptions, seemingly unimportant, reveal Nabokovs

love for her. He concludes by noting that with great clarity, I can see her sitting at a table and

serenely considering the laid-out cards of a game of solitaire, and he continues to explain

each movement she makes (50). Nabokov blends the sentimental closeness of a mother and her

child with a reporter-like description of her everyday life. Even in his everyday descriptions of

her, Nabokovs adoration of his mother is evident, once again contributing to the accuracy and

emotion of a perfect autobiography.

Finally, Nabokovs description of butterflies creates the meeting point of an impersonal

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art form and a very personal life story. Nabokovs butterflies are his deepest passion, as he notes,

My pleasures are the most intense known to man: writing and butterfly hunting (Nabokov).

Nabokovs curiosity of and passion for butterflies is one of the only consistent pleasures in his

life; he notes, I have hunted butterflies in various climates and disguises: as a pretty boy in

knickerbockers and a sailor hat; as a lanky cosmopolitan expatriate in flannel bags and beret; as a

fat hatless old man in shorts (124). It is in his description of butterflies that the reader is really

taken back to his childhood, where he describes the nurses, governesses, teachers, and tutors that

surrounded him. In addition, Nabokovs writing of butterfly hunting is perhaps the most

revealing section of his work. He speaks about butterflies more beautifully and passionately than

any other chapter, as he notes, Few things indeed have I known in the way of emotion or

appetite, ambition or achievement, that could surpass in richness and strength the excitement of

entomological exploration (126). Nabokovs writing of butterfly hunting perfectly exemplifies

the radiance of a personal past (Boyd). In addition, Nabokov uses this opportunity to laugh at

himself; referencing himself catching butterflies in his 40s, he notes, the older the man, the

queerer he looks with a butterfly net in his hand (131). While Nabokovs passion for butterfly

hunting is clear in his personal writing, he still speaks of them in a detached manner as well,

from a scientific standpoint. He recalls particular breeds and their traits. For instance, he says,

I would be sure to find in the third week of June great blue-black nymphalids striped

with pure white, gliding and wheeling low above the rich clay which matched the tint of

their undersides when they settled and closed their wings (133).

Nabokovs physical description of the butterflies inform readers of their patterns and behaviors,

but are written so eloquently that a reader can still sense his passion. His description of butterfly

hunting is particularly revealing, as it reveals his ambition. He notes, Nothing in the world

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would have seemed sweeter to me than to be able to addsome remarkable new species to the

long list of Pugs already named by others (136). It is his bliss, his most pure self. Nabokovs

description of butterfly hunting perfectly blends the accuracy of an impersonal art form and the

passion of a personal life story.

Nabokovs emotional and detached styles of writing reflect his personal life story with

precision. Through his descriptions of his Uncle Ruka, his mother, and butterflies, Nabokov

reveals his personal past along with the historical accuracy an autobiography demands. Brian

Boyds argument that Nabokovs Speak, Memory successfully finds the meeting point between

an impersonal art form and a personal life story is accurate.

II: Pnin and Pniniad

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 Vladimir Nabokov portrays Timofey Pnin as an outsider in his work Pnin. Pnin is inept

and isolated, but this ineptness is the result of two very different identities: Alien and Exile. The

roles of Alien and Exile are dual and work to show how Pnin fails to connect to the American

world.

Pnins role as an Alien encourages pitied ridicule from readers. In his work Nabokov: The

Man and his Work, Gordon characterizes this version of Pnin as Funny Pninnever able to

possess his own world (Gordon 4). This version of Pnin is most strongly portrayed in the first

chapter. Alien Pnins defining features are his inability to communicate with his peers and his

inability to adapt to American customs and graces. In the first chapter, the narrator notes that one

of Pnins most notable weaknesses is his faulty English. Despite his efforts to learn the language

by studying Classic English and American authors, Pnin fails to truly connect with the English

language and the English speaking world as a whole. This struggle follows him over the course

of his life. For instance, when meeting up with Liza for lunch, he notes that he was unable to

focus on her rapid speech (Pnin 57). Later, he sobs when he says he cannot understand

American humor, even when he is happy; he says he haf nofingnofing left, nofing, nofing

(65). Pnin cannot fully possess his new world, and his inability to communicate inhibits him

from connecting with the people around him; he is alone. In addition, he fails to separate his

Russian and American worlds. The narrator states:

If his Russian was music, his English was murderHe had enormous difficulty with

depalatization, never managing to remove the extra Russian moisture from ts and ds

before the vowels he so quaintly softened (71)

Pnin is unable to separate his Russian linguistics from his English, emphasizing not only his

inability to adapt to the English language, but also to move on from his first home and the

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memories of his old life. In some cases, Pnins inability to communicate clearly hinders him

from speaking at all. The narrator discusses his response to Komoravs disinterest, when Pnin

moved his lipsonce or twice, wanted to say something, did not, and went on with his salad

(78). Pnins faulty English is a defining factor in his Alien identity, as it prevents him from

communicating clearly with any of his peers. Pnins role as an Alien is further emphasized by his

inability to adapt to American customs and graces. Similar to Szeftel in Galya Diments Pniniad,

Pnin has none of the social graces one adopts as a born American moving into Academia

(Pniniad 29). This version of Pnin is most clearly portrayed in his clumsiness; readers pity poor

Pnin and find humor in his inability to mix with [the new] landscape (18). Pnins Alien

identity is only emphasized by his inability to act American. Pnin is unable to adapt to the new

world and, when asked if he had been comfortable in the United States after emigrating from

Europe, replies that there are too many [inquisitive] peopleWhereas special privacy is now to

me absolutely necessary (Pnin 33). One not only pities Pnins social ineptitude, but also his

naivet. He spends the entire first chapter of the novel on the wrong train and is seemingly

unaware of the world around him, using a five [year] oldand in part obsolete timetable (5).

Even something as simple as asking for a football instead of a soccer ball reveals his inability to

understand the American world. Readers respond to Pnins Alien identity through pitied humor,

particularly at Pnins clumsiness. When he falls down the stairs in the most dramatic of ways,

one cannot help but laugh. Although this does not contribute to his inability to adapt to American

custom, it depicts him as a caricature. Alien Pnin, Funny Pnin, never fully adapts to an

American lifestyle due to his inability to communicate with the people around him and his

inability to adapt to American customs.

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 Pnins role as an Exile still evokes sympathy from the reader, but presents him as more

dignified than his Alien persona. Gordon characterizes this version of Pnin as Sad Pnin who

seems to almost transcend the world around him and, in some cases, be morally superior than

those around him (Gordon 5). Exile Pnins defining features are his inability to live up to the

accomplishments of those around him and his heroism. His inability to live up to his own

expectations and the achievements of his peers are a defining trait in Pnins Exile character. Pnin

fails to compare to those around him. For instance, Hagen, also a Russian professor, acts as

Pnins mentor throughout the work. Pnin is his colleague, but Pnins accomplishments are far

inferior to those of Hagen. Pnins Alien persona, characterized by his inability to communicate

with his students and adapt to American culture, discourages his students; Pnin fails to inspire

them. On the other hand, his coworker Hagen is offered a lucrative professorship at Seaboard, a

finer school. Hagen is essential to the continuation of the Russian program at his current school;

without him, Pnin would be without a job. Nabokovs descriptions of Hagen never seemed to

display any strong competition between the two; the accomplishments of Pnin were so few and

far between that an entire college department depended on his peers active presence. Nabokov

may have not intended to write of competition between Hagen and Pnin, but it is difficult not to

assume its presence, considering Hagens old-fashioned charm and Pnins goofy awkwardness.

Pnin is further portrayed as unable to live up to the accomplishments of those around him with

Doctor Eric Wind, Lizas new husband. Doctor Wind is business savvy, powerful, and smart;

Pnin, on the other hand, is awkward and unessential in the eyes of his department. However,

what distinguishes Pnin as an Exile is his moral superiority. The narrator notes that Eric Wind

was a completely humorless pendant who believed that his English (acquired in a German high

school) was impeccably pure (Pnin 95). Winds pompous attitude only seems to emphasizes

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Pnins strong morality and humility; it is in moments like these that readers feel pity for Sad

Pnin (Gordon 5). Pnins Exile persona is further emphasized by his heroic character. While he

fails to truly connect with the English language, he attempts to learn the language ofEdgar

Poe, Edison, and thirty-one presidents (Pnin 11). He tries to connect with the English speaking

world but simply cant reach the level of understanding required to stand alongside his peers.

The narrator describes a second moment in which Pnin looks up the correct pronunciation of the

word interested, in which he discovers that he had been mispronouncing it (85). Although

these moments may not seem to depict Pnin as heroic, and despite the condescended humor

toward hum, readers still wish the best for protagonist Pnin. Pnins Exile persona is again

emphasized by his faithfulness to his old lovers. For instance, despite Lizas mistreatment of

him, Pnin wonders, If people are reunited in Heaven, then how shall I stop it from creeping

upon me, over me, that shrivelled, helpless, lame thing, her soul? (61). The narrator describes

Liza as almost animal-like, as though she cant control her behavior, and, perhaps, this is what

Pnin loves about her. While this love may seem naive, it is clear that Pnin is morally superior to

Liza, evoking strong sympathy from a reader. A unique facet to Pnins Exile persona is its

similarity to the personality of a child. Pnin is displayed in an almost infantile way, for instance,

while passing around Pnins Punch at his dinner party and consistently attempting to learn

everything he can about his new world. His moral superiority further defines him as childish; for

instance, Hagen tries to prevent him from hearing curse words, saying This is not for your

chaste ears, Timofey (179). His colleagues and friends look down on him with pity. While Pnin

is seemingly simple, he does open his heart to those around him, making him truly pure. The

narrator notes, He worked very slowly, with a certain vagueness of manner that might have

been taken for a mist of abstraction in a less methodical man (49). The beauty of this novel and

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Pnin as a character, however, is that he is not a methodical man. Pnins Exile persona evokes our

sympathy as readers and shows the dignity of his character.

Pnins Alien and Exile personas weave together throughout the novel to emphasize his

role as an outsider. While his Alien personality only seems to hinder his success, his Exile

personality redeems him. His inability to adapt to the American world seemed more acceptable

as readers begin to recognize his moral superiority. While the characteristics of Exile and Alien

are very different, they work together to define Pnin.

III: Pnin and the Squirrels

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 The word squirrel in Greek translates to shadow-tail, and this description could not

be more expressive of the squirrels in Pnin. The word squirrel is mentioned 11 times over the

course of the novel; it is one of the only consistencies in Pnins story. While the incidents

involving the squirrels are very different, their appearances seem to all somehow symbolize

Pnins connection to his past life.

The first mention of the squirrel occurs when Pnin is sick and tries to distract himself

from a fever by analyzing a squirrel engraved in a screen of polished wood. Pnin tries to decipher

what the squirrel is holding but the fever that hummed in his head drowned every effort in pain

and panic (Pnin 21). The first mention of the squirrel in his childhood immediately encourages

readers to imagine his old life. The second mention of the squirrel is on the following page, when

Pnin is recovering and notices a squirrel sampling a nut (23). The squirrel here seems almost

uplifting; Pnin is recovering and is, therefore, able to analyze what this squirrel is holding.

However, the squirrel continues to act as a connection to his boyhood. Later, in his reflections on

his relationship with Liza, Pnin says, To hold her, to keep herjust as she waswith her

cruelty, with her vulgaritywith her impure, dry, sordid, infantile soul (61). As he is about to

discover the secret to the universe, a squirrel interrupts him and jumps on the drinking fountain

Pnin is walking towards. Pnin says, She has fever, perhaps and allows the squirrel to sample

the water (62). This encounter ends when the squirrel departs without the least sign of

gratitude, similar to the manner in which Liza left Pnin (62). The squirrel, once again, is

symbolic to his past lifea life with Liza. However, here, the squirrel is portrayed with another

technique that seems to follow Pnin: humor. In his encounter with the squirrel, Pnin argues that

the squirrel looks at him with contempt. This adds to the consistent mocking attitude toward

Pnins naivet; while still generally symbolic of his boyhood and past romances, the squirrel

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creates a lighthearted setting in which readers can more deeply analyze Pnins character. The

humor of squirrels continues when a different squirrel runs across Pnins path on the same walk.

This causes Pnin to fall in the most melodramatic and Pnin-like manner (79). It is in these

moments that readers are most easily able to recognize Pnin as an Alien and as an Exile. The next

mention of squirrels is in Pnins postcard to Victor, stamped with a Grey Squirrel on its front; in

this postcard, Pnin invites Victor to visit him during his next vacation. Once again, the squirrel

seems to prompt a connection to Pnins past as he reaches out to with the son of his ex-wife. His

past, like the squirrels, never seem to stop following him. Perhaps the most obvious connection

to his homeland in particular is when Pnin argues that Cinderella did not wear slippers made of

glass but, instead, of Russian squirrel fir (177). While only a small anecdote seeming to

contribute to Pnins Alien persona, this correction is still one of the few mentions of Pnins life in

Russia. His connection is between Russian squirrel fir and a fairytale, further emphasizing the

symbol of the squirrel as one of his past lifeparticularly, his childhood. The final mention of

the squirrel occurs in the narrators description of Pnins sons schoolroom. He notices a map of

Russia, books on a shelf, and a stuffed squirrel. The map of Russia is symbolic of Pnins Russian

roots and homeland, passed onto his son. It also acts as a tribute to his years as a university

professor, just as the books on the shelf do. The stuffed squirrel draws Pnin back to his own

childhood by connecting him to his sons childhood.

The behavior of the squirrel in Pnin is different in each description. However, its role as a

shadow to Pninsomething that looks over him and follows him throughout the novelis

consistent. Each mention, in some way, connects Pnin to his past life. The squirrel is a

mysterious observer to Pnins actions and tracks his development over the course of the novel. It

is in these everyday occurrences that readers learn most about Pnin.

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Citations

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Dembo, L.S. and Gordon Jr., Ambrose. Nabokov: The Man and his Work. Madison, USA: The

fhfhdsj University of Wisconsin Press, 1967. Print.

Diment, Galya. Pniniad. Seattle, USA: University of Washington Press, 1997. Print.

Nabokov, Vladimir. Pnin. London, England: Penguin Group, 1953. Print.

Nabokov, Vladimir. Speak, Memory. New York, USA: Vintage International, 1967. Print.

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