Vladimir Nabokov

Vladimir Nabokov biography

St. Petersburg, Russia, Pixabay

Vladimir Vladimirovich Nabokov was born in St. Petersburg, Russia on April 22, 1899, and was the oldest of 5 children. His father, Vladimir Dmitrievich, was a politician and his mother, Elena Ivanovna, was the granddaughter of a millionaire and an heiress. Nabokov was the favorite of his siblings and grew up in the wealthy world of Russian aristocracy. Despite growing up in the tumultuous time surrounding the Russian Revolution, Nabokov lived a comfortable childhood and would spend many summers at the idyllic country mansion in Vyra, where he first discovered his love of butterflies.

As most aristocratic children were educated, Nabokov was taught by governesses and tutors until he was sent to Tenishev school—a liberal secondary school— in 1911. While attending Tenishev, Nabokov began to write poetry and verse and wrote his first book of poems, Stikhi, between 1915 and 1916. Nabokov's first book was not very popular or very well-liked. After the October Revolution of 1917, Nabokov's family fled Russia. Nabokov's family moved around Europe while he began attending Trinity at Oxford University in 1919. His family settled in Berlin in 1920 funded by Elena's jewels which they were forced to sell to survive.

At the university, Nabokov began to write extensively on topics ranging from entomological articles to critical essays to poetry. Nabokov's father was tragically killed during a politically fueled attack against the liberal politician Pavel Milyukov. This event traumatized Nabokov, and accidental death appears often in his books.

When Nabokov graduated from Trinity he lived in Berlin and tried to work at a bank. He lasted barely three hours before quitting, so Nabokov began to support himself by tutoring in French and English. Nabokov belonged to the Russian Berlin literary community and continued to write prose and poetry.

Berlin, Pixabay

in 1923, Nabokov met Vera Evseyevna Slonim at a ball and fell madly in love with her. By 1925 they were married. Vera was also a poet and had intentions of attending the Technische Hochschule in Berlin, but her health was too poor. In 1934 they had their only child, Dmitri.

In 1922, Nabokov began to publish translations, and in 1926 published his first book Mary (1926) under his pseudonym Vladimir Sirin. By 1934, writing was his established career. As Vera was Jewish and antisemitism was on the rise in Berlin, Nabokov began to search elsewhere to live. After a brief affair with Irina Guadinini in France, Nabokov moved his family to the USA in 1940. They lived in New York and Nabokov began to tutor once more until he found work as a lecturer at Wellesley College in 1941. Nabokov continued writing and publishing post-modernist books such as The Real Life of Sebastian Knight (1941) and Bend Sinister (1947). In 1948, Nabokov accepted a teaching position at Cornell University.

During his time at Cornell, Nabokov wrote his most famous book Lolita which was internationally successful despite initial difficulties to publish it and it's subsequent banning in France for two years. Lolita and Nabokov's other books created foundations for the Post Modernist movement.

Nabokov left the USA in 1961 and moved to Switzerland with Vera to be close to their son Dmitri who was living in Italy. During this period, Nabokov continued his love of hunting butterflies and writing. In 1977, Nabokov fell ill with bronchitis and on July 2nd died.

Vladimir Nabokov's Books

Book, pixabay.com

Vladimir Nabokov wrote many books and other types of literature during his lifetime. Nabokov's famous works helped him become a 7-time finalist for the National Book Award for Fiction. Below are some of his most famous works:

Vladimir Nabokov's Famous Works

Vladimir Nabokov's Genre

Nabokov began his career writing in the Modernism genre and transitioned into the Post-Modernism genre.

Nabokov is credited with linking Modernism and Post-Modernism as his novels often combine both genres. In his book, Pale Fire, Nabokov explores metafiction which means that Nabokov wants the reader to be aware they are reading a work of fiction- it is a book written by Nabokov written as a poem by a fictional poet. In Lolita, Nabokov uses the power of language to show how the main character is both an unreliable narrator and intentionally alienates himself from American culture. Both are examples of how Nabokov uses both the Modernist and Post-Modernist genres.

Vladimir Nabokov's Quotes

Vladimir Nabokov's Writing Style

Nabokov had a very distinctive writing style. Critics have credited Nabokov for having the ability to beautifully put words together to create very poetic language. Nabokov is considered a maximalist writer for his digressive storytelling and heavy use of literary techniques.

Nabokov also wrote in a style where the narrator has a personality of their own and the story is told from their point of view including their moral justifications for their actions and thoughts, opinions and attitudes towards others, and trains of thought that depart from the main subject. In this way, Nabokov can create unreliable narrators and metafictional pieces. Humbert Humbert, the narrator of Lolita, is a perfect example as the way Nabokov wrote shows the way Humbert obsesses over Dolores without realizing the perversion of his own thoughts.

Additionally, Nabokov is credited with writing in Fancy Prose Style. Prose is a writing style in which the writing mimics the natural flow of language. This combined with Nabokov's synesthesia, a condition that allows one to experience one sensory organ through another sensory organ, allowed for unique descriptions that are vivid and lyrical.

Notice the sensory description of the name Lolita. The sensory experience of saying the name and seeing a fiery image associated with the name create a lyrical and poetic way to describe what would otherwise simply be a name. This is why Nabokov's writing style is so unique.