Exploring Vladimir Nabokov’s Creative Universe: Themes and Devices

Exploring Vladimir Nabokov’s Creative Universe offers a fresh perspective on certain aspects of Nabokov’s creative universe. The analysis begins with the writer’s faith, viewed as the bedrock of his ethics. Consequently, all other themes discussed in Part I, from moral dilemmas to cruelty to animals, emanate from this source and intertwine into a unique moral system. A moralist but not a moralizer, Nabokov encouraged his readers, with whom he conducts a creative dialogue, to form their own opinions and to accept moral responsibility for their actions. While the themes studied in Part I reflect Nabokov’s unique moral code, the devices examined in Part II, from chromesthesia and iconicity to upside-down, highlight the writer’s desire to present a novel outlook on the surrounding world. Thus, Nabokov’s use of heretofore unexplored conceit showcases his extraordinary imaginative prowess, by dint of which he strives to surprise and to engage his readers more intensely. Furthermore, by forging highly intricate and astounding connections between different spheres of experience and knowledge, Nabokov motivated his audience to think outside the box and to make their own meaningful and unforgettable discoveries.

Gavriel Shapiro is Professor Emeritus of Comparative and Russian Literature at Cornell University. He is the author of Nikolai Gogol and the Baroque Cultural Heritage (1993), Delicate Markers: Subtexts in Vladimir Nabokov’s ＂Invitation to a Beheading＂ (1998), The Sublime Artist’s Studio: Nabokov and Painting (2009), The Tender Friendship and the Charm of Perfect Accord: Nabokov and His Father (2014), and Thanksgiving All Year Round: A Memoir (2016), and the editor of Nabokov at Cornell (2003). He has also contributed numerous articles and chapters to various scholarly periodicals and critical collections, most of which are devoted to Nabokov and his literary legacy.