By Brandi Shuler
Oh boy, what a way to start this review column this semester! If you are familiar with the story of Lolita (or with a lot of classical literature), you know this read is uncomfortable and is not for the faint of heart. At its core, this story is about and from the perspective of a pedophile. If you are not into classical literature, I would not recommend this novel. But if you practice the study of literature and want a study of the human condition, then welcome to the perfect place to start.
I believe the author of this novel did a good job at writing a character that his readers are not supposed to like or cheer for. Our society has gotten used to having a lovable cast of characters to cheer for and knowing that a good ending is waiting for them. But who do we root for when we are witnessing the story from the bad guy’s perspective, who, quite frankly, disgusts us?
The first line of the book, “light of my life, fire of my loins,” has been renowned in culture for decades. From the very first page, readers are thrown into discomfort and dragged through murder, seduction, and manipulation, and it just won’t let up.
It has become a trend in books and shows lately to have morally grey characters and call them (dare I say) sexy. “Booktok” has been reputed for putting morally grey characters on pedestals that love to dance on the line between “morally grey” and actually evil, and then call those books romance. Kidnapping and manipulation are not new book themes, and we need to acknowledge that as well as acknowledge that we shouldn’t ever romanticize evil characters.
Within every reader of Lolita, there is a conflict between the aesthetic, poetic writing, and the morality of it all, which cannot be separated. The way the story is written, it is a confession from the main character’s perspective in court, retelling his story. The author knew he couldn’t give this book a good ending because of how despicable the story is.
It’s good that he wrote the whole story, implying that he’s currently being prosecuted, to tell his readers almost immediately that this story will not end well for the 37-year-old man who thinks this way about a 12-year-old girl. It’s a clever way to develop the theme of the novel as early in the story as possible.
I can respect Nabokov because of how different his writing is in Lolita and how I can tell he knew what he was doing with this story. He made an entire novel’s subject matter something most authors are too scared of touching with a ten-foot pole, while still having his writing style be so poetic.
I would give this novel a 2.5/5-star rating because I can’t stand how good his style is, while what is written with said style is just frustrating.
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