NPPF: Keith's Shocking Theory

[Jasper Fidget]

> From: owner-pynchon-l at waste.org [mailto:owner-pynchon-l at waste.org] On
> Behalf Of The Great Quail
> Sent: Wednesday, July 16, 2003 10:59 AM
> To: The Whole Sick Crew
> Subject: Re: NPPF: Keith's Shocking Theory
> 
> Jasper writes,
> 
> > Andrew Field thought Zembla was a "homosexual fantasy" for Kinbote
> (whatever
> > that is exactly),
> 
> I can see that, certainly. One thing that strikes me about Zembla is how
> open and acceptable homosexuality is, particularly among the ruling
> classes.
> There is almost an expectation that young Zemblan men will dally with one
> another, not to mention page boys and the like. This is especially
> powerful
> given the time the book was written and takes place -- America in the
> 1950s.
> 
> It's actually one of the aspects of Kinbote's story that humanizes him for
> me. Even though he treats women contemptuously, there's something moving
> in
> his need to create a land where his own sexuality is normal. Though I
> certainly feel that Nabokov treats K's sexual proclivities with a certain
> degree of mockery, the pathos is still there, under the surface.
> 
> --Quail


Mockery yes -- I got that strongly from the "Palace transformed into a
circus" reference on 208, and K's pursuit of boys in New Wye has the feel of
caricature to me.  I agree that in this respect and in others, viewing
Zembla as the invention of a place where Kinbote can find belonging offers
us a humanizing aspect of the character.  But on the other hand, Kinbote
makes himself the King of this place, and peoples it with servants and loyal
accomplices, the antagonists petty thugs and dull-witted brutes; it goes
beyond simple belonging, and into the realm of controlling.

Jasper