NPPF: shagbark

[Kevin Troy]

I just got back from vacation a few days ago, and have been catching up on
my pynchon-l reading.

I was struck by Don C.'s observations re: the location of New Wye, and his
theory that it might be in central Virginia.  The geography, as described
by Don, adds up, but there are a lot of things about _Pale Fire_ that
smack too strongly of New England and New York.

For example, Shade calls the hickory tree in the yard a "shagbark."  I've
never heard this used by Virginians, so I checked the Dictionary of
American Regional Expressions (DARE).  Their entry for shagbark places it
as a primarily New England term that spread west from there to the N.
Central U.S.  -- Wisconsin, Michigan, Indiana, etc.

Now, Nabokov wasn't American, and (as far as I can tell w/out reading
Boyd's American Years cover-to-cover) didn't spend as much time in
Virginia as in other parts of the U.S., so it could be that he just made a
mistake.  (Recall, if you will, Pynchon's discussion, in the Slow Learner
intro, of "showing off his ear" inappropriately.)  But there are other
things about New Wye that just seem too northeastern to me -- towns named
"Exe" and "Lochanhead," large lakes that are ice-skateable, and a lack of
distnictly southern flora (like dogwoods or magnolias).  A-and I can't
help but believe that Nabokov, if he were setting the book in
Charlottesville, would manage to incorporate a dig at Faulkner -- UVA's
writer-in-residence at the time Kinbote arrives in New Wye -- whom Nabokov
frequently ridiculed.

That said, Don is right -- the geography adds up to central Virginia.
But I intend to argue, by and by (when we get to the commentary) that New
Wye is no more real than Zembla.  New Wye, Zembla, and Utana are three
bubble worlds, fantasies that are connected to the real world (New York
City, Copenhagen, Russia, etc.), but more strongly connected to each
other.  Not much unlike Vineland or San Narciso, really.  The
disorientation is deliberate, and makes New Wye stand out even more
vividly than if it were a "real" fictional town.

Looking forward to Canto Two and more VLVL, but first, some sleep.

G'night,
Kevin T.