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[NABOBOV-L] Flaubert's? Lincoln's? Returning to the Newport Frill
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Steve Arons on Newport Frill: The Newport Frill is defined in The Gift: "a scanty Newport Frill (that barbe en collier which seemed so symptomatic to Flaubert).'' The barbe en collier was a sign of mediocrity to Flaubert, a middle-class affectation that caused him to judge a man "at first sight.'' Whether this implication is intended in the Newport Frill inveterate in Shade, either ironically by Shade himself, or by VN standing outside, seems
to me an open question. (VN-List, Sept.2008)
M.Roth: John Shade, peering into his shaving mirror, observes that his almost permeable skin ...is "less secure" than it once was, and "ridiculously thin." He continues, "Or this dewlap: some day I must set free / The Newport Frill inveterate in me" (P895-900). Webster's 2nd defines "dewlap" as both "the pendulous fold of skin under the neck of animals of the ox tribe" and "a flaccid fold of fat or flesh on the human throat."
JM: Following Arons' tip I found two indications about it, both linked to the razor "Gillette":(a) Chin Strap - Gillette.com :La barbe en collier est essentiellement une ligne de barbe qui continue les favoris www.gillette.com/glossary/fr-CA/chinstrap.shtml ; (b) Gillette | Comment se raser Découvrez les trucs et astuces de Gillette pour savoir comment se raser. ... Un collier de barbe est constitué de longues pattes qui se rejoignent sous le ...www.gillette.com/howtoshave/fr-FR/index.shtml -
I had surmised, at first, following some of the the Nab-L discussions, that the Newport Frill was a kind of collar, as those lacy frilled ones that had been favored in Shakespeare's days and omnipresent in Dutch paintings, which are still used by the clergy in certain countries.
The reference to a specific style of trimming a beard, and to specific razors, is all too clear in Shade's lines.
I wonder why no one has pointed out that Abraham Lincoln wore a "collier de barbe." Perhaps Nabokov was aware of this in the same way as he much have known that, in contrast, in Flaubert's pen it indicated mediocrity.
I would favor a stress on Lincoln who, as Marat bleeding in his bath, was the victim of a murderer. Nabokov would have known about Shade's impending death, but he was unprepared to his father's assassination (one of the the themes present in "Pale Fire" cf. Priscilla Meyer). Nevertheless, the convoluted reference suggests to me that there must have been someone closely associated to Nabokov, in real life, sporting this kind of beard (my Dutch grandfather had a "Newport Frill" - and a pair of ear-rings to boot...).
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to me an open question. (VN-List, Sept.2008)
M.Roth: John Shade, peering into his shaving mirror, observes that his almost permeable skin ...is "less secure" than it once was, and "ridiculously thin." He continues, "Or this dewlap: some day I must set free / The Newport Frill inveterate in me" (P895-900). Webster's 2nd defines "dewlap" as both "the pendulous fold of skin under the neck of animals of the ox tribe" and "a flaccid fold of fat or flesh on the human throat."
JM: Following Arons' tip I found two indications about it, both linked to the razor "Gillette":(a) Chin Strap - Gillette.com :La barbe en collier est essentiellement une ligne de barbe qui continue les favoris www.gillette.com/glossary/fr-CA/chinstrap.shtml ; (b) Gillette | Comment se raser Découvrez les trucs et astuces de Gillette pour savoir comment se raser. ... Un collier de barbe est constitué de longues pattes qui se rejoignent sous le ...www.gillette.com/howtoshave/fr-FR/index.shtml -
I had surmised, at first, following some of the the Nab-L discussions, that the Newport Frill was a kind of collar, as those lacy frilled ones that had been favored in Shakespeare's days and omnipresent in Dutch paintings, which are still used by the clergy in certain countries.
The reference to a specific style of trimming a beard, and to specific razors, is all too clear in Shade's lines.
I wonder why no one has pointed out that Abraham Lincoln wore a "collier de barbe." Perhaps Nabokov was aware of this in the same way as he much have known that, in contrast, in Flaubert's pen it indicated mediocrity.
I would favor a stress on Lincoln who, as Marat bleeding in his bath, was the victim of a murderer. Nabokov would have known about Shade's impending death, but he was unprepared to his father's assassination (one of the the themes present in "Pale Fire" cf. Priscilla Meyer). Nevertheless, the convoluted reference suggests to me that there must have been someone closely associated to Nabokov, in real life, sporting this kind of beard (my Dutch grandfather had a "Newport Frill" - and a pair of ear-rings to boot...).
Search archive with Google:
http://www.google.com/advanced_search?q=site:listserv.ucsb.edu&HL=en
Contact the Editors: mailto:nabokv-l@utk.edu,nabokv-l@holycross.edu
Visit Zembla: http://www.libraries.psu.edu/nabokov/zembla.htm
View Nabokv-L policies: http://web.utk.edu/~sblackwe/EDNote.htm
Visit "Nabokov Online Journal:" http://www.nabokovonline.com
Manage subscription options: http://listserv.ucsb.edu/