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Old Kings never die: a land far,far away and "Onhava-onhava"
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Returning to the August 4 posting where, thanks to the link offered by C.Wallace, I could reach the hymn that inspired the son "Old Soldiers Never Die", I would like to note a strange coincidence. The hymn mentions " a happy land far far away" and the solider's song changes it to "There is an old cookhouse, far far away".
I had joked saying "Kinbote would note that in the beer song there is a mention of "gradus" ( "we are gradually fading away") and identify Zembla in the "happy land far, far away".
On Kinbote's commentary to line 741 ( page 255 EL) where he describes Gradus' progress ( and the "Purloined letter" from Queen Disa is here anachronically placed ) he describes the assassin's activities:
" He was in his room working on the nespaper with a safety razor blade when there was a bright rap-rap at the door. Gradus admitted an unexpected visitor - one of the greater Shadows, whom he had thought to be onhava-onhava ( "far, far away"), in wild, misty, almost legendary Zembla! What stunning conjuring tricks our magical mechanical age plays with old mother space and old father time!"
Jansy
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I had joked saying "Kinbote would note that in the beer song there is a mention of "gradus" ( "we are gradually fading away") and identify Zembla in the "happy land far, far away".
On Kinbote's commentary to line 741 ( page 255 EL) where he describes Gradus' progress ( and the "Purloined letter" from Queen Disa is here anachronically placed ) he describes the assassin's activities:
" He was in his room working on the nespaper with a safety razor blade when there was a bright rap-rap at the door. Gradus admitted an unexpected visitor - one of the greater Shadows, whom he had thought to be onhava-onhava ( "far, far away"), in wild, misty, almost legendary Zembla! What stunning conjuring tricks our magical mechanical age plays with old mother space and old father time!"
Jansy
Search the archive: http://listserv.ucsb.edu/archives/nabokv-l.html
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