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Re: Fw: Help to translate "lapping at Van´srock" ...??
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----- Forwarded message from jansy@aetern.us -----
Date: Mon, 28 Feb 2005 16:06:21 -0300
From: Jansy Berndt de Souza Mello <jansy@aetern.us>
Reply-To: Jansy Berndt de Souza Mello <jansy@aetern.us>
Subject: Re: Fw: Help to translate "lapping at Van´s rock" ...??
To: Vladimir Nabokov Forum
Dear ED,
Thank you for your lapidary note. A lad´s lap and overlappings are important in
ADA.
There is also a connection bt "lap" and "shelf" ( a book shelf that VN turned
into a brook shelf, i.e a rack or poor Rack ?...) which I tried to forget!
There are the meanings of "drink with the tongue; consume ( liquid) greedily;
(water) move or beat upon a shore with a rippling sound as of lapping (...) the
sound of wavelets on a beach " - all of which would fit the image of Dora´s
lapping talk at Van´s "rock" ( it was the "at" which confused me for that
usage, but it is quite precise, like 'talk at' instead of "talk to, talk
with,etc" ).
I thought "Russian-lapped German" referred to Aqua´s Russian accent while
speaking German words at her Nuss-haus!
I also wondered about Dr.Lapiner, but how would you connect him with this
"Cavalcanti quoter"? Cavalcanti is a common surname in Brazil and I´d never
paid much attention to it. It could be of Italian procedence ( and could mean
"horses at a gallop"?). But it also suggests some kind of anagram fitting
"canti" ( songs - such as little Van´s in Aqua´s italianate associations?).
Thank you again,
Jansy
----- Original Message -----
From: D. Barton Johnson
To: NABOKV-L@LISTSERV.UCSB.EDU
Sent: Monday, February 28, 2005 3:06 PM
Subject: Fw: Help to translate "lapping at Van´s rock" ...??
ED. See bottom
----- Original Message -----
From: Jansy Berndt de Souza Mello
To: don barton johnson
Sent: Monday, February 28, 2005 8:59 AM
Subject: Help to translate "lapping at Van´s rock" ...
Dear Don and list,
I would like to ask help in order to understand VN´s meaning in a particular
sentence ( related to Dorothy´s, née Vinelander, unceasing chatter "lapping at
Van´s rock" ).
I had already tried to investigate its various contrasting uses (lapse,
relapse,colapse, even lap and laprobe ) to get the feeling for this special
verb as employed by VN, but found no way to translate it to Portuguese.
After I mailed the lines dealing with Aqua´s instructions in "Russian-lapped
German", I decided to take up the matter again.
Here are some examples:
1. "garrulously pour hateful instructions in Russian-lapped German into her
hateful bidet, she decided to stop turning on tap water altogether".
2 ."A large boiled strawberry, still very hot. He sucked it in as far as it
would go. He held her close and lapped her palate"
3. "he spoke little, especially since his sister's sonorous soliloquy (lapping
at Van's rock) mesmerized and childishly engrossed him".
As a verb we find: "to overtake by one or more laps; coil, fold or wrap round;
enfold caressingly or encircle protectively; surround a person with influence".
There is also a Middle English sense: "to polish a gem with a lap", i.e, a
rotating wheel which could be applied to boring Dora´s rotating insistence at
"Van´s rock", but it still makes no sense.
There is a Van rock in Armenia, and it is close to a " LakeVan" ( as pointed
out by B.Boyd) where there are ruins of a chapel dedicated to Queen Ada. But
VN was not referring to items in a landscape!
Could a rendering in another language, like "... his sister´s sonorous
soliloquy ( dying at the rock of Van´s impassivity ) ..." be considered
satisfactory?
Jansy
----------------------------------------------
ED. Judging by own experience the most common senses are "water lapping the
shore" and "the cat laps up the milk." The No. 1 usage above is distinctly odd.
I wonder if Dr Lapiner (lapochka) is the "Cavalcanti quoter"" I-3, p. 24 and
echoed in Aqua's word-salad.
----- End forwarded message -----