Subject
Nabokov and American "freedom"
From
Date
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Dear List,
I know there are many misuses of Nabokov, what would he think of this take
on his words?
http://www.commentarymagazine.com/2011/10/19/occupy-writers-dot-com/#.TrObgL8fDL4.twitter
I find this twisting of words the most interesting:
*
*"The profession of the writer, by contrast, depends upon freedom, and
especially upon a fanatical absolutist commitment to freedom of expression.
As Nabokov said in a 1964
interview<http://kulichki.com/moshkow/NABOKOW/Inter03.txt>with
*Playboy*,
[S]ince my youth — I was nineteen when I left Russia — my political creed
has remained as bleak and changeless as an old gray rock. It is classical
to the point of triteness. Freedom of speech, freedom of thought, freedom
of art. The social or economic structure of the ideal state is of little
concern to me.
*
Freedom of speech, freedom of thought, freedom of art*: there is the only
political creed which can unite all writers into a political party. Many
prominent American writers have lost interest in freedom, however, and have
become obsessed with a world that is divided between rich and poor. Small
wonder, then, that more and more readers are losing interest in them."
Emily
A great book should leave you with many experiences, and slightly
exhausted. You should live several lives while reading it.
-William Styron
Search archive with Google:
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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/
I know there are many misuses of Nabokov, what would he think of this take
on his words?
http://www.commentarymagazine.com/2011/10/19/occupy-writers-dot-com/#.TrObgL8fDL4.twitter
I find this twisting of words the most interesting:
*
*"The profession of the writer, by contrast, depends upon freedom, and
especially upon a fanatical absolutist commitment to freedom of expression.
As Nabokov said in a 1964
interview<http://kulichki.com/moshkow/NABOKOW/Inter03.txt>with
*Playboy*,
[S]ince my youth — I was nineteen when I left Russia — my political creed
has remained as bleak and changeless as an old gray rock. It is classical
to the point of triteness. Freedom of speech, freedom of thought, freedom
of art. The social or economic structure of the ideal state is of little
concern to me.
*
Freedom of speech, freedom of thought, freedom of art*: there is the only
political creed which can unite all writers into a political party. Many
prominent American writers have lost interest in freedom, however, and have
become obsessed with a world that is divided between rich and poor. Small
wonder, then, that more and more readers are losing interest in them."
Emily
A great book should leave you with many experiences, and slightly
exhausted. You should live several lives while reading it.
-William Styron
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/