Vladimir Nabokov and Edmund Wilson’s Epic Literary Feud

http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/tip-sheet/article/72177-inside-vladimir-nabokov-and-edmund-wilson-s-epic-literary-feud.html

by samclemens • 10 years ago

46 22 10 years ago

publishersweekly.com

dri_ft• 10 years ago

Weird. I read the New York Review of Books articles about Eugene Onegin last week, because I'm reading it (in a different translation) at the moment.

Douglas Hofstadter spends a chapter in Le Ton Beau De Marot, his book about translation, talking about and comparing various translations of Eugene Onegin, and he covers the Wilson/Nabokov feud described here. He is deeply antithetical to Nabokov's approach to translating it (I have to agree) and says that he finds some of Nabokov's remarks about Wilson unspeakably cruel.

He also says that his favourite translation is James Falen's; I can't comment on how it compares to the others, not having looked at them, but I can confirm that it seems excellent.

idlewords2• 10 years ago

Russian lit student here, can confirm that Falen is the best translator of Pushkin into English.

Nabokov's Onegin translation is more like a piece of (unbelievably well-researched) performance art. But be sure to read the book-length footnote about dueling.

yolesaber3• 10 years ago

Ugh, the way this writer talks about women is pretty gross. I know its a piece about two of the most macho types in midcentury literature, but must the author of the article really refer to women as "conquests"?

clock_tower3• 10 years ago

Thanks for the warning -- this sounds borderline NSFW. Will avoid the article while on a work system.

yolesaber3• 10 years ago

I know you are being ironic, but the fact that this is the reply and im getting downvotes just shows how HN thinks about and treats women.

icantdrive55• 10 years ago

I never appreciated Literature in college. I took the courses, and faked my way through the course work. Yea--I read the books, but most were just dry, and hard to read; for myself.

Years later, I read Lolita. There was a part of me that almost put it down. I read it because I wondered what all the fuss was about. From the first page, it might be the best written book I have ever read.

bcbrown• 10 years ago

My favorite bit of wordplay in that book is when he calls Dolores Haze "dolorous and hazy".

Fezzik2• 10 years ago

I highly recommend reading some of his other books if you enjoyed Lolita - I find them to be more complicated (in a good way) and also written magnificently. The Real Life of Sebastian Knight, Bend Sinister, Despair, 'Ada, or Ardor', Pale Fire, and Transparent Things are all personal favorites. But all of his novels are absurdly good.

His short story 'Beneficence' may be may favorite piece of writing ever. He had a knack for capturing a simple occurrence, making it moving and immersive, and wrapping up his story with a poignant conclusion that I have found in very few other authors' works.

justifier2• 10 years ago

"You can always count on a murderer for a fancy prose style."

nabakov would agree with you

my opinion is Pale Fire is the only thing even slightly worth considering reading from him

i'll refrain from recommending anything in his stead due to the fear of my disliking nabakov might sully your reception of anything i recommend; instead i'll say i empathise with your experience reading in an academic setting and encourage you to keep reading and seeking what all the fuss is about in regard other authors.. you may keep finding more and more that you enjoy reading

Fezzik2• 10 years ago

Truly curious - what do you find his writing lacking? I am always surprised when people with any literary bent do not like him (this is the first I have heard someone who has read more than Lolita say as much...). I find his story construction and prose to be second to none.

idlewords2• 10 years ago

This article doesn't belong here on political detox week. Both writers were deeply politically engaged, and their feud is not seperable from their politics.

cpach• 10 years ago

Flag the article then if you think so.

Vladimir Nabokov and Edmund Wilson’s Epic Literary Feud

Related Stories