Well, Kerry, if you find yourself giggling to relieve the
tension as you read Nabakov's poetic reference to a
14-year-old girl's vulva, I'd say the humor is more in the
reader than it is in the writing. Just my opinion.
Patrick King
--- "Kerry J. Schooley" <
gsp.schoo@murderoutthere.com> wrote:
> Humour is highly subjective of course.
Personally
> one of the things I find funniest in fiction
or
> life is the contortions people will twist
> themselves into when they discover that they
are
> the very embodiment of the problems they
take
> most seriously (which tend to be
categorized
> under the headings of "Evil" or "Immoral.")
Some
> of these things are just plain silly, like
pants
> on piano legs; others more darkly so, like
a
> picture of J. Edgar Hoover in drag. Imagine
an
> entire career, more, an entire Government
> department dedicated to denying the essence
of
> that photograph. Evil certainly, but hilariously
so.
>
> Of course I seldom see the humour when I'm
caught
> in similar situations taking myself too
> seriously, which I suppose is what makes
humour
> so subjective. Knowing it's just me, I
hope
> you'll forgive me Patrick if I say that
your
> argument below is one of the funniest things
I've
> read on RARA AVIS or anywhere else, in some
time.
>
> Thanks,
> Kerry
>
> At 04:51 PM 22/02/2007, you wrote:
>
> >Well, Bob, clearly you don't get my meaning at
all.
> >Thompson and Highsmith are being droll in
those
> >instances and their descriptions are funny.
Kevin
> >Weeks' description of moving victims in Brutal:
the
> >untold story of my life inside Whitey
Bulger's
> Irish
> >Mob, was not very funny at all.
Humbert's
> comparison
> >of Lolita's desire for him to her desire for
lunch,
> a
> >Humburger to a Hamburger was somewhat funny but
it
> >doesn't mark the book as a "very funny
book."
> >Personally, I think people who want to
pigeonhole
> >Lolita as a "funny book" are embarrassed by
the
> fact
> >that Nabakov used Lolita to undermine his
readers'
> >sensibilites. It's a great novel written from
the
> >perspective of America's most reprehensible type
of
> >criminal. It puts that criminal in perspective
as a
> >human, not a monster. It even strikes at the
very
> real
> >urge of age to hunger for youth and
beauty.
> Everyone
> >does this. Mary K. Letourneau can't
restrain
> herself,
> >many of the rest of us can. By accepting Lolita
as
> a
> >great novel, we are also forced to accept our
own
> >potential for evil. As Humbert finds out,
the
> reality
> >is not as fine as the fantasy. Any good
novel
> employs
> >humor, pathos, drama, and psychology in
even
> measures
> >to move the reader. Lolita is at the very least
a
> good
> >novel, but unlike Forest Gump, Breakfast
of
> Champions,
> >or Huckleberry Finn, humor is not it's
main
> objective.
> >That's my point.
> >
> >Patrick King
> >--- bobav1
> <<mailto:rav7%40COLUMBIA.EDU>
rav7@COLUMBIA.EDU>
> wrote:
> >
> > >
> > > Dear Patrick:
> > >
> > > OK, you win.
> > >
> > > Lolita = not funny
> > >
> > > Corpse-moving = funny funny
> > >
> > > If I understand your concluding
sentences,
> Lolita is
> > > not funny any
> > > more than the lives of actual child
molesters
> are
> > > funny, but
> > > corpse-moving is funny because the lives
of
> actual
> > > murdering
> > > corpse-movers can be funny.
> > >
> > > And clearly, the discussion of humor
in
> > >
>
>www.nytimes.com/books/97/03/02/lifetimes/nab-v-obit.html
> > > is simply
> > > deluded.
> > >
> > > Thank you for making my day :) (No, really
…quot;
> your
> > > email is wonderfully
> > > Nabokovian!)
> > >
> > > Loving rara-avis,
> > >
> > > Bob V in NYC
> > >
> > > P.S. Amen to the superb stewardship of
Denton!
> > >
> > > P.P.S. Do Lankford and Doherty wish to
weigh in
> on
> > > how Altman got the
> > > Mexican dogs to hump on cue?
> > >
> > >
> > > The reply to Richard Moore:
> > >
> > > Okay, but there's a lot more humor in
Thompson's
> > > Recoil, when Pat has
> > > to get that corpse out of the elevator, or
in
> > > Highsmith's Ripley
> > > Underground when Ripley is trying to get
the
> corpse
> > > out of his wine
> > > cellar in the wheelbarrow and it keeps
falling
> over,
> > > than there is
> > > anywhere in Lolita. Lolita is a
psychological
> study
> > > of one type of
> > > child molester...and the child he molests,
for
> in
> > > Lolita, the child is
> > > NOT innocent. Nabokov makes Humbert a
tragic but
> not
> > > detestable
> > > figure. Clair Quilty is much easier to
hate than
> > > Humbert is. One can
> > > even relate in some ways to Humbert's
problem.
> In
> > > the wide world there
> > > is some crazy denial that children don't
think
> about
> > > sex until they're
> > > 16 or so. Anyone's who's actually lived
life
> knows
> > > children experiment
> > > with sex much much younger than that.
That
> adults
> > > have a
> > > responsibility to control their behavior
with
> > > children is the given.
> > > That some adults cannot and why, is the
subject
> of
> > > the novel. I'm sure
> > > there were passages in Lolita that made
me
> smile,
> > > but I would not
> > > categorize Lolita as a "very funny" novel.
Any
> more
> > > than the life of
> > > Paul Shanley was a very funny
life.
> > >
> > > Patrick King
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > --- In
> >
>
<mailto:rara-avis-l%40yahoogroups.com>
rara-avis-l@yahoogroups.com,
> Patrick King
> > > <abrasax93@...> wrote:
> > > >
> > > > Frankly, Bob, no, I don't find those
passages
> > > "funny"
> > > > at all. I find them to be true and
beautiful.
> > > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> >
>
>__________________________________________________________
> >Food fight? Enjoy some healthy debate
> >in the Yahoo! Answers Food & Drink
Q&A.
>
><
http://answers.yahoo.com/dir/?link=list&sid=396545367>
http://answers.yahoo.com/dir/?link=list&sid=396545367
> >
>
>
------------------------------------------------------
> Literary events Calendar (South Ont.)
> http://www.lit-electric.com
> The evil men do lives after them
> http://www.murderoutthere.com
>
------------------------------------------------------
>
>
>
>
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