CRITIQUE:

Darkness and Laughter

The title of Nabokov's 1932 novel alerts us to two of its concerns.

Firstly, its principal characters dwell in a darkness of their own making. Secondly, other characters, if not necessarily Nabokov himself, mock and laugh at them and their follies.

The darkness results from the moral culpability of the two major characters, Albinus and Margot, who first meet in the darkness of a cinema.

Albinus is a literary and art critic who seems to be in his late forties, possibly 50 years of age. He's married to Elizabeth and has an eight year old daughter. He's well-off financially (having inherited a considerable fortune from his father), and owns a number of homes in Berlin as well as an estate in the country.

Longing for a Thrill

Still, his lifestyle doesn't content him. Elizabeth "failed to give him the thrill for which he had grown weary with longing."

He sees 17 year old Margot at work as an usher in a cinema, and is quickly besotted by "that creature gliding about in the dark". He decides to woo her and make her his mistress.


Tippi Hedren in "The Birds" Source:

"A Nightmare Creature With a Nightmare Mate"

Margot views Albinus as a passport to monetary and social success, as well as an acting career.

There never seems to be any passion or lust, let alone love, in their relationship. She's reluctant to end her concurrent relationship with the artist, Axel Rex, at least until Albinus has divorced Elizabeth and married her, thus legitimating their illicit relationship. Margot and Axel are equally aspirational, calculating and conniving in their relationships, betraying not just Albinus, but each other.

Margot is like a "nightmare creature...being tickled by its nightmare mate." Axel remains a thorn in the side of Albinus and Margot. In Albinus, however, "she could not hope for a repetition of the ecstasy of her first love affair." Albinus, on the other hand, is blinded by the dark hole of his credulous longing.

Fairy Tale Manner

The novel commences in a fairy tale manner:

n  
n  "Once upon a time there lived in Berlin, Germany, a man called Albinus. He was rich, respectable, happy; one day he abandoned his wife for the sake of a youthful mistress; he loved; was not loved; and his life ended in disaster."n  
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Nabokov continues:

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n  "This is the whole of the story and we might have left it at that had there not been profit and pleasure in the telling."n  
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Thus, it's clear that Nabokov thought his novel would have a popular appeal and that his characters would provoke much laughter as they made fools of themselves.

A Snake and a Slattern

Margot is frequently described as a snake. Even Albinus refers to her as a "little slattern" and a "wicked little girl".

In the second half of the novel, various characters express their views on Margot parenthetically:

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n  "('A lovely creature, unquestionably,' thought Lampert, 'but there is something snakelike about her.')"

"('And moreover,' reflected Lampert irrelevantly, 'this little slut is going to be the ruin of him.')"n  
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A childhood friend imagines:

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n  "She's going to the dogs...Ought to marry some good, simple man. I wouldn't take her, though. A fellow would never know where he was..."n  
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Film Poster for Tony Richardson's Film of the Novel

Nabokov as Film Noir

The ending of the novel, which I'm reluctant to reveal (for spoiler reasons), suggests that Alfred Hitchcock, if not Tony Richardson (or Scott Frank), could have made a good suspense film out of it. Perhaps, then, the story might be best enjoyed in the darkness of a cinema, with or without an usher.


SOUNDTRACK:

The Cardigans - "Lovefool"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x8dXP...

Anya Taylor-Joy - "Beth's Downward Spiral" (Full Scene from 'The Queen's Gambit') [Netflix]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSEnz...

Shocking Blue - "Venus"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Lhky...

Hikaru Utada - Laughter in the Dark Tour 2018

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OTAtD...

اولین کتابی بود که از ناباکوف میخوندم میتونم بگم واقعا یک نویسنده ی چیره دست و گردن کلفت بوده.یک کاربلد.یک کنننده ی کار. و چقدر این کتاب خوب بود. شخصیت ضداجتماعی و سایکوپت "رکس" و شیطنتاش، و "آلیبینوس"  مردی که با اینکه بیناست ولی چشماش حقیقت اطرافش رو نمیبینه و در تاریکیه.

Autorul s-a nascut la Sankt Petersburg intr-o familie nobila, cultivata si are numeroase opere scrise atat in rusa cat si in engleza. Amintesc aici cateva: "Ochiul", "Glorie", "Masenka", "Adevarata viata a lui Sebastian Knight", "Pnin", etc. Cea mai cunoscuta ramane insa "Lolita" (1955).
In ceea ce priveste prezentul roman ne aflam in Berlinul anilor '30 si il cunoastem pe Albert Albinus, un critic de arta si expert in pictura ce trece drept un om respectabil al societatii. Intr-o zi el are o idee inovativa: doreste sa reproduca pe micul ecran picturile clasicilor in asa fel incat sa prinda viata, precum niste desene animate. Ia legatura astfel cu Axel Rex, un tip "cu o mana formidabila la fantezii", care ruinase deja un finantator. Acesta e de acord sa deseneze insa cere o suma exorbitanta pentru onorariu.
Albinus are o sotie, Elisabeth si o fetita de 8 ani, insa, in interior il roade o pasiune secreta, o pofta interzisa. Nu este de mirare deci ca atunci cand o intalneste pe Margot el innebuneste de dorinta si dragoste. Tanara fata e din cale afara de vulgara, usuratica si dornica sa devina actrita, atfel ca e dispusa sa faca orice pentru a-si atinge telul.
Albinus isi paraseste sotia si fiica, insa ce nu stie el este ca Margot a avut in trecut o idila cu Rex astfel ca cei doi se reintalnesc prin intermediul protagonistului si reiau legatura. De aici incepe drumul lui Albinus spre ruina, suferinta si esec.
Trebuie sa observam ca tematica Lolitei revine si aici, fata tanara si vicleana il seduce pe protagonistul naiv si indragostit. Este totusi un roman destul de sumbru si sardonic, care parca vrea sa scoata in evidenta numai partea negativa a oamenilor si a lucrurilor.
In colectia de personaje antipatice si de-a dreptul jalnice putem sa le adaugam si pe cele din acest roman, acestia fiind genul de oameni pe care ti i-ai dori tinuti la mare distanta. Albinus este prea slab ca fire, Margot este genul de femeie care aterizeaza pe picioare orice s-ar intampla, iar Rex este un palid exemplar fara substanta.
Actiunea curge lin iar finalul il va lasa cu gura cascata pe cititor. Este bine condus de catre autor, se iveste suprinzator, e memorabil si aduce satisfactie.

“The fire of this kiss was still around him like a colored glory when he returned home. He could not lay it aside in the hall as he did his black felt hat, and when he came into the bedroom he thought that his wife must see that halo.”

Albinus is a rich, married, middle-aged art critic who becomes obsessed with a 17-year-old aspiring actress. We’re told at the beginning that it doesn’t end well, and from that beginning, the tone has a mocking air, which combined with the tragedy, is a little disturbing.

By the middle I felt like I was back in junior high school, when they would give us books and show us films about the dangers of drinking and drugs: “Red Asphalt,” Go Ask Alice. Watch your choices--this could happen to you!

And I read this hoping for immersion into the Weimer-era Berlin setting, but was disappointed to find that aspect all but non-existent. What I got instead was a surprise.

It’s been a long time since I read Lolita, my only other book by this author. Perhaps I should have remembered, but what struck me was the blend of Nabokov’s sardonic tone and poetic irony with his expert handling of suspense. It’s like noir taken up a notch.

I considered this a so-so read for the first half, but was so propelled through the second half that I had to change my mind. Now I must read on to his other work. I expect other surprises are in store for me from this talented writer.

"Death is often the point of life's joke"
― Vladimir Nabokov, Laughter in the Dark



“Death," he had said on another occasion, "seems to be merely a bad habit, which nature is at present powerless to overcome.”
― Vladimir Nabokov, Laughter in the Dark

An early Nabokov with many funky allusions to Tolstoy, anticipations and presages of Lolita, and obviously -- plenty of Nabokovian black humor from beginning to end. As a independent work, I don't think it belongs in the top tier of Nabokov's lush ouvre, but it seems to me to be a piece where Nabokov establishes his literary sea legs. The genealogy of most of his great later work seem to all thread back to 'Laughter in the Dark'/aka 'Kamera obskura'.

In this novel, Nabokov is playing with themes of vision, blindness, truth, deception, art and morality. You see many of Nabokov's later motifs surrounding vision floating (like mouches volantes) through this early work: mirrors, window pains, mimicry, scintillations, semblances, glasses, movies, etc. It wouldn't be Nabokov if he played any of these themes straight. He bends the narrative and plays with Tolstoy's belief that it is "the essential nature of truth to be hidden from, then revealed to, the eyes." Nabokov gives you the goods and gives them to you good and hard right between the eyes.

خدایااااا‌ پس چرا آخرش اینجوری شد؟ چرا مارگو و رکس تیکه تیکه نشدن؟؟

Riso na escuridão precedeu Lolita em mais de 20 anos, e talvez tenha sido a pedra basilar do romance que mudou para sempre a vida de Vladimir Nabokov.

Neste romance, tal como em Lolita, também temos uma jovem adolescente, oriunda de uma família disfuncional, neste romance, também temos um homem maduro que sente o sangue pulsar assim que põe os olhos em cima da sua Lolita.

O livro começa assim:

“Era uma vez um homem chamado Albinus que vivia em Berlim, na Alemanha. Era rico, respeitável e feliz; certo dia abandonou a mulher por causa de uma amante jovem; não era amado; e a sua vida acabou em desastre.”

O primeiro parágrafo do livro e encerra toda a sua história. Mas vale a pena ler o livro para perceber o que aconteceu e como aconteceu tal desastre na vida de Albinus, com repercussões para toda a sua família.

A história é emocionante, porque ao longo do livro o canalha passa a vítima e a vítima passa a canalha, como se costuma dizer, tudo vai e tudo volta, aqui não há santos nem deuses.

Tal como nos humanos, estes personagens são dotados de defeitos e virtudes, e é claro que a balança não pende de forma igual para todos, existem pesos diferentes para cada personagem.

A obra foi publicada em 1936, a primeira versão, mas é um livro muito bem concebido, bem escrito e a narrativa é intemporal.

Bio jednom jedan umetnički kritičar sa kojim se sudbina nemilosrdno poigrala... Jedna zavodljivo duhovita priča o zaslepljujućoj ljubavi i pokušajima da se upravlja životom koji izmiče kontroli, napisana na način koji ne opterećuje, već očarava.

Priča prati umetničkog kritičara koji se upušta u vezu sa mladom zavodnicom, a njihova afera pokreće lavinu događaja prožetih obmanama, manipulacijama i nepredvidivim obrtima. Nabokov nas vodi kroz ovu grotesknu ljubavnu priču kao vešt režiser, dajući osećaj kao da gledamo Ameliju Pulen – sa krupnim kadrovima, dinamičnom montažom i dovitljivim naratorom koji prikazuju ključne scene, prateći likove u najintimnijim trenucima njihove unutrašnje borbe. Kroz ovu dinamiku roman deluje kao sudbinska igra u kojoj likovi, iako očigledno vođeni sopstvenim slabostima, deluju kao akteri nečega što je izvan njihove kontrole.

Nabokov vešto oblikuje podrugljivo-šarmantan ton koji omogućava čitaocu da, uprkos težini radnje, zadrži osećaj suptilne uživancije i uronjenosti u priču. Njegova majstorija jezika (iako ne na nivou Lolite) i sposobnost da kroz pronicljivu duhovitost obuhvati mračne aspekte ljudske prirode čine ovu knjigu nezaboravno-prijatnim iskustvom, iako se bavi složenim pitanjima ljudskih slabosti i ljudske zlobe.

4.25/5

The trick with Nabokov, with any novelist, is to sympathize not with the characters but with characters' creator. There is no one in this novel to get behind, not even the betrayed wife or her sick little girl. Because they are but props, silent-movie cliches. All three of the leads are detestable, each in their own way. And the plot is as outlandish and unlikely as the films Nabokov was having fun with. What makes the book worth reading is, as always, his style and his lovely, lyrical detail. But it's also the knowledge that even though his creations are awful, Nabokov isn't. He just likes to give the damned their due.

A cautionary, satirical tale of lust and obsession, betrayal and inevitable doom. It's enough to put one off younger women for life...

Well, Laughter in the Dark was by far the worst novel I’ve read by Nabokov. And that’s to say that it was a solidly good, funny, and engaging book. Like many of his novels, the plot is your basic old- man- obsessed- with- inappropriately- aged- girl- who- also- happens- to- be- evil- and- this- as- you- might- guess- ends- in- tragedy and the tone is the only one you can have with such a plot – it’s a very dark comedy. I hope.

I found that this book fell into the same category as his other early work that I’ve read, Depair, in that it seems to be an illustration of the timeless author learning the ropes and beginning to understand his interests and abilities. Although it’s no masterpiece, Laughter in the Dark is still a pleasure to read and a great window into how Nabokov developed both his life-long themes and writing tools.

To those Nabokov snobs who might say, “Laughter in the Dark is nothing more than a shoddy rendition of Lolita,” I say to you, how many novels did you write in your mother tongue when you were thirty and then translated into a foreign language two years later? I mean, of course it’s not as good as Lolita, which is one of the best books of our time and written in the prime of Nabokov’s genius. But it can still be good.

In fact, more than anything, I’d recommend this book to anyone about to board an airplane. The whole time I was reading it, I was almost wishing I had saved it for my next trip.

1. It is printed in a big, easy-to-read font that makes it hard to lose your place even when you get distracted by airplane stuff.
2. It only takes about 3 or 4 hours to read.
3. It has a very fast-moving and weird, deviant plot – so deviant, in fact, that you could probably forget you are flying through the air at dangerous speeds.
4.It makes those around notice that you are interested in early-era Nabokov, which makes you really smart and interesting. They don’t have to know that it’s a pretty easy, fun read filled with weird sex.

ناباکوف می گوید نویسنده بایددر آن واحد سه نفر باشد: داستان گو، معلم و جادوگر که در نهایت جادوگر غلبه می کند. کاری که خودِ ناباکوف انجام می دهد.
جادو!
حتی این بدترین و کمترین رمانِ وی از لحاظ خلاقیت های ناباکوف بسیار خواندنی و جذاب است. این رمان در واقع زمانی که از سنت پترزبورگ به برلین مهاجرت کرده بودند نوشته شده. از نظر زمانی تقریبان همزمان با رمان چشم اوست. 1930
در فضای سینماییِ آن روز های برلین، روایتی طنز از قصه ای کلیشه ای را نمایش می دهد. اما طنزی سراسر خلاقیت و "ناباکوفی". طنزی که خودِ ناباکوف آنرا طنزِ هگلی نام نهاده.
تز: برای خنداندن شخصیت ها
آنتی تز: برای خنداندنِ مخاطب
سنتز: برای سردرگمی مخاطب!
به شخصه از خواندنِ آثار این نابغه ی بزرگِ ادبیات که زمان خودش کمتر دیده شد و شاید به حاشیه ی لولیتای معروفش بیشتر پرداخته شد تا نبوغ بی حد و حصرش، لذتی بیش می برم.
البته اندکی هم افسوس می خورم که چرا باید ترجمه ی آثارش را بخوانم. در حالی که معجزه ی اصلیِ او در زبان اصلیِ کتاب رخ داده. و همیشه تا زمانی که زنده بود ترجمه های کتاب هایش زیرِ نظر خودش به وسیله ی پسرش دیمیتری انجام می شد. فقط این بخش از لولیتا را نگاه کنید و فکر کنید که اگر به فارسی ترجمه شود چه لطمه ای خواهد خورد (متاسفانه ذبیح ا... منصوری آنرا به فارسی "تالیف" کرده!!!) س

"Lolita, light of my life, fire of my loins. My sin, my soul. Lo-lee-ta: the tip of the tongue taking a trip of three steps down the palate to tap, at three, on the teeth. Lo. Lee. Ta. She was Lo, plain Lo, in the morning, standing four feet ten in one sock. She was Lola in slacks. She was Dolly at school. She was Dolores on the dotted line. But in my arms she was always Lolita. Did she have a precursor? She did, indeed she did. In point of fact, there might have been no Lolita at all had I not loved, one summer, an initial girl-child. In a princedom by the sea. Oh when? About as many years before Lolita was born as my age was that summer. You can always count on a murderer for a fancy prose style. Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, exhibit number one is what the seraphs, the misinformed, simple, noble-winged seraphs, envied. Look at this tangle of thorns."