‘Plainspoken about Jew and Gentile’: Vladimir Nabokov, the legacy of Russian liberalism, and the Jewish question
‘Plainspoken about Jew and Gentile’: Vladimir Nabokov, the legacy of Russian liberalism, and the Jewish question
Vladimir Nabokov modelled his moral and political values on those of his father, V. D. Nabokov, especially revering his defence of Russian Jewry. This paper attempts to clarify broad-brushstrokes accounts of V. D. Nabokov, demonstrating how his ambivalent approach to the ‘Jewish Question’ evolved as a result of his Russian liberalism. Using contemporary accounts and revisiting primary sources, this challenges the hagiographic legacy built by his son and critics. In turn, this allows for a more refined understanding of Vladimir Nabokov’s literary engagement with the ‘Jewish theme’, his sacred relationship with his father, and the limitations of inherited liberalism.
Vladimir Nabokov, Russian, Philosemitism, Liberalism
367-383
Alexander-Rose, Anoushka
96e04d69-d68c-4e39-b829-b3eec75221fe
Alexander-Rose, Anoushka
96e04d69-d68c-4e39-b829-b3eec75221fe
Alexander-Rose, Anoushka
(2022)
‘Plainspoken about Jew and Gentile’: Vladimir Nabokov, the legacy of Russian liberalism, and the Jewish question.
Jewish Culture and History, 23 (4), .
(doi:10.1080/1462169X.2022.2137661).
Abstract
Vladimir Nabokov modelled his moral and political values on those of his father, V. D. Nabokov, especially revering his defence of Russian Jewry. This paper attempts to clarify broad-brushstrokes accounts of V. D. Nabokov, demonstrating how his ambivalent approach to the ‘Jewish Question’ evolved as a result of his Russian liberalism. Using contemporary accounts and revisiting primary sources, this challenges the hagiographic legacy built by his son and critics. In turn, this allows for a more refined understanding of Vladimir Nabokov’s literary engagement with the ‘Jewish theme’, his sacred relationship with his father, and the limitations of inherited liberalism.
Text
Plainspoken about Jew and Gentile Vladimir Nabokov the legacy of Russian liberalism and the Jewish question
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Accepted/In Press date: 14 October 2022
e-pub ahead of print date: 2 November 2022
Keywords:
Vladimir Nabokov, Russian, Philosemitism, Liberalism
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Local EPrints ID: 483364
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/483364
ISSN: 1462-169X
PURE UUID: e9c9288d-89e1-4b7c-af7b-977de77d1492
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Date deposited: 30 Oct 2023 09:44
Last modified: 17 Mar 2024 02:51
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