Good writeup, I used Nabokov's commentary as one of my aides when I did a thorough Ulysses readthrough last year. One thing I found a little odd (perhaps it was more obviously ironic in person) was his aside on the abnormalities of Bloom's sexuality. Perhaps in their specificities they are atypical but the idea that he is sex-crazed in a way that is not 'everyman' struck me as either prudish or willfully ignorant (particularly for the author of 'Lolita').
Good writeup, I used Nabokov's commentary as one of my aides when I did a thorough Ulysses readthrough last year. One thing I found a little odd (perhaps it was more obviously ironic in person) was his aside on the abnormalities of Bloom's sexuality. Perhaps in their specificities they are atypical but the idea that he is sex-crazed in a way that is not 'everyman' struck me as either prudish or willfully ignorant (particularly for the author of 'Lolita').
Thanks, and I agree with you about the apparent prudery of the author of "Lolita." That surprised me too.