Nabokovs Criticism of American Culture in Lolita
In his novel Lolita, Vladimir Nabokov uses Humbert Humberts narrative as a means of expressing a viewpoint of American culture following World War II. ... "Bland American Charlotte frightened me. ... However, because he considers himself operating on such a higher mental plane than Charlotte, he literally feels threatened by her stupidity, which he attributes to the American culture surrounding her. ... "I can well imagine the thrill that you, a healthy American gal, must experience at crossing the Atlantic on the same ocean liner with Lady Bumble- or Sam Bumble, the Frozen Meat King, or a Hollywood harlot…but I happen to be allergic to Europe…" (95). Here Humbert uses verbal irony and a bemused tone that works well to accomplish the scathing critique of Charlottes character as a "healthy American gal.