The Ethical Literary Interpretation Of Lolita

Vladimir Nabokov, a Russian-born American novelist，is generally acknowledgedas a unique and distinctive figure in the20thcentury American literature，many of criticsand scholars acclaim Nabokov as one of the finest stylists and one of the greatestnovelists in English literature. The critics explored Lolita, the masterpiece and the mostcontroversial work of Nabokov from the aspects of moral theme, post modernism, thenarrative strategy, and the time and death image since it was published. However, theresearch of Lolita from ethical literary criticism to analyze different relationships is few.Ethical literary criticism is an approach to literary criticism developed on the basis ofthe introduction of ethical methods and the assimilation of them into the texture ofliterary critical methods. This thesis intends to analyze Lolita from the aspects of therelationship between human and society, the relationship between human and other andthe relationship between human and self to explore Nabokov’ humanistic spirit and hisdevotion of humanistic construction.The hero Humbert and heroine Lolita in the novel live in disharmony family withless parental love and care, after having her own family and baby, Lolita decides togive her baby enough bless and she devotes her family a lot, this is Nabokov’shumanistic spirit in terms of human-society relationship. Lolita goes through thehardships of being ruined and deadly hurt by Humbert and Quilty, but she forgivesboth of them and marries Dick. Lolita changed from an innocent girl to a faithful wifeand a devoted mother, the relationship between human and other changed frombetrayal, hurt to harmony, which reflects Nabokov’s pursuit of beauty and harmony interms of human-society relationship. Humbert puts his spiritual reliance on Lolitahence his spirit stops exiling. However, Lolita can’t endure Humbert’s control andincest love, so she runs away. Humbert meets Lolita again and he realizes his ruiningDolores with his own hands by himself. The awakening，realization and confession ofHumbert makes his love to be immortal, sincere and honest which is saint in terms ofhuman-self relationship.The interpretation of Lolita from the aspect of ethical literary criticism provides anew point to explore Nabokov’s humanistic spirit by going through the different relationships; it also provides a new aspect to interpret Lolita.