On Nabokov’s Writing Of "Cruelty"

Vladimir Nabokov (1899-1977) is known to be one of the most important writers in the20th century, whose works boast profound aesthetic and ethical values. Nabokov’s writing of "cruelty" is widely presented in his works, while there is no systematic discussion on it. This thesis, by way of text reading and biography criticism, sets out to sort out and summarize the writing of "cruelty" in Nabokov’s writings. Regarding Nabokov as a liberal ironist, this thesis will identify the origin of emotion and the humanistic care behind the writing of "cruelty", and characterize Nabokov’s wish of creating a four-dimensional world consisting of "curiosity, kindness, tenderness and ecstacy". Therefore, the possibility of leading to the "otherworld" will be found.The world created by Nabokov, lacking "curiosity, kindness, tenderness and ecstacy", is filled with poshlost and individual crisis. The ultimate meaning of "cruelty" is finally presented in "the prison of time". This thesis is composed by three sections. The first section deals with Nabokov’s view of poshlost. Poshlost involves servility and kitsch, the latter serving as an interpretation of the fall of social culture and natural kitsch of some people. The second section leads a discussion on individual crisis in Nabokov’s writing. Individual crisis, caused by totalitarian, times, and ego, include one who makes cruelty or one hurt by cruelty. The third section focuses on "the prison of time" in Nabokov’s writings, and discusses the confrontation, the exploration and the reconciliation of characters in "the prison of time".