Yee-ah, it’s on. In fact, it’s no longer on, it was on in one man’s mind and later on in his classrooms – but that was many years ago in a land far away.
Having just read Crime & Punishment I was keen to read what my all-time favourite author and one-time Russian Literature lecturer at Cornell, Vladimir Nabokov had to say about the book. Turns out he reckons it’s far from perfect and I couldn’t help but be pleased to agree.
Nabokov says he read the book about five times, which is something to be admired in itself, but I’m pretty sure he didn’t have an Xbox or live next to the beach. He brings it all down to one sentence – a book that took me two months to read collapses in one sentence. Regardless of the reason, I love the way Nabokov demands perfection and consistency in all art.
[An aside: That's kind of interesting in itself because I'm drawn a lot to imperfect art - particularly in music. I love musicians like Elliott Smith and Conor Oberst (Bright Eyes) for their lack of consistency and often very dodgy live performances. It means that their works of Pure Genius (Elliott Smith - highlights of Either/Or; Figure 8; XO; Bright Eyes - I'm Wide Awake It's Morning) are given valuable human context. I guess it's like extended lees contact during maturation with a Chardonnay - gives mouthfeel and complexity to what's already there.]
I think the standard of living in pre-revolutionary Russia depicted in the book is the goldmine. The existential issues surrounding murder, guilt and redemption aren’t delt with by any original / deft / insightful measures. But having been to St Petersburg I really loved reading about the streets and ting.
I’ve read all but two of Nabokov’s 20-something works and only one of Dostoevksi’s so I’d naturally side with my main man. I read his critique of Crime & Punishment in Lectures on Russian Literature and the glowing spark of admiration I keep in my mind for Nab was immediately bellowed into a dancing flame of admiration, envy and dreams of literary eloquence and metaphysical illumination.
The point is, I can spend two months chewing through a rewarding yet ultimately unexciting work like Crime & Punishment and walk away unchanged, then I can read a five page critique of said work and feel ashamed for not being the potential man I could be if I focused on literature (and its matters) rather than watching TV, drinking too much wine and playing GTA San Andreas.
Hmm. Might return to Dostoevski in a few years, but not right now. I’ve got Nabokov to re-read. Or maybe I’ll flick through his book on Russian lit and find the dudes he rates and go from there.
