Amazing-writing Quote by Vladimir Nabokov
““Lolita, light of my life, fire of my loins. My sin, my soul. Lo-lee-ta: the tip of the tongue taking a trip of three steps down the palate to tap, at three, on the teeth. Lo. Lee. Ta. She was Lo, plain Lo, in the morning, standing four feet ten in one sock. She was Lola in slacks. She was Dolly at school. She was Dolores on the dotted line. But in my arms she was always Lolita. Did she have a precursor? She did, indeed she did. In point of fact, there might have been no Lolita at all had I not loved, one summer, an initial girl-child. In a princedom by the sea. Oh when? About as many years before Lolita was born as my age was that summer. You can always count on a murderer for a fancy prose style. Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, exhibit number one is what the seraphs, the misinformed, simple, noble-winged seraphs, envied. Look at this tangle of thorns.””
About This Quote
Source Novel: Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov, 1955
A lyrical, obsessive description of a young woman, blending love, desire, and artistic obsession.
In simple terms: Intense love expressed poetically.
Key Takeaway
Recognize the line between admiration and objectification.
Themes
love
obsession
artistic expression
Mood
melancholic
intense
Type
literary
critical
When to use this quote
- literary analysis
- creative writing
- relationship counseling
Key Concepts
poetic language
psychology of desire
Questions to Reflect On
- What does this reveal about the narrator’s psyche?
- How does language shape perception of love?
A Different Perspective
Romanticizing harmful relationships.
![“...under no circumstances would he [Humbert Humbert] have interfered with the innocence of a child, if there was the least risk of a row.” quote by Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/0f0/vladimir-nabokov-198_children_under-no-circumstances-would-he-humbert_16228.jpg)
