Date of Submission
Spring 2024
Academic Program
Experimental Humanities
Project Advisor 1
Olga Voronina
Abstract/Artist's Statement
Vladimir Nabokov’s novels are deeply cinematic. Whether through the use of cinematic techniques, allusions to specific genres and even individual films, or through plot elements that drew upon the pervasiveness of film culture itself, Nabokov incorporates cinematic imagery into his work on a regular basis. Given Nabokov’s cinematic sensibility, it is unsurprising that filmmakers have often looked to adapt his fiction into film. Yet, despite the filmic pedigree of the novels themselves and the undeniable talent of the adapters—among them some of the world’s most acclaimed and important directors and screenwriters—the ensuing films have rarely been celebrated. To what extent was Nabokov’s work mediated by or a reaction to cinematic culture? What is the relationship between the cinematic qualities of his fiction and the artistic qualities of actual cinema? Finally, what is it about Nabokov’s fiction that both insists upon and resists cinematic adaptation? This project addresses these and similar questions by exploring the role of cinema in Nabokov’s fiction through the lens of two novels, Laughter in the Dark (1938) and Lolita (1955). Two chapters offer a critical analysis of these works, while the other two contain an investigation of their filmed adaptations and Nabokov’s own Lolita: A Screenplay. The project’s goal, overall, is to demonstrate how challenging Nabokov’s “cinematic poetics” was and remains for film-makers, including Stanley Kubrick and Tony Richardson, and to elaborate on their approaches towards resolving these challenges.
Open Access Agreement
On-Campus only
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Recommended Citation
Sjursen, Isak, "Nabokov in Movieland: Cinematic Representations in Laughter in the Dark and Lolita" (2024). Senior Projects Spring 2024. 274.
https://digitalcommons.bard.edu/senproj_s2024/274
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