Ten Of The Most Controversial Books! Ten Of The Most Controversial Books written by admin November 28, 2008 Some books attract a lot of controversy and even calls for banning the book from members of the public or those in religious or political organizations. Some qualities common in the most controversial books include religious degradation or slurs, foul language, violence, racism, extreme political views, and vivid or graphic sexual descriptions. Here are some of the most controversial books that have fueled the flames of controversy ever since they were published. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn – Mark Twain (1884) A controversial book for years, Twain’s novel shows a contrast between indulgent childhood dreams and blatant cruel realities, bringing out the themes of equality, justice and human rights. In this book, Huck fakes his own death to run away to the river. There he meets an escaped slave named Jim. Together, they seek liberation and their journey tests them at every turn. While Huck looks forward to returning to a freewheeling life, Jim looks for the personal freedom he has never known. With the entry of Tom Sawyer, Huck faces a dilemma of whether to return home or risk his life to help Jim achieve freedom.

Because the word “nigger” appears more than 200 times in the book and it was perceived as racial, it initially caused a lot of controversy, especially in the 20th century. This book was also criticized for its coarse language. Earnest Hemingway, however, called it “the best book we’ve had.” Brave New World – Aldous Huxley (1932) Published in 1932, Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World is his most popular novel, although it might not have been his most important. It was frequently challenged with banning attempts, and is still considered controversial. The reader is swept into Huxley’s vision of a future based on science and technology. The novel depicts drugs, sexuality, and suicide and reveals Huxley’s disdain for the culture of the United States. A group of parents attempted to get the book banned because they felt there was an overemphasis on negativity. Nineteen Eighty-Four – George Orwell (1949) Written in 1949 by George Orwell while he was dying of tuberculosis, the book brings to light the sad state and future of a society that is robbed of privacy, truth, or free will.

This book forces us to re-examine our lives, lifestyles, and how our governments work. It offers a fresh perspective on many topics; totalitarianism, torture, mind control, the United States, the Soviet Union, privacy, technology, power, human emotions, organized religion, censorship, sex, and more. It was a controversial book right from publication and remains so today. Many people claim that the work is unnatural and intense because it was written by a man choked with a subconscious death-wish. Many American reviewers also assumed that the book represented a repudiation of his democratic socialism. The Catcher In The Rye – J.D. Salinger (1951) This novel was topping the New York Times best-seller list almost immediately upon release in 1951. Salinger’s Catcher In The Rye is an account of three days in a 16-year-old boy’s life. It was originally meant for adults but eventually became a part of the curriculum in many high schools and colleges. It was also translated into many languages. There were several controversies for several reasons, such as the portrayal of sexuality and teenage angst, the use of profanity, the anti-white sentiment, and the excessive violence.

Holden Caulfield, the protagonist, became an icon for defiance and rebellion. In fact Mark David Chapman, who shot John Lennon in 1980, cited the book as his reason for doing it. Lolita – Vladimir Nabokov (1955) Nabokov’s Lolita caused a storm of controversy when it was published in 1955 in France, and those controversies have shadowed the book ever since. This novel explores the mind of a pedophile named Humbert Humbert, who narrates his life and obsession for nymphets like the 12-year-old Dolores Haze. It was banned in France, the United Kingdom, New Zealand, South Africa, and Argentina. But in America, it was a huge success and is said to be the first book since Gone With The Wind to have sold 100,000 copies in the first three weeks. I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings – Maya Angelou (1970) This is the first of the five autobiographical works by Maya Angelou and was published in 1970.

The title of the book was taken from the poem “Sympathy” by Paul Lawrence Dunbar, and it describes perseverance even in the face of oppression. Maya Angelou, through this book, gives an account of her youth filled with trauma, tragedy, frustration, disappointment and eventually independence. Angelou describes the racism she and her grandmother encountered in the town of Stamps and other places, in spite of her grandmother having more money than the whites. There are passages in the books that describe how she was raped when she was just eight years old by her mother’s boyfriend. Her grandmother’s influence was what helped her overcome the hardships in her life. The graphic nature of the book, depicting details of abuse and rape was considered controversial by many. However, the book was widely hailed and even taught in schools. This book was also nominated for the National Book Award. The Anarchist Cookbook – William Powell – (1971) This 1971 cult classic is a guerrilla how-to book that provides strategies useful for activists — including violent activists. It covers several sections that describe organizing demonstrations, sabotage, affinity groups, stenciling, and other topics like supporting survivors of domestic violence and mental health.

This book angered government officials and anarchist groups felt it misrepresented anarchist ideals. Others criticized the book for the bomb-making recipes, which they said were dangerously inaccurate. Later, when Powell was older, he tried to censor his own book and said that this book was “a misguided product of my adolescent anger at the prospect of being drafted and sent to Vietnam to fight in a war that I did not believe in.” The Satanic Verses – Salman Rushdie (1989) This book by Salman Rushdie sparked controversies galore because of the controversial topic it touched. The title, The Satanic Verses, refers to an incident that is disputed between fact and fiction. Some called it a blasphemous treatment of the Islamic faith as Rushdie refers to the Prophet Muhammad as Mahound, which is the medieval name for the devil. In Pakistan, there were riots in 1989 over the book where a few people were killed, and many were injured in India. In spite of Rushdie issuing an apology, the Iranian spiritual leader Ayatollah Khomeini condemned the author publicly, and went to the extent of putting a $1 million bounty for killing the author, increasing that to $3 million if the assassin was Iranian.

Even Venezuelan officials threatened 15 months of prison for anyone who owned or even read the book. Japan imposed a fine on anyone selling the English edition and a Japanese translator was said to be stabbed to death for getting involved with the book. Major U.S. booksellers removed this book from the shelves because they received death threats. Rushdie himself lived in hiding for almost a decade. Such was the animosity towards the book, and in a way it makes it all the more appealing. The Harry Potter Series – J.K. Rowling (2001) J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series is wildly popular and seen generally as adventurous and harmless tales for children. However, this series has caused controversies over the past few years, from many different groups of people who look at them as stories that inspire children to become involved in witchcraft and the occult. These novels follow the life of a young wizard, whose parents were killed by the evil Lord Voldermort. The young boy receives an invitation to attend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft on his eleventh birthday and each book represents a year of his life at the school. These books have their fair share of opponents (not to mention hoards of fans).

Some parents and religious groups feel that these books can take children deep into the unwanted land of fantasy. The Da Vinci Code – Dan Brown (2003) A recent book that surrounded by controversy since its publication is The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown. The book gives a fictional account of characters revealing a hidden truth concealed by the Catholic Church for centuries, including the divinity of Christ, his celibacy, and the possibility of a genetic heritage. Most of the complaints against the book are due to the speculation and misrepresentation of the history of Roman Catholic Church and the basic questioning of the tenets of Christianity. The book was also criticized for inaccurate description of history, geography, European art, and architecture. This is by no means a comprehensive list of all the controversial books as there are many more. But these are certainly some of the books that have been considered some of the most controversial books ever published. Ten Of The Most Controversial Books was last modified: November 28th, 2008 by admin Lolita (Literature) - TV Tropes Trope Namer for Lolicon .

Lolita contains examples of: Abusive Parents : Apart from the obvious sexual abuse, Humbert has a bad habit of hitting his adoptive daughter Dolores when she fails to please him, in bed or otherwise. In one of the most disturbing scenes in a highly disturbing book, we learn that he routinely pays her for sex, after which he takes the money back by force so that she can't save up enough to run away. Added Alliterative Appeal : Lots and lots. The title quote shows it well. Affably Evil : Humbert Humbert in spades. There's at least one moment in the book (which also turns up in some form in the movie adaptations) in which he contemplates killing his wife and how easily he could get away with it, but finds that he really is just too nice to do it. In some ways, this actually makes him even worse, and the mid-story Diabolus ex Machina that puts her out of his way is made that much more bitterly ironic. The Annotated Edition : The Annotated Lolita, with said annotations added by Alfred Appel, who had once been Nabokov's student at Cornell.

It's funny how Alfred Appel added the annotations, given the author's affinity for alliteration . Given the author's fondness for bilingual puns, it's also fun to note that the French for "reference mark" is "appel de note". Does this man even really exist? Appel's preface to the annotated edition goes out of its way on this point: "Of course, the annotator and editor of a novel written by the creator of Kinbote and John Ray, Jr., runs the real risk of being mistaken for another fiction, when at most he resembles those gentlemen only figuratively. But the annotator exists; he is a veteran and a grandfather, a teacher and taxpayer, and has not been invented by Vladimir Nabokov." Of course, that's just what a character would say. . .

and before the Introduction is over, Appel is saying that you, gentle reader, are "manipulated by Nabokov's dizzying illusionistic devices to such an extent that [you] too can be said to become, at certain moments, another of Vladimir Nabokov's creations." Author Avatar : Oddly, given his crimes and Nabokov's own opinion toward him, Humbert could count for this, being one of a number of Nabokov protagonists who, like the author himself, is a highly cultured emigre. This is tidily averted in one aspect: Nabokov was a respected lepidopterist. H.H. sees hawk-moths in the Arizona twilight and thinks they are hummingbirds. It is also interesting to note how Humbert discredits his journal as being a work of fiction using people he knows as archetypes and putting them into extreme situations. He even says that this is part of the trade of the author as well. Meaningful Name : Everywhere. Dolores, conceived in Mexico, was named for Nuestra Señora de Dolores, Our Lady of Sorrows.

"Haze", of course, is an obscuring cloud or fog (after he and Dolores part, Humbert realizes that "I simply did not know a thing about my darling's mind"). "Dolly" is a pretend person, a human-shaped thing to play with, which is all that Dolly Haze ever is to Humbert. Quilty = Guilty . Richard Schiller- Friedrich Schiller was an 18th century philosopher who wrote on ethics and morals. Notably relevant is his writing on the moral value of 'play' on moral/aesthetic experience. And of course, Richard is referred to as " Dick ". Most Writers Are Writers : Humbert is a literature professor, poet, and an aspiring novelist. His foil Quilty is a well-known playwright. Unreliable Narrator : This is a book you need to read twice, just to appreciate how horribly screwed up everybody is. And we mean everybody. As Nabokov noted in his afterword, one publisher rejected the manuscript on the grounds that Lolita had no good people in it . Thanks to the Unreliable Narrator, however, the extent of just how screwed up they are is not immediately apparent. H. H.

gives multiple, mutually incompatible "explanations" for his actions with Dolores: It wasn't his fault, his "pederosis" is a disease. And besides, it's normal for grown men to be sexually interested in preteen girls. And besides, she wasn't even a virgin. And besides, he was still sexually hung up on Annabel Leigh after a quarter century. And besides, Dante fell in love with Beatrice when she was nine. And besides, it was Lolita who seduced Humbert. Wife Husbandry : On several levels. Humbert actually muses on the possibility of impregnating Lolita with Lolita: The Next Generation. Ideally really soon, as in before she grows up and gets uninteresting. Charlotte - Baby Girl Name Meaning and Origin | Oh Baby! Names Charlotte Happy Etymology & Historical Origin - Charlotte The name Charlotte is the French feminine form of Charles. Charles, in turn, is ultimately derived from the German masculine name Karl/Carl (from the Germanic “karl” meaning “free man”); therefore, Charlotte would come to mean “free woman”.

In ancient times, the Germanic term “karl” signified a “free” man but not one of nobility; i.e., from the same medieval root as the Olde English word “ceorl” which stood for “man of low birth, a common man”. In the later Middle High German or Middle English, the terms evolved their definitions to more simply “man, fellow, husband”. Despite the name’s rather “lowly” beginnings, many Europeans of high rank and those among the royalty bore names derived from Karl/Carl (such as Charlemagne, Charles, Caroline and Charlotte). In fact, the 8th/9th century Frankish leader, Charlemagne, had a lot to do with the name’s perpetuation among the earlier Franks (a Germanic tribe and precursors to the French people). The French eventually developed Charlotte as a female equivalent, and the English adopted the name by the 17th century. The name’s usage was later influenced by Queen Consort Charlotte of England, wife of King George III (18th century) and the novelist Charlotte Brontë (19th century). See historical references below for more information on these two illustrious Charlottes.

Charlotte remains a very popular name in the Western World today. It’s most common per capita for babies down under in Australia, but it’s also a Top 30 favorite in Belgium, Canada, England, the United States and Scotland. It’s a Top 50 in France, the Netherlands, and Northern Ireland. Popularity of the Name Charlotte Charlotte is another old-fashioned name with enduring style and charm. The name has been in strong use in America for over a century, although it lost most of its popularity between the 1970’s and 1990’s. The iconic television series “Sex and the City” introduced a character named Charlotte York and during the years the show aired (1999-2004), usage of the name doubled. Aside from its peak popularity during the 1940’s, the delicately beautiful name Charlotte is experiencing some of its highest success right now. And for those tom-boys who feel their name might sound too “lady-like,” Charlotte is often shortened to Charley (as opposed to the antiquated pet form Lottie). You simply can’t go wrong with a name like Charlotte. It’s French. It’s high-class. It’s sophisticated.

And it’s just too lovely for words. Popularity of the Girl Name Charlotte You need Adobe Flash Player 6 (or above) to view the charts. It is a free and lightweight installation from Adobe.com. Please click here to install the same. Cultural References to the Baby Name - Charlotte Literary Characters of the Baby Name Charlotte Charlotte (Charlotte’s Web) Charlotte is the barn spider in E.B. White’s children’s classic of 1952, “Charlotte’s Web.” Beloved by children the world over since its publication, the book is a standard must-read. Charlotte saves Wilbur the Pig from slaughter for bacon by weaving praises about him into her web (“Some Pig”, “Terrific”, etc.), so that Wilbur becomes famous and ultimately takes the county fair prize as best pig. Children and adults alike are enchanted by this tale that effortlessly imparts big life truths about friendship, loyalty and even death. Charlotte Haze (Lolita) Charlotte is the unfortunate mother of the title character of “Lolita,” the very controversial 1955 novel by Vladimir Nabokov.

Charlotte rents a room in her house to Humbert Humbert, who promptly becomes obsessed with her 12 year old daughter, the nubile Lolita. Charlotte is at first blissfully unaware of his true affections, believing him to be interested in herself, until she reads the sordid truth in his diary. She may be said to represent conventional society as a whole, for upon this discovery, she runs out into the street in shock and is killed by an automobile. Charlotte Lucas (Pride and Prejudice) Charlotte is main character Elizabeth Bennett’s best friend in Jane Austen’s famous Pride and Prejudice. A quiet and good young woman, she sets out to marry the pompous and rather ridiculous Mr. Collins (whom Elizabeth has spurned). She is not beautiful and she is twenty-seven years old – on the brink of permanent spinsterhood. Often rejected by modern day feminists as a mealy-mouthed dependent who settles for less than second best, she is in fact a strong, intelligent and far-seeing individualist who knows the score. As a woman of her day, her prospects are slim indeed, and only marriage can assure her a position of security and respect.

She is clearly aware of the shortcomings of her husband, but she takes on the challenge with a clear eye and steady hand, and attains her goal: “I ask only a comfortable home.” She gives as good as she gets, cheerfully and determinedly, and if there were a sequel, no doubt we should find the Collins growing old together in comfortable obscurity. Charlotte Palmer (Sense and Sensibility) Charlotte is a relatively minor character in Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility, a friend of the Misses Dashwoods. She seems to be all surface and superficiality, but is good hearted and kind nonetheless. She and her husband provide much levity in the novel, as he reacts to her innocent inanities with curmudgeonly humor, and she good-naturedly laughs him off. They are oddly suited to each other and share a genuine warmth in their relationship that is not always evident upon first reading.

Popular Songs on Charlotte Charlotte Sometimes - a song by The Cure Charlotte Street - a song by Lloyd Cole and The Commotions Charlotte the Harlot - a song by Iron Maiden Dear Charlotte - a song by Craig's Brother Frozen Charlotte - a song by Natalie Merchant Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte - a song by Patti Page Sweet Charlotte Ann - a song by Ian Corigan Children's Books on the Baby Name Charlotte Brave Charlotte (Anu Stohner) - Charlotte the sheep is anything but sheepish. She likes to climb trees and swim in fast-running rivers. Even the dog cannot keep up with her. The older sheep shake their heads in disapproval, but their opinions change when the shepherd breaks his leg and Charlotte is the only one brave enough to make the long journey to the farmer's house to get help. Recommended for ages 4-8. Charlotte and The White Horse (Ruth Krauss) - Charlotte and the White Horse is about a girl who convinces her father to keep a wobbly legged horse so she can care for him until he can stand on his own. Recommended for ages baby to preschool. Charlotte in New York (Joan MacPhail Knight) - Part of a series. It's 1894.

Charlotte and her American family have been living in France for two years where her father has learned the new way of painting called Impressionism. Now her father's paintings are going to be featured in a show in New York and the whole family is going along. New York is a hustling, bustling city like no other in the world, and Charlotte records it all in her colorful journal. Recommended for ages 9-12. Charlotte Sometimes (Penelope Farmer) - On her first morning at boarding school, a girl wakes up to strange new surroundings in this haunting fantasy. Recommended for ages 10-14. Charlotte The Sunflower Fairy (Daisy Meadows) - Help save Fairyland's flowers! Every flower is bright and blossoming, thanks to the Petal Fairies! But when Jack Frost steals their magical petals, the fairies are in trouble. Flowers everywhere could disappear! Charlotte the Sunflower Fairy's petal is tough to find in a sea of sunflowers. But then things get even trickier -- the goblins are dressed up as sunflowers, too! Find the magical petal in each book and keep Fairyland in full bloom! Recommended for ages 4-8. Charlotte's Web (E. B.

White) - An affectionate, sometimes bashful pig named Wilbur befriends a spider named Charlotte, who lives in the rafters above his pen. A prancing, playful bloke, Wilbur is devastated when he learns of the destiny that befalls all those of porcine persuasion. Determined to save her friend, Charlotte spins a web that reads "Some Pig," convincing the farmer and surrounding community that Wilbur is no ordinary animal and should be saved. In this story of friendship, hardship, and the passing on into time, E.B. White reminds us to open our eyes to the wonder and miracle often found in the simplest of things. Recommended for ages 9-12. ghostgirl (Tonya Hurley) - “Now I lay me down to sleep, / I pray the Lord my soul to keep. / And if I should die before I awake, / I pray the popular attend my wake.” Charlotte Usher feels practically invisible at school, and then one day she really is invisible. Even worse: she's dead. And all because she choked on a gummy bear. But being dead doesn't stop Charlotte from wanting to be popular; it just makes her more creative about achieving her goal.

If you thought high school was a matter of life or death, wait till you see just how true that is. In this satirical, yet heartfelt novel, Hurley explores the invisibility we all feel at some times and the lengths we'll go to be seen. Recommended for ages 13+ The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle (Avi) - On a long, grueling journey from England to Rhode Island in 1802, a 12 year old changes from a prim and proper girl to a swashbuckling mate of a mutinous crew and is accused of murder by the captain. Awash with shipboard activity, intense feelings, and a keen sense of time and place, the story is a throwback to good old-fashioned adventure yarns on the high seas. This is a Newbery Honor book. Recommended for ages 10-14.

Famous People Named Charlotte Famous People Named Charlotte - Charlotte Brontë (English novelist); Charlotte Caffey (musician, formally with The Go-Go's); Charlotte "Lottie" Dod (tennis player); Charlotte Rae (actress); Charlotte Rampling (actress); Queen Charlotte (several European royal queens); Princess Charlotte (several European royal princesses) Children of Famous People Named Charlotte Famous People who Named their Daughter Charlotte - Amy Brenneman (actress); Caroline Astor (heiress/socialite); Sarah Michelle Gellar (actress); Freddie Prinze Jr. (actor); Jill Goodacre (model); Harry Connick Jr. (musician); Henry Ford (businessman); Jane Birkin (singer); Pierce Brosnan (actor); Princess Caroline of Monaco (royalty); Rickie Lee Jones (musician); Sigourney Weaver (actress) Charlotte - Girl Baby Name - Historic Figures Charlotte Brontë (21 Apr 1816 - 31 Mar 1855) - Charlotte Brontë is best known as the author of the classic novel "Jane Eyre" published under the pseudonym Currer Bell in 1847.

Her two sisters, Emily and Anne (aka Ellis and Acton Bell) also made massive contributions to English literature with Wuthering Heights and The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, respectively. The character of Jane Eyre, who suffers childhood deprivations but maintains a strong and enduring dignity, is an integral part of our literary heritage, a timeless character to whom all good things come eventually. How this isolated, motherless daughter of a clergyman came up with the scenario and personages that illuminate the plot of Jane Eyre is almost unfathomable. Nonetheless, she did. And by the time she died, in 1855 at the age of 38, she had already lost her mother, four sisters and a brother, her marriage was less than a year old, and the child with whom she was pregnant died with her. Thank goodness for us she was able to manage what she did in that short, bedeviled life! Queen Charlotte of England (19 May 1744 – 17 Nov 1818) - Charlotte was the wife of George III of England, dubbed “the mad king”.

She lived from 1744 to 1818 and while enjoying some measure of respect as the namesake of Charlotte, North Carolina, unfortunately fares less well by her own adopted country. Largely overlooked, she has been the subject of recent speculation that she is of African origin. As a young princess in Germany, she was picked, sight unseen, to be the king’s consort. The couple had a solid marriage until his unfortunate descent, in 1788, into what was thought to be madness. They brought up 13 out of 15 children to adulthood. Charlotte was the grandmother of Queen Victoria. She was an accomplished botanist and helped to expand Kew Gardens. She was a patroness of the arts. She founded several orphanages and she was concerned for the general welfare and education of women. She saw to the comfort of her husband during his illness. However, the abiding notion is that she was “ugly” (Dickens wrote of her as the “queen with a plain face”) and had African forbears. So be it. In our opinion, that would give the current royal family a feather in its cap along with a little cachet – they should hope it is true.

Search Baby Names Lolita Book/Film Splice - The Prose Blog The Prose Blog We compare Lolita the book to the film The next instalment comparing books to their film adaptations Lolita is a novel by Vladimir Nabokov , written in English and first published in 1955 in Paris, in 1958 in New York City, and in 1959 in London. The novel is notable for its controversial subject: the professor obsessed with the 12-year-old Dolores Haze, with whom he becomes sexually involved after he becomes her stepfather. Lolita quickly attained a classic status; it is today regarded as one of the prime achievements in 20th century literature, though also among the most infamous. The novel was adapted to film twice, once by Stanley Kubrick in 1962, and again in 1997 by Adrian Lyne . It is to the latter adaptation that the comparison is to be made in this article. Its assimilation into popular culture is such that the name “Lolita” is now often used to describe a sexually precocious girl, or one that adopts the childish costume roleplay and/or sexual power play games.

The classification of Lolita being an ‘erotic novel’ has often been disputed. Malcolm Bradbury writes “at first famous as an erotic novel, Lolita soon won its way as a literary one – a late modernist distillation of the whole crucial mythology.” Samuel Schuman says that Nabokov “is a surrealist, linked to Gogol, Dostoyevsky, and Kafka. Lolita is characterized by irony and sarcasm. It is not an erotic novel”. The plot: If you’ve been hiding under a rock for the last fifty or so years, you won’t have heard about Lolita. For those that have emerged, blinking and bearded into the literary light only now, here’s the plot. The novel is set up as being a confessional manuscript by Humbert Humbert (or H. H.), in jail while awaiting a trial for murder. A fictitious Psychiatrist who introduces it in the foreword asserts that while the author’s actions are despicable, his writing remains beautiful and persuasive and it should therefore be read. Humbert is a teacher of English literature that has spent time in a mental institution before he works a succession of odd jobs.

After a failed marriage, he remains obsessed with ‘nymphettes’, as he calls sexually desirable and sexually aware young girls. These all remind him of a childhood sweetheart, Annabel. This is what he seems to blame his paedophilia upon. Eventually, Humbert takes a room in the house of widow Charlotte Haze. He is instantly infatuated with her twelve-year-old daughter Dolores, also known as Lolita. He dotes on her, craves her and confides his paedophiliac longings in a diary, eventually to be found by Lolita’s Mum whom he has married (despite loathing her) to stay close to her daughter. Once she learns he loves only her daughter, she confronts him and ultimately storms out of the house only to be hit by a car and killed. Humbert picks the unaware Lolita up from summer camp where we later learn she had had a sexual awakening, and adopting the role of a perverted stepfather, a sexual relationship between the two ensues. They both drive across the country for nearly a year, during which time Humbert becomes increasingly obsessed with Lolita while she learns how to manipulate him.

Humbert eventually gets a job at a College and Lolita enrols in a school, where she wants more and more freedom while Humbert becomes restrictive. When her behaviour turns secretive, Humbert accuses her of being unfaithful and takes her away on another road trip. Humbert is sure they are being followed, which turns out to be true. Absconded by a man claiming to be her uncle, she isn’t heard from by the heartbroken Humbert for the next two years until, he receives a letter from Lolita, now married and pregnant, asking for money. He finally finds her, poor and pregnant at seventeen by a different man. Lolita confesses that the ‘uncle’ is a twisted playwright called Clare Quilty who had popped up now and again throughout the book. Humbert eventually tracks down Quilty and kills him, messily. He is arrested and put in jail, where he continues to write his confessional memoir, stipulating that it can only be published upon Lolita’s death. Quotes “More and more uncomfortable did Humbert feel.

It was something quite special, that feeling: an oppressive, hideous constraint as if I was sitting with the small ghost of somebody I had just killed.” “And the rest is rust and stardust.” “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.” Book: This was the second time I’d picked this book up. The first time I had issues with the subject matter, and couldn’t see past that enough to read on. What a fool was I! Since then I’ve written a couple of books myself which no doubt helped in seeing it for what it is; a stunningly crafted piece of literature. I can honestly say that I don’t feel as if I’ve read anything written so well, so beautifully and with such grace; jumping from literal and metaphorical descriptive styles to those of an (obvious) mad protagonist; from first person narrative to third person when Humbert reaches the areas he baulks at when reminiscing.

Art being what it is, and this IS what Lolita is; I feel the subject matter is irrelevant when portrayed in a way as skilled as Nabokov seems to effortlessly manage, especially as it is a work of fiction. So blown away was I, that I’ve started writing something in a style only a fraction as evocative as Lolita. My new literary hero, Nabokov; you have touched me. The characters: Humbert Humbert: Deluded, shameful Humbert, beguiling us with magical words, justifications and assurances that what he was doing to poor Lolita was acceptable and could be explained away. Clearly a tortured and mad soul, from early on we’re aware he has been institutionalised and continues throughout the book to unravel before our eyes. You feel the weight of his guilt once spent after his paedophilic ways, yet his enduring and undying love almost has you feeling sorry for him. Almost. Then, his narcissistic, self-obsessed and self-serving man-child ways ultimately lose their lustre even to him by the end of the book, and to the last part of his sanity.

Delores Haze (Lolita): She was just a young girl, a pre-teen girl trying to be sassy. Lolita is portrayed so accurately and with such attention to detail that your heart breaks at her seduction (even though Humbert maintains it was she that seduced he). Whichever way you slice it, she was a prime target for Humbert’s grooming. Her tempers, tantrums and truculence a small price for her enchanter to pay, and it hurts so to read of her perceived sexuality become a real sexuality through the psychology of her perpetual plight. Charlotte Haze (Lolita’s Mum): A hopeless romantic, quoting French to impress and ensnare Humbert in her misguided life, she is but an innocent bystander in a car crash of a situation. Empathy and sympathy are all you can feel for the woman whilst she remains on her mortal coil. Her demise an ill wind that blew good fortune Humbert’s way; she was a tragic character from the get-go. The good stuff: The writing. Oh, the writing is delightful and deep, descriptive and diverse. It will flit from the literal to an almost childish, abstract view on the world and has you in its grip entirely.

Regardless of the controversial subject matter, it is a joy to read and forces you on a moral journey that, at times, is painful to take. The character building, again, is second to none; exploring the delicate and at times mercurial psyche of the very different main characters in hugely believable ways. Even the paedophilic details are spared, instead focussing on the mighty weight of Humbert’s love for the child he can’t help but break. The bad stuff: Aside from the obvious, if I had to pick a bad point, it would be the fairly regular use of French and occasional other languages. A rudimentary knowledge of French is not enough. Film: Bar the odd little change for the purpose of length, continuity or aesthetics, the film is mostly true to the book. Lolita is fourteen in the film when Humbert meets her rather than twelve so as to shock audiences only slightly less. Naturally, at two hours and seventeen minutes, much of the detail is lost; but the plot and story remains. Cast: The casting for the film is a stroke of genius. Jeremy Irons portrays Humbert’s inner turmoil and pain beautifully, with often only a twitch of the mouth or a look, he is entirely believable.

Likewise with Dominique Swain, who was only fifteen when playing the part of Lolita. Her take on the teenage temptress is nothing short of perfect, breathing further life into the character. The good stuff: The casting, the acting and the adaptation all stand up to critical and close scrutiny. There were even times when I laughed at points in the film where I didn’t in the book. I’m hoping I was meant to. The bad stuff: Nope. I’ve got nothing. Book versus Film: Back once again to the sources of wisdom where I look at real people’s ratings on books and films. Namely, Goodreads for books and IMDB for films. Goodreads for Lolita is 3.87 out of 5. Let’s round that to 7.7, then. IMDB has the adaptation at 6.9. So for the purposes of parity, that’s what the voting world of viewers and readers thinks. Again, the decision is mine as I’m the sap that’s writing this. If the film existed on its own, I’d be blown away. It evoked in me a multitude of emotions and touched me deeply.

However, the book is one of the best books I’ve ever read, with a style I’ve no doubt now been forever affected by. The book wins hands down, but should in no way, shape or form detract from the fact that the film is a gem, too. Read the book, then watch the film, I implore you. What did you think of this article? Do you agree or disagree? We want your comments! By Prose Partner Paul. Follow him and interact on where he is @pauldchambers Post Views: 613 Lolita Study Guide - Course Hero Genre: Fiction Perspective and Narrator: Except for the framing device in the fictional foreword, Lolita is narrated in the first person by sexual predator Humbert Humbert. Humbert is an unreliable narrator who manipulates his audience as he tries to justify his obsession with a 12-year-old girl as romantic love. Tense: Lolita is narrated in the past tense. About the Title: "Lolita" is the nickname the narrator gives to the 12-year-old girl with whom he is obsessed.

Characters Lolita by Nabokov, First Edition - AbeBooks Lolita by Nabokov, First Edition You Searched For: Results (1 - 30) of 227 1 Published by Olympia Press, Paris (1955) Used Soft cover First Edition Signed Quantity Available: 1 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: Olympia Press, Paris, 1955. Soft cover. Book Condition: Near Fine. 1st Edition. First Edition, First Printing SIGNED by Vladimir Nabokov on a laid in signature. A fabulous copy of this TRUE FRIST EDITION with the 900 Francs price printed on the rear panels of both volumes that was later changed to 1200 francs on later editions. This two volume set is in excellent shape with minor wear to the spine and edges. Both Vol 1 and Vol 2 are complete with clean pages. There is NO writing, marks or bookplates in either book. A wonderful copy SIGNED by the author. Signed by Author(s).

Bookseller Inventory # ABE-17472613869 Published by Olympia, Paris (1955) Used Paperback First Edition Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: Olympia, Paris, 1955. Paperback. Book Condition: Near fine. First edition. Original wraps; first issue w/ 900 francs on the rear covers. 2 vols. Exceptional copies with minor flaws: vol. one has a small bump at the spine; vol. two with a short tear expertly repaired, otherwise minor rubbing and wear, bright with no foxing and little creasing to the spine. Near fine copies, each book held separately in folding cloth cases; all housed in a deluxe clamshell box with gilt-stamped label. Best copies we have seen in a decade. One of the cornerstone works of the 20th Century, one of the few comparable for notoriety and quality to ULYSSES. Bookseller Inventory # 10368 Published by Olympia Press, Paris (1955) Used Softcover First Edition Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: Olympia Press, Paris, 1955. First Edition, First Issue.

Excellent set of the True First Edition, First Issue of this twentieth century Highspot & Nabokov masterpiece. 12mo., 188, 223pp. Two Volumes in publisher's "Travelers Companion" series, printed green wrappers with the "Francs: 900" price on the lower back corner of both volumes. Bright sharp & unrestored in essentially near fine / fine condition; Vol.1 slightly darker but near fine or better nevertheless. The contents of both volumes fresh & clean; neat bookseller's label on the title page of Vol.1 [which can be removed] . The 1962 Stanley Kubrick directed film starred James Mason, Shelley Winters, Peter Sellers & Sue Lyon. Nabokov wrote the screenplay. Jeremy Irons starred in the 1997 Adrian Lyne remake. A lovely superior set in a custom matching forest green cloth clamshell box with a gilt lettered label on the spine. A Modern Book Collecting & Literary Cornerstone. Field 0793. Juliar 428. Bookseller Inventory # 27018 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: Olympia Press, Paris, 1955.

Book Condition: Very Good. FIRST EDITION of one of the most important novels of the twentieth century. WITH IMPORTANT PROVENANCE: From the Bureau Littéraire Clairouin, Nabokov's literary agency who was instrumental in its publication. "Vladimir Nabokov is an artist of the first rank, a writer in the great tradition . [and] Lolita is probably the best fiction to come out of this country (so to speak) since Faulkner's burst in the thirties. He may be the most important writer now going in this country. He is already, God help him, a classic" (Critic Conrad Brenner, in 1958). Controversial since its conception, Lolita was rejected by American publishing houses until finally accepted by the avant-garde Olympia Press in Paris and published in a fragile two-volume format. First issue, with 900 Francs on rear wrappers and no evidence of later price sticker. WITH IMPORTANT PROVENANCE: with stamp of the Bureau Littéraire Clairouin, Nabokov's literary agency, on front free endpaper of each volume.

Nabokov on the Bureau Littéraire Clairouin and the publication of Lolita: "Lolita was finished at the beginning of 1954, in Ithaca, New York. My first attempts to have it published in the US proved disheartening and irritating. On August 6 of that year, from Taos, New Mexico, I wrote to Madame Ergaz, of the Bureau Littéraire Clairouin, Paris, about my troubles. She had arranged the publication in French of some of my Russian and English books; I now asked her to find somebody in Europe who would publish Lolita in the original English. She replied that she thought she could arrange it. A month later, however, upon my return to Ithaca (where I taught Russian Literature at Cornell) I wrote to her saying I had changed my mind. New hopes had arisen for publication in America. They petered out, and next spring I got in touch with Madame Ergaz again, writing her (Feb. 16) that Sylvia Beach 'might perhaps be interested if she still publishes.' This was not followed up. By April 17 Madame Ergaz had received my transcript.

On April 26, 1955, a fatidic date, she said she had found a possible publisher. On May 13 she named that person. It was thus that Maurice Girodias, [founder of The Olympia Press], entered my files?" (Nabokov in Strong Opinions). Paris: Olympia Press, 1955. Octavo, original green paper wrappers; custom box. Two volumes. A little edgewear and a few spots of soiling, usual spine creases. An excellent copy with an important provenance of the rare first issue. Bookseller Inventory # 1738 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: Paris/London/New York: Olympia Press/Weidenfeld and Nicolson/McGraw-Hill Book Company/Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1955 - 1980, 1955. Hardcover. Book Condition: Wie neu. Dust Jacket Condition: Wie neu. 1. Auflage. 1. Lolita. Paris: The Olympia Press, 1955. Two volumes. First Editions, First Printings.

The original price of "Francs : 900" is printed on the lower covers and there are no traces of any later stickers. Fine copies in fine original wrappers: pages exceptionally clean (really white), edges very slightly foxed, wrappers minimally creased and rubbed along the spines, the titles "LOLITA" on the front covers a bit smudged as usual. 2. Pale Fire. London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 1962. First Edition, First Printing. A near fine copy in a very good dustwrapper. 3. Ada - Or Ardor: A Family Chronicle. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1969. First Edition, Third Printing (1969). A near fine copy in a near fine dustwrapper. 4. Lectures on Literature: Austen - Dickens - Flaubert - Joyce - Kafka - Proust - Stevenson. Edited by Fredson Bowers, Introduction by John Updike. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1980. First Edition, First Printing. A near fine copy in a near fine dustwrapper. Price for the collection: 7'250.

Please note that due to size and weight we will have to charge additional postage. Bookseller Inventory # 013041 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: The Olympia Press, 1955. Original Green Wraps. Book Condition: Near Fine. First Edition/First Issue. First issue with the price 900 Francs on the lower right corner of both volumes. Lolita is a novel by Vladimir Nabokov, written in English and published in 1955 in Paris and 1958 in New York. It was later translated by its Russian-native author into Russian. The novel is notable for its controversial subject: the protagonist and unreliable narrator, middle-aged literature professor Humbert Humbert, is obsessed with the 12-year-old Dolores Haze, with whom he becomes sexually involved after he becomes her stepfather. His private nickname for Dolores is Lolita. The book is also notable for its writing style.

The narrative is highly subjective as Humbert draws on his fragmented memories, employing a sophisticated prose style, while attempting to gain the reader's sympathy through his sincerity and melancholy, although near the end of the story Humbert refers to himself as a "maniac" who "deprived" Dolores "of her childhood", and he shortly thereafter states "the most miserable of family lives was better than the parody of incest" in which they were involved. After its publication, Lolita attained a classic status, becoming one of the best-known and most controversial examples of 20th century literature. The name "Lolita" has entered pop culture to describe a sexually precocious girl. The novel was adapted to film by Stanley Kubrick in 1962, and again in 1997 by Adrian Lyne. It has also been adapted several times for stage and has been the subject of two operas, two ballets, and an acclaimed but failed Broadway musical. Lolita is included on Time's list of the 100 best English-language novels from 1923 to 2005.

It is fourth on the Modern Library's 1998 list of the 100 Best Novels of the 20th century. It also made the World Library's list of one of The 100 Best Books of All Time. A clean, strong and beautiful copy. Size: 12mo - over 6¾" - 7¾" tall. 2 Volumes. Bookseller Inventory # 884800 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: Paris: The Olympia Press, 1955, 1955. 2 volumes, octavo. Original green and white wrappers printed in black. Some rubbing to spine ends and edges of wrappers, small chip to fore-corner of vol. II, faint tape remains to free endpapers, otherwise internally fresh. An excellent set. First edition, first printing, second state wrappers, published three years before the American edition and four before the London edition. With the bookseller's hand-correction to the price on the rear covers, this is Juliar's "issue b", though it is in fact a state rather than an issue.

Lolita was originally published with a printed price of 900 francs on the rear covers, but a sudden currency fluctuation at the time of publication meant that the books had to be re-priced to 1,200 francs. The publishers prepared gummed stickers with the new price and some bookshops took it upon themselves to re-price the volumes with rubber stamps or by hand, as here (the price correction has been lightly erased from the first volume). Juliar, Vladimir Nabokov: A Descriptive Bibliography, Revised A28.1. Bookseller Inventory # 114994 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: Olympia Press, 1955. Softcover. Book Condition: Wie neu. Ohne Schutzumschlag. 1. Auflage. Lolita. Paris: The Olympia Press, 1955. Two volumes. First Editions, First Printings. The original price of "Francs : 900" is printed on the lower covers and there are no traces of any later stickers.

Fine copies in fine original wrappers: pages exceptionally clean (really white), edges very slightly foxed, wrappers minimally creased and rubbed along the spines, the titles "LOLITA" on the front covers a bit smudged as usual. A milestone of erotic fiction, inventiveness, comedy and life on American roads, and this a truly beautiful set of this rather cheap and fragile production. CHF 5'500. This item is part of our Catalogue 5: 100 Key Books, a copy of which you can order from us at YGRbooks. Bookseller Inventory # 000181 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: Paris, The Olympia Press, (1955). Bound with the original green wrappers in two elegant, uniform, fully contemporary Danish Half morocco-bindings with gilt author and title to spine (Harry Larsen). Elegant burgundy-red paper over boards. Minor traces of use to extremities. Internally very fine, fresh, and clean.

First edition, first issue (with "Francs : 900" to back wrappers) of this main work of 20th century literature, which, with its innovative style and highly controversial subject caused a number of scandals after its appearance. It had been turned down by six publishing houses, anticipating how it would be received by the public, but in 1955 Nabokov finally signed a contract with Olympia Press in Paris. By the Sunday Express editor it was called "the filthiest book I have ever read" and "sheer unrestrained pornography"; the Home Office in Great Britain instructed British Customs to seize all copies entering the country, and in 1956 the book was banned in France. The various translations of the work into other languages caused a number of other scandals, but in spite of American officials being anxious about the appearance of the first American edition, this was issued without problems (in 1958) and became an instant bestseller.

In fact, it sold more than 100.000 copies within the first three weeks (as the first book after "Gone With the Wind").Today the book has classic status and is considered one of the finest novels of the 20th century. Bookseller Inventory # 43725 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: The Olympia Press, 1955. Soft cover. Book Condition: Very Good. 1st Edition. First edition, first printing in two volumes. (All points present for both volumes with first issue "900 francs" prices and no traces of stickers.)188 p. (with no pages 11-12 as noted by Juliar); 223 p. Original green wraps. A Very Good+ set overall. Light creasing to both volumes' wrappers, light foxing to edges. Clean text. Volume One about very good with some scattered staining to its wrappers with some toning, worn edges, light dulling to front cover title, creasing and slight lean to the spine, pencil mark through back cover price. Volume Two near fine with clean, bright wrappers and just a bit of wear to its edges.

The first appearance of Nabokov's still-controversial novel from Maurice Girodias's pioneering, Paris-based publishers Olympia Press. Bookseller Inventory # 160322002 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: Jerusalem: The Olympia Press, 1955 [1958], 1958. 2 volumes in one, octavo. Original blue Rexene, titles to spine gilt. With the dust jacket. Bookseller's label to front pastedown, an excellent copy in the very lightly rubbed and slightly tanned dust jacket. First Israeli edition, first printing, offset from the sheets of the second Paris edition. The hardback issue. An uncommon printing of Nabokov's masterpiece and one of the black tulips in Girodias's canon. There were apparently 1000 numbered copies printed (ours bears the number 584 on the rear pastedown) of which about half were issued in wrappers the rest as here in boards. Bookseller Inventory # 34053 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: Olympia Press, Paris, 1955. First Edition.

A very good or better set of the True First Edition, First Issue of this twentieth century Highspot & Nabokov masterpiece. Two Volumes in publisher's printed green wrappers with the "Francs: 900" price on the lower back corner of both volumes neatly blackened out & without the later 1200 Francs label. 12mo., 188, 233pp. A very nice set showing modest use; the spines of both volumes still white in the title area, some rubs to the extremities, content free of blemish, names, etc. Not perfection but a better, cleaner set than usually encountered. The 1962 Stanley Kubrick directed film starred James Mason, Shelley Winters, Peter Sellers & Sue Lyon. Nabokov wrote the screenplay. Jeremy Irons starred in the 1997 Adrian Lyne remake. Custom TBCL matching forest green cloth clamshell box with a gilt lettered label on the spine. A Modern Book Collecting & Literary Cornerstone. Field 0793. Juliar 428.

Bookseller Inventory # 31702 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: Printed in Israel for The Olympia Press by Steimatzky's Agency, (Jerusalem, 1955. Hardcover. First Israeli edition, and the first hardcover edition (there was also a wrappered issue of the Israeli edition). Two volumes in one. Original blue leather-textured papercovered boards in dustwrapper. Offsetting to the front and rear endpapers as usual, small and light stain on rear fly leaf, else near fine in a modestly rubbed, very good dustwrapper with some tanning to the white portion of the spine and a few modest chips. The first hardcover edition; the true first edition was published in Paris in two wrappered volumes. Stamped with the number 1442 on the front flap, Nabokov bibliographer Michael Juliar believes all copies of the Israeli edition were numbered, both hardcover and wrappered. A very uncommon issue of a high spot of modern literature.

Nabokov wrote the screenplay for the 1962 Stanley Kubrick film with James Mason, Shelley Winters, Peter Sellers, and Sue Lyon in the title role, the film was remade by Adrian Lyne in 1997 with Jeremy Irons. Bookseller Inventory # 399516 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: Steimatzky's Agency/Offset Sh. Monson, 1958. Hardcover. Book Condition: Very Good. Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good. 1st Edition. Item 9075 Author: Vladimir Nabokov Title: LOLITA PUblisher: Steimatzky's Agency/Offset Sh. Monson First edition (israel) Jerusalem 1958 Condition: Very good, with green DJ,19.5x12x 2.7 Cms), 223 pages, Weight 380 grams book Description: Jerusalem: The Olympia Press, 1955 [1958], 1958. 2 volumes in one, octavo. Original blue Rexene, titles to spine gilt 223 pp.; Lolita.

Jerusalem: Steimatzky's Agency for the Olympia Press, 1955, First Israeli edition, first printing, offset from the sheets of the second Paris edition, first single volume and first hardcover edition of one of the most controversial novels of modern times, dust-jacket slightly torn at corners, spine and back which were somehow repaired The book inner and back cover show some foxing. Otherwise in very good condition This is the hardback issue. An uncommon printing of Nabokov's masterpiece and one of the black tulips in Girodias's canon. There were apparently 1200 numbered copies printed (ours bears the number 1158 on the rear pastedown) of which about half were issued in wrappers the rest as here in boards. Bookseller Inventory N° 9075 Satisfaction guaranteed, Bookseller Inventory N° 9075, free shipping to USA or within Colombia. Our price USD 1,999.88. Bookseller Inventory # 9075 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: The Olympia Press, 1958. Hardcover. Book Condition: Near Fine. Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good. 1st Edition.

First edition, first impression (thus) - the true first hardcover issue and the first issue as a single volume; printed by Steimatzky's Agency of Jerusalem for The Olympia Press (first printed in wrappers, and as two volumes, by Olympia in Paris in 1955). Less than 1500 copies were produced by Steimatzky, split between hardcover and wrappers, with each numbered ï¿½ this copy is stamped ï¿½757ï¿½ to the foot of the front dustwrapper flap. Near Fine+: tight and square binding in sharp and clean blue Rexene boards; bright gilt lettering; tanned to the edge of the page block; some offsetting to the endpapers; booksellerï¿½s label to the foot of the front pastedown; very bright, crisp and clean pages, free of marks, inscriptions and foxing.

The unclipped (and unpriced) dustwrapper is Very Good+: vibrant, green colouring; tanning to the title label to the spine; soft vertical crease adjacent to the front gutter; 1.5cm closed tear to the head of the front spine fold; modest edgewear; presented in a removable, archival-quality Brodart protective cover. A lovely example of a scarce edition. All orders are sent carefully wrapped in bubble wrap and sturdy cardboard. Bookseller Inventory # H999

Question: By what name is Delores Haze known in the title of a controversial book of 1955?
Answer: Lolita