论文总字数：31734字

摘 要

《洛丽塔》是著名俄裔美籍作家弗拉基米尔·纳博科夫的代表作，也被认为是他最成功的英文作品，但是小说中37岁的男主人公亨伯特与他12岁养女的不伦之恋一直饱受争议。

本文以精神生态为理论支撑，主要分析了《洛丽塔》中的主人公的精神危机问题。论文主要分为六个部分。第一部分是对作者、小说和精神生态理论进行介绍。第二部分是关于《洛丽塔》的文献综述。第三部分通过对主人公亨伯特和洛丽塔的不受道德和伦理约束的情欲和物欲的分析，探讨他们精神危机的表现。第四部分，分析洛丽塔精神危机在道德失范上的表现。第五部分，分析亨伯特和洛丽塔与他人和社会的疏离。总之，通过探讨小说主要角色的精神危机，纳博科夫表达了他对人类精神世界的关注，并强调精神生态健康的重要性。

关键词：《洛丽塔》；精神生态；欲望；道德；疏离

Contents

1. Introduction 1

2. Literature Review 2

3. Abnormal Desires 3

3.1 Pursuit of Material Desire 3

3.2 Indulgence in Sexual Desire 4

4. Moral Disorder 6

4.1 Improper Behavior of Adolescents 7

4.2 Indifference from Society 8

5. Sense of Alienation 8

5.1 Alienation between People 9

5.2 Alienation between Man and Society 10

6. Conclusion 11

Works Cited 12

1. Introduction

Vladimir Nabokov (1899-1977) is a Russian-American writer, poet, critic, translator, stylist and lepidopterist. He has been acknowledged as one of the most outstanding stylists and novelists of the 20th century. During his life, Nabokov has created numerous books. Vladimir Nabokov was born in St. Petersburg, Russia, on April 23, 1899, into a wealthy and prominent family. He was trilingual in Russian, English, and French from an early age. After the Russian Revolution, Nabokov went into England with his family. Nabokov earned an honors degree in Slavic and Romance languages from Trinity College, Cambridge, in 1922. Nabokov has a great gift for language and literature. His works are characterized by intricate word play and detailed description. Lolita is his most famous work. After its publication in 1955, Lolita shocked the public for its controversial subject and morally ambiguous plot: the abnormal love between a middle-aged man and his 12-year-old stepdaughter. Many regarded it as a pornographic book and think it is about pedophilia .Lolita was even characterized as erotic novel. However, this classification has been disputed later, Lolita soon won its way as a late modernist representative work. Lolita is included on Time"s list of the 100 best English-language novels from 1923 to 2005.

This thesis intends to analyze Nabokov’s consciousness of spiritual ecology embedded in Lolita through his presentation of the characters’ abnormal state of mind in the novel. The body is divided into three main parts. The first is about deviant desire of human beings. In this part, the thesis explores the deviant desire of main characters through the analysis of social and family background. The second part studies the moral disorder through the analysis of improper behavior of adolescents, especially Lolita and find out the root of moral disorder. The third part explores the manifestation and result of alienation. In conclusion, the spiritual imbalance of the main characters calls for the attention of the readers to learn to adjust themselves to foster a healthy mental situation.

Ecology was a branch of biology put forward by E.H.Haeckel in 1866, which mainly studies animals, plants and their relationship at the beginning. After 20th century, ecology has quickly become a comprehensive discipline with rich connotations. It has contained nature, society, environment, life, material and culture. Scholars have brought some new concepts such as culture ecology and literary ecology. Lu Shuyuan divided ecology into three parts: natural ecology, social ecology and spiritual ecology. “As a new branch of ecology, spiritual ecology studies the relationship between spiritual existence (human mainly) and its living environment (including nature, society and culture)” (Lu Shuyuan, 2006:75). On the one hand, spiritual ecology is concerned about the health of spiritual existence. On the other hand, it is concerned about the balance, stability and development of the ecosystem under the influence of spiritual existence. Spiritual ecology explores the interaction of human spirit and ecology. In other words, spiritual ecology studies our inner world and outer world, and deals with the relationship between man and society, between self and others, between self and inner self.

With social constant development and modernization, human living environment is greatly damaged and human nature and moral qualities are seriously impacted, which leads to the imbalance of spiritual ecology. According to Lu Shuyuan, the crisis of spiritual ecology is the mental crisis of human’s inner world. The major performances can be divided into two aspects: the deviation and mistake of human mind and the alienation of spiritual world: materialization, apperception, simplication and superficial of human and the deficiency of meaning, profundity, morality, historical sense, ability of communication, capacity to love and aesthetic judgment. The symptom of spiritual ecology imbalance can be seen from many aspects, for example, deviant desire, moral disorder, alienation of existence, vacancy in spirit and so on.

2. Literature Review

Since the publication of Lolita, this book has attracted much attention from the critic circle. There are large amount of researchers both at home and abroad working on this book from different angles.

As a famous novel with a controversial subject, some critics pay attention to its moral significance. They study Lolita from the perspective of ethics. In the book, there is unethical love between Humbert and Lolita and some descriptions of sex, which irritate some readers. Luo Xiaoyan holds the view that the author gives readers a warning that social ethic is a huge net. “All the people should move in the scope of the net, those who pass the net will be punished” (Luo Xiaoyan, 2012: 42).

However many scholars think that Lolita is not a didactic fiction, and critics should pay more attention to the art of the work. Free from moral issues, they tend to focus on the work itself. Some scholars turn to its themes. For example, some of them notice the tragedy in the novel. Not only Lolita and Humbert end their life tragically, but also Lolita’s mother Mrs. Haze and an important character Quilty. Critics point out that many reasons contribute to the tragedy. Zhu Yi and Jin Gang hold that the failure of family, school and society education pushes Lolita into the abyss of a tragic fate.

In addition, some critics focus their study on the art of Lolita. As Nabokov’s most widely known work, Lolita is also considered as a classic representative of postmodern literature. Some scholars stress on the postmodern features and language in Lolita. James Phelan believes that Lolita is “distinctive among novels because the pleasure in the style is found on almost every language” (Phelan, 1981:176). Peng Shu researches on the postmodern elements that exist in its narrative characteristics and artistic skills.

Many scholars have pointed out that many factors contribute to the characters’ tragedy. From the perspective of spiritual ecology, a case study can be added to the research of the character’s personality and the book.

3. Abnormal Desires

According to Lu Shuyuan, the imbalance of one’s spiritual ecology can be seen from losing control of one’s own desire. In the 20th century, American economy developed and pragmatism and hedonism were popular among people. People’s spiritual ecology had been damaged, which was reflected in deviant desire. Lolita is a story about human desire, about a middle-aged man who falls in love with a precocious adolescent girl. Desire is a fundamental force to move the story along. Due to their pursuit to material desire and sexual desire, people in the book experience a series of adventures, and eventually end their lives in tragedy.

3.1 Pursuit of Material Desire

In the western society, material and money play a dominant role, which make people become materialized, and the mass American culture is filled with vulgar forms of entertainment and material pursuit. After World War Ⅱ, America grew rapidly, the prosperity of commodity economy, the massive advertisement and the rise of media industry make the whole society full of material desire. Young people become the chief consumers in the 1950s. Under the influence of mass consumer culture, they are fond of material comforts and enjoy entertainment. Many young girls pursue fame and money at the cost of their youth and virginity. Movies and magazines are filled with the description of sexual misconduct. Moreover, school education was impacted by this social atmosphere. “John Dewey’s pragmatism was put forward under this historical background and prevailed after World War I. Experience is core of his educational ideological system” (Liu Xinke, 2002:236). John Dewey emphasizes that students should learn from experiences and teachers should teach outside classroom so that children can receive education in the place where they can move freely at any moment. In Dewey’s theory, education should offer students manipulative ability and practical experiences.

In America, government institutes tried to put Dewey’s theory into practice, but a large variety of problems kept coming constantly. Especially in 1940s and 1950s, various agencies just copy the theory and suffered from rigid structures, which resulted to the ignorance of moral education and quality education. As it described in the novel, schools organized a lot of camp’s activities in vacation time. However, in this kind of camps where children are allowed to develop their personality adequately and comprehensively, Lolita takes advantage of boating activities which she is good at to go to an island with her friend. In that small island, she and her friend take turns to have sexual intercourse with the camp owner’s son, not to mention other children who have the similar experience with Lolita.

After the death of Mrs. Haze, Humbert takes the responsibility of Lolita’s education. After settling down in a northeastern town of Beardsley, Humbert sends Lolita to the Beardsley School for Girls, which emphasizes social skills rather than intellectual achievement and makes Humbert very disappointed. The headmistress, Pratt, believes that Beardsley girls must focus on the “four D’s: Dramatics, Dance, Debating, and Dating” (Nabokov, 2000: 222). This pragmatist education misleads students to pursue material enjoyment and ignore the spiritual life.

Growing up and getting education in a materialistic society, Lolita has indulgent and indecent features in her character. Her characters and pursuit of material enjoyment make her seductive to male adult which contribute to the kidnaps of Humbert and Quilty.

3.2 Indulgence in Sexual Desire

Humbert begins his story from his birth in Paris and his childhood on the Riviera. His mother dies suddenly, and he is raised by his father who is rather busy and his aunt who is very kind and strict. His father runs a luxurious Hotel, and Humbert lives a healthy, happy childhood, as he states “From the aproned pot-scrubber to the flanneled potentate, everybody liked me, everybody petted me” (Nabokov, 2000: 3). In the summer of 1923, Humbert encounters twelve-year-old Annabel Leigh, and he soon falls in love with her, but, unfortunately, four months later she dies of typhus. Annabel’s death is a miserable memory for him, and even became “a permanent obstacle for any further romance” (Nabokov, 2000: 8). Many adult women in this novel are obviously attracted by Humbert, but he sees them only as obstacles. He is only obsessed with young girls between the age of nine and fourteen, the nymphet. As he defines, the nymphets don’t need to be very beautiful, but to possess an elusive, sexually appealing quality. Humbert invents name for the kind of young girls he likes but he cannot deny that his desire is abnormal.

Humbert once has an unsuccessful marriage and suffers from a mental breakdown. After rescuing from a sanitarium, he rents a house from the widowed Mrs. Haze. He finds the house terribly unappealing until he sees Mrs. Haze’s 12-year-old daughter, Dolores Haze. Humbert finds her resemblance to Annabel and immediately remembers his time with Annabel 25 years ago. “It was the same child the same frail, honey-hued shoulders, the same silky supple bare back, the same chestnut head of hair. A polka-dotted black kerchief tied around her chest hid from my aging ape eyes, but not from the gaze of young memory, the juvenile breasts I had fondled one immortal day” (Nabokov, 2000: 41). Humbert is attracted by Lolita’s young and beautiful appearance which looks similar to Annabel. So he decides to stay to keep near with her.

Humbert nicknames her Lolita. “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” (Nabokov, 2000: 1). From the very beginning, Lolita is just a little girl who cannot be responsible for her actions. When she meets Humbert, she has lost her control of her life or fate. Humbert’s unlawful desire for her finally keeps Lolita his privately belonging and prevents her from growing up and finding the real meaning in her life.

During the time he lives at the Haze house, he can’t help himself from keeping a journal filled with romantic descriptions about Lolita. He doesn’t like Mrs. Haze at all, and even daydreams about killing her. However, in order to stay close to Lolita, he agrees to marry Charlotte Haze who knows nothing about his lust for Lolita until she finds his diaries. Learning about Humbert’s real intention, she plans to leave with Lolita. Unfortunately, when she rushed out the house to send a letter, she is suddenly crashed and killed by a passing car. In private, Humbert feels guilty while musing on the coincidences that have brought him to Lolita. He doesn’t allow himself to become too excited by the thought of being with Lolita.

Humbert goes to the summer camp to find Lolita and takes her away. He lies to her and tells her that her mother is in hospital. Instead of returning to Charlotte’s house, Humbert takes her to a hotel where he first has sex with her. Later, Humbert tells Lolita the truth that her mother is dead, giving her no choice but accept her stepfather into her life. Humbert can now control Lolita’s life and does anything he wants since she has nowhere to go. When Humbert picks up Lolita from the camp, a thought of being a good father to her comes out but passes immediately. When he gets a kiss from Lolita, he is very happy that Lolita has become real to him rather than a dream. Although Charlotte’s death makes him feel remorseful, he still cannot deny his desire for Lolita. He knows that his desire for her was unlawful and abnormal, but he cannot control himself. He refuses to be bound by conventional morality .He knows Lolita sobs in night, but he is totally led by his obsession. He believes that he can meet all of Lolita’s requirements and keep her from needing anyone else besides him. “Lolita was given to us as Humbert"s creature...To reinvent her, Humbert must take from Lolita her own real history and replace it with his own ...Yet she does have a past. Despite Humbert"s attempts to orphan Lolita by robbing her of her history, that past is still given to us in glimpses” (Nafisi, 2003:36). He provides the reader with little clues to her real emotions and sees her as only the object of his desire.

Humbert describes Lolita as an object, focusing on her resemblance with Annabel. He cares much about Lolita’s nymphet qualities. Humbert loves Lolita on his own wishful thinking with no intending to understand what Lolita is thinking and what she really is. “Not only is Lolita"s voice silenced, her point of view, the way she sees the situation and feels about it, is rarely mentioned and can be only surmised by the reader” (Pifer,2002:24). Humbert doesn’t care what Lolita thinks about him and what he does. To him, the only one thing matters is what Lolita represents.

Humbert loves what Lolita represents: a perfect pattern of his ideal type of female, the nymphet. He wants to keep Lolita his own belonging. His selfishness finally corrupts Lolita’s childhood and even her life. In day time, Humbert seems to be a noble and respectable man, but at night in face with Lolita he is a creature driven by sexual desire and eventually gets his punishment. His abnormal desire ruins not only Lolita, but also himself.

4. Moral Disorder

According to Lu Shuyuan, the crisis of spiritual ecology can be seen from the deficiency of morality. Teenagers’ moral outlook and life values are not stable, so they are easily affected by outside world. If they are not lead correctly by moral rules, teenagers may make irretrievable mistakes.

4.1 Improper Behavior of Adolescents

After Word War II, commodity economy developed rapidly, and young people firstly become the major consumers group. Many young girls cannot resist temptation and sink into the quagmire of corruption. No wonder Lolita who is fond of clothing and different kinds of amusement. Humbert once describes that “Suffice it to say that not a trace of modesty did I perceive in this beautiful hardly formed young girl whom modern co-education, juvenile mores, the campfire racket and so forth had utterly and hopelessly depraved. She saw the stark act merely as part of a youngster’s furtive world, unknown to adults” (Nabokov, 2000: 169).From Humbert’s description, Lolita loves all sorts of amusement, and has weak moral virtues.

Before she met Humbert, Lolita has already indiscreetly experienced something inappropriate. Morality and virginity concept is very ambiguous in the mind of innocent Lolita’s mind. As it is written by Humbert “I am going to tell you something very strange: it was she who seduced me” (Nabokov, 2000: 168). Humbert also finds that he is not her first lover as she explains she has slept with a boy at a summer camp. In fact, Lolita is only a representation of her age in America of that time. “As a juvenile lives in a materialistic society, it is difficult for her to avoid be polluted” (Zhang Mengxue, 2009:17). Humbert bemoans her lack of morals as she starts demanding higher fees for sexual favors. Television and broadcast are filled with information which is not suitable for adolescents. People discuss sex brazenly and the youth are very interested in this. They think little of the importance of virginity.

After Humbert comes to their house, Mrs. Haze, Lolita’s mother sends het to Camp Q at once Mrs. Haze convinces that summer camp is good for adolescents’ health. However, in fact, this summer camp is not as good as it is advertised. Lured by curiosity, every morning, Lolita and her friend Barbara copulate by turns with the camp mistress’ son, named Charlie. Not only Lolita and Barbara, but also many other kids have tried “what it was like” (Nabokov, 2000: 174). Lolita’s friends, though they are young teenagers, seem sexually knowledgeable and experienced. As a girl whose moral consciousness is just in bud, driven by her curiosity and innocence, Lolita will repeat her mistake again and again until it is too late to correct. Under the circumstance of pursuing creature comforts and hedonism, Lolita is not ruled and educated by morals at the very beginning. Therefore, in some ways, the abnormal moral situation in this society leads to her tragedy.

4.2 Indifference from Society

Although the spiritual ecology imbalance of Humbert and Lolita results from their own personality and experiences, their mental illness is aggravated by the indifference of society.

Never remaining anywhere for long, Humbert manages to evade society’s watchful eye. He is caught fondling Lolita twice and has encountered with the police several times, but he always escapes quickly before meeting any real doubts or questions. It is obvious that he is very afraid of being caught by police. From his narration, he is extremely nervous when they meet policemen in their travel. “At inspection stations on highways entering Arizona or California, a policeman’s cousin would peer with such intensity at us that my poor heart wobbled. ‘Any honey?’ he would inquire, and every time my sweet fool giggled” (Nabokov, 2000: 201). Humbert is very sensitive and tries to avoid any potential and possible troubles.

Though he always worries about the law, Humbert rarely experiences any intervention from official authorities. Humbert’s freedom indicates that the public also blind their eyes intentionally. The whole society is conspiring with him in Humbert and Lolita’s relationship. Under the circumstance of pursuing flesh satisfaction and hedonism, Lolita is not ruled and educated by morals at the very beginning and then her unfortunate experiences are willfully neglected by the public.

From the life experiences of the author, it is not difficult to find that Nabokov is disappointed at this indifferent country. “For example, in his another famous book Pnin, he tells a story about an old Russia professor who teaches in America. Although Pnin tries hard to integrate into American society, he is always refused and derided. Finally he is dismissed by the school and disappears in this cold and indifferent country” (Tian Junwu, 2013:108). People have realized the misfortunate of Lolita, but they choose to ignore it deliberately. So in this sense, the writer intends to disclose the indifference from the society to the children’s grown-up.

5. Sense of Alienation

The balance of spiritual ecology in nature is to seek a healthy relationship between man and nature, man and society, man and man, man and inner self. A healthy self, can really be achieved with the communication of nature, society and human.

5.1 Alienation between People

Humbert is a man who suffers from pedophile. He is irregularly attracted by young girls between nine and fourteen and calls them nymphets. Humbert loves nymphets and has strong desire for them. Humbert cannot reveal his desire for those young girls, because his abnormal desire is forbidden by society and laws. Although he is tortured by pedophile painfully, he has no choice but to keep normal relationships with suitable mature women. As he narrates: “I was consumed by a hell furnace of localize lust for every passing nymphet whom has law-abiding poltroon I never dared approach. The human females I was allowed to wield were but palliative agents” (Nabokov, 2000: 19). His mental state is extremely unusual and unhealthy. He is incapable of forming stable relationships with adult women. His abnormal sexual interest prevents him from living a normal life. All this leads to his alienation from others.

Lolita has certain similar experience with Humbert. Both of them encounter with unfortunate events when they are still young. When Lolita is only four years old, her two-year-old brother died, and later her father also died. She is too young to experience continuous death of family members. She needs someone to help her to overcome the unfortunate time of losing father and brother. As Lolita’s mother, Mrs. Haze should give Lolita caring and love. However, Mrs. Haze never takes her daughter’s psychological situation into consideration. She treats her daughter with indifference and impatience. The relationship between Lolita and Mrs. Haze is extremely chill and abnormal. Mrs. Haze ever complains about her daughter that

“She had been spiteful…at the age of one, when she used to throw her toys out of her crib so that her poor mother should keep picking them up，the villainous infant! Now, at twelve, she was a regular pest…All she wanted from life was to be one day a strutting and prancing baton twirler or a jitterbug. Her grades were poor” (Nabokov, 2000: 48-49).

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