The Artistic Techniques Of Lolita

This paper analyzes the artistic techniques of Lolita by the Russian-born American writer Vladimir Nabokov from aspects of its charming language, involuted design, and sophisticated narrative strategy.Lolita is a work of art that shows the charm and force of the English language. On one hand, its language is rich and varied, which is reflected in the baroque feature, broad playful use of words, accurate and lively description. On the other hand, Lolita has a poetic prose style, which shows the beauty of its language. Humbert just uses this style to express his ardent love for Lolita.Lolita's involuted design refers to its structural involution, which is achieved by parody, allusion, coincidence, and the work-within-the-work. Parody of romantic comedy and parody of double complicate the character of Humbert and define the thematic focus of the novel. By allusion to those writers like Allan Poe, Humbert tries to appeal for sympathetic moral understanding. Coincidence emphasizes the theme of fate and the fictionality of the text. The work-within-the-work further complicates the plot and deepens the theme of the enchanted hunter and his attempt to capture his prey.The sophisticated narrative strategy involves the use of the first-person narration with an inside-view of the protagonist and the duality of the first-person narrator. By using these strategies Nabokov succeeds in achieving the delicate narrative balance, and Humbert reaches his narrative motivation of self-justification.Based on the analysis above, the paper points out that Nabokov's use of consummate artistic techniques in these three aspects presents the uniqueness and highly artistic value of Lolita as a great work, and simultaneously it shows Nabokov's great genius and originality in the creation of literary work. These techniques not only express effectively the theme of the novel, but also reflect Nabokov's aesthetic idea that art is the only norm of his literary creations.