Rolo, Ray, and Nabokov's Readership: Commentary on the Morality of Reading Lolita Laura D Watson College

Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov is a controversial text, surrounded by a debate about whether or not it is literature, or merely the writing of a perverse man. Nabokov, himself realizes this, and in 1956, writes a journal article entitled, “On a Book Entitled ‘Lolita’”, in order to explain himself. Others such as TheAtlantic writer, Charles J. Rolo in 1958, have argued the inclusion of humor in the text makes it approachable. In the 1955 foreword to Lolita, John Ray, Jr. shows the reader how he views Nabokov’s characters, in an attempt to separate the sinful nature of the characters from the value of the text. He seeks to allow the reader to proceed to enjoy Lolita without developing a sense of shame. The fact that Ray provides the reader with the fates of the three characters, lets the reader know what to expect from the controversial novel. Therefore, the reader can proceed willingly in anticipation of how the story will lead them to the ending Ray has described. In giving the reader a moral out, he expects them to know they are no better or worse than Nabokov for reading the text.

John Ray, Jr. believes that although Nabokov’s text may be controversial, the fact that his immoral actions are honest, and not subtly hidden within...