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Vladimir Nabokov Quotes

Powerful Vladimir Nabokov for Daily Growth

About Vladimir Nabokov

Vladimir Vladimirovich Nabokov (April 23, 1899 – July 2, 1977) was a Russian-American novelist, poet, translator, and entomologist, renowned for his intricate narratives, rich linguistic play, and profound exploration of themes such as memory, identity, and the human condition. Born in Russia to aristocratic parents, Nabokov spent his early years in a world of wealth and privilege, developing an early love for butterflies (an interest that would later inspire his novel 'Speak, Memory') and acquiring an impressive command over several languages. After the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917, his family fled to Europe and eventually settled in Berlin. There, Nabokov studied French and Russian literature at Trinity College, Cambridge before moving to Switzerland, where he published his first novel, 'Mary', in 1926. In 1940, Nabokov moved to the United States, settling in Ithaca, New York, where he taught European literature at Cornell University for the rest of his life. He continued writing prolifically, producing masterpieces such as 'Lolita' (1955), a dark and controversial tale of love and obsession, and 'Pale Fire' (1962), a complex narrative poem disguised as scholarly commentary. Throughout his career, Nabokov demonstrated a unique ability to weave intricate plots with precise language, captivating readers worldwide. His works often featured autobiographical elements and incorporated themes from his extensive knowledge of the natural world. Despite his success, Nabokov remained a private figure, preferring the solitude of writing and teaching to the limelight of public life. He passed away in 1977, leaving behind an indelible mark on modern literature.

Interpretations of Popular Quotes

"We are all lonely, and we are all of us looking for something."

This quote by Vladimir Nabokov emphasizes the universal human experience of loneliness and our innate desire to find connection or fulfillment in life. It suggests that everyone, regardless of background or circumstances, grapples with feelings of isolation at some point, and we all seek meaningful relationships, purpose, or personal growth to alleviate these feelings. The quote underscores the shared human condition, fostering empathy and understanding among individuals.

"The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing."

This quote by Vladimir Nabokov emphasizes the importance of humility and acknowledging one's limitations, suggesting that true wisdom lies in recognizing the extent of our own ignorance or lack of knowledge. In other words, it is only by admitting that we don't know everything that we can begin to learn, grow, and seek out new knowledge and understanding. This mindset fosters a lifelong curiosity and openness to new ideas, making us more receptive to the wonders and mysteries of the world around us.

"I'm not upset that you lied to me, I'm upset that from now on I can't believe you."

This quote emphasizes the profound impact of trust in relationships. The speaker is expressing frustration that a lie has been told, but more crucially, they are disappointed that they can no longer rely on the truthfulness of the person who lied to them. Trust once broken requires rebuilding, and it is this process that is perceived as upsetting rather than the individual act of deceit itself.

"There are no ideas - there are only developed ideas and underdeveloped ideas."

This quote by Vladimir Nabokov suggests that all thoughts or concepts we have are built upon previously existing ones, but their level of development can vary greatly. An idea in its most basic form is underdeveloped, while a fully fleshed-out concept with depth, context, and detail is considered developed. This implies that the progression of ideas relies on the refinement, expansion, and application of initial thoughts. Essentially, Nabokov is asserting that there are no entirely original ideas, but rather ideas that have been developed further through thought, experience, and innovation.

"Everything has been said before, but since nobody listens we have to keep going back and beginning all over again."

This quote emphasizes the cyclical nature of human communication and the repetition of ideas across time. Despite the fact that every conceivable thought or concept has likely been expressed at some point in history, there remains a need for people to continually revisit and reiterate these ideas because not everyone listens or learns from previous discussions. It suggests a continuous endeavor to share knowledge and understanding with new generations and audiences who may have missed the original communication.

It is hard, I submit, to loathe bloodshed, including war, more than I do, but it is still harder to exceed my loathing of the very nature of totalitarian states in which massacre is only an administrative detail.

- Vladimir Nabokov

Very, Still, Which, Massacre

There are aphorisms that, like airplanes, stay up only while they are in motion.

- Vladimir Nabokov

Motion, Only, Like, Airplane

A novelist is, like all mortals, more fully at home on the surface of the present than in the ooze of the past.

- Vladimir Nabokov

Surface, More, Like, Novelist

Happy is the novelist who manages to preserve an actual love letter that he received when he was young within a work of fiction, embedded in it like a clean bullet in flabby flesh and quite secure there, among spurious lives.

- Vladimir Nabokov

Love, Young, Fiction, Novelist

Complacency is a state of mind that exists only in retrospective: it has to be shattered before being ascertained.

- Vladimir Nabokov

Mind, Before, Shattered, Retrospective

There is nothing in the world that I loathe more than group activity, that communal bath where the hairy and slippery mix in a multiplication of mediocrity.

- Vladimir Nabokov

Funny, Activity, Loathe, Communal

The good, the admirable reader identifies himself not with the boy or the girl in the book, but with the mind that conceived and composed that book.

- Vladimir Nabokov

Mind, Himself, Composed, Admirable

Literature and butterflies are the two sweetest passions known to man.

- Vladimir Nabokov

Man, Literature, Butterflies, Sweetest

Turning one's novel into a movie script is rather like making a series of sketches for a painting that has long ago been finished and framed.

- Vladimir Nabokov

Movie, Making, Been, Sketches

No author has created with less emphasis such pathetic characters as Chekhov has.

- Vladimir Nabokov

Characters, Pathetic, Author, Chekhov

The cradle rocks above an abyss, and common sense tells us that our existence is but a brief crack of light between two eternities of darkness.

- Vladimir Nabokov

Existence, Cradle, Brief, Common Sense

I have often noticed that after I had bestowed on the characters of my novels some treasured item of my past, it would pine away in the artificial world where I had so abruptly placed it.

- Vladimir Nabokov

Some, Away, Item, Novels

Some people, and I am one of them, hate happy ends. We feel cheated. Harm is the norm.

- Vladimir Nabokov

Happy, Some, Harm, Cheated

Discussion in class, which means letting twenty young blockheads and two cocky neurotics discuss something that neither their teacher nor they know.

- Vladimir Nabokov

Cocky, Which, Means, Discuss

Imagination, the supreme delight of the immortal and the immature, should be limited. In order to enjoy life, we should not enjoy it too much.

- Vladimir Nabokov

Enjoy, Immortal, Limited, Delight

I think like a genius, I write like a distinguished author, and I speak like a child.

- Vladimir Nabokov

Genius, Think, I Think, Distinguished

I cannot conceive how anybody in his right mind should go to a psychoanalyst.

- Vladimir Nabokov

Mind, How, His, Right Mind

It is a short walk from the hallelujah to the hoot.

- Vladimir Nabokov

Walk, Short, Hallelujah, Hoot

To play safe, I prefer to accept only one type of power: the power of art over trash, the triumph of magic over the brute.

- Vladimir Nabokov

Magic, Play, Over, Trash

The pages are still blank, but there is a miraculous feeling of the words being there, written in invisible ink and clamoring to become visible.

- Vladimir Nabokov

Visible, Still, Blank, Being There

Poetry involves the mysteries of the irrational perceived through rational words.

- Vladimir Nabokov

Through, Involves, Perceived, Rational

Style and Structure are the essence of a book; great ideas are hogwash.

- Vladimir Nabokov

Book, Essence, Great Ideas, Structure

Revelation can be more perilous than Revolution.

- Vladimir Nabokov

More, Revelation, Than, Perilous

The more gifted and talkative one's characters are, the greater the chances of their resembling the author in tone or tint of mind.

- Vladimir Nabokov

Mind, Tone, Talkative, Chances

Existence is a series of footnotes to a vast, obscure, unfinished masterpiece.

- Vladimir Nabokov

Existence, Obscure, Series, Unfinished

Satire is a lesson, parody is a game.

- Vladimir Nabokov

Game, Lesson, Satire, Parody

Caress the detail, the divine detail.

- Vladimir Nabokov

Divine, Caress, Detail

My loathings are simple: stupidity, oppression, crime, cruelty, soft music.

- Vladimir Nabokov

Music, Stupidity, Oppression, Soft

Life is a great sunrise. I do not see why death should not be an even greater one.

- Vladimir Nabokov

Life, Sunrise, See, Greater

Nothing is more exhilarating than philistine vulgarity.

- Vladimir Nabokov

More, Exhilarating, Philistine

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