My only grudge against nature was that I could not turn my Lolita inside out and apply voracious lips to her young matrix, her unknown heart, her nacreous liver, the sea-grapes of her lungs, her comely twin kidneys.
Vladimir NabokovRead
I would like to spare the time and effort of hack reviewers and, generally, persons who move their lips when reading.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Nabokov expresses disdain for people who read without comprehension and the unnecessary work of reviewers.
In this quote, Vladimir Nabokov humorously critiques the superficiality of some readers and reviewers who do not engage with literature thoughtfully. He implies that he wishes to save both their time and his own by avoiding entities that merely go through the motions of reading without real understanding. Nabokov's wit shines through as he highlights the difference between meaningful reading and mere oral recitation.
Themes
ReadingUnderstandingLiteratureReviewersComprehension
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about literature, one might quote Nabokov to highlight the importance of deep reading.
More from Vladimir Nabokov
All quotes βLolita, light of my life, fire of my loins. My sin, my soul. Lo-lee-ta: the tip of the tongue taking a trip of three steps down the palate to tap, at three, on the teeth. Lo. Lee. Ta.
Vladimir NabokovRead
A change of environment is the traditional fallacy upon which doomed loves, and lungs, rely.
Vladimir NabokovRead
But that mimosa grove-the haze of stars, the tingle, the flame, the honey-dew, and the ache remained with me, and that little girl with her seaside limbs and ardent tongue haunted me ever since-until at last, twenty-four years later, I broke her spell by incarnating her in another.
Vladimir NabokovRead
...in my dreams the world would come alive, becoming so captivatingly majestic, free and ethereal, that afterwards it would be oppressive to breathe the dust of this painted life.
Vladimir NabokovRead
I believe the poor fierce-eyed child had figured out that with a mere fifty dollars in her purse she might somehow reach Broadway or Hollywood - or the foul kitchen of a diner (Help Wanted) in a dismal ex-prairie state, with the wind blowing, and the stars blinking, and the cars, and the bars, and the barmen, and everything soiled, torn, dead.
Vladimir NabokovRead
Similar quotes
And that brings us to tonight's word: Truthiness. Now I'm sure some of the word-police, the 'wordanistas' over at Websters, are gonna say, 'Hey, that's not a word!' Well, anybody who knows me knows that I am no fan of dictionaries or reference books. They're elitist. Constantly telling us what is or isn't true, what did or didn't happen.
Stephen ColbertRead
Of all bores, the worst is the sparkling bore.
Edward AbbeyRead
Let me tell you what I look like: pale face, long hair, and a tiny start of a paunch. In addition, an awkward gait, and a cigar in the mouth and a pen in pocket or hand.
Albert EinsteinRead
Our most noted satirists are true columnists, and their opinions can be worth more than any well-documented expose.
Umberto EcoRead
My mother always used to say: 'The older you get, the better you get, unless you're a banana.'
Betty WhiteRead
Fly-fishing may be a very pleasant amusement; but angling or float fishing I can only compare to a stick and a string, with a worm at one end and a fool at the other.
Samuel JohnsonRead