Responding and Reflecting Blog Post #2

Book: Lolita
Lens: Feminist Lens


          Reading from the Feminist Lens is interesting because the book is written from Humbert's point of view. However, as I have continued to read I noticed that many of the female characters are not fleshed out or given much background in this book. Although the purpose of the book seems to shine light on the reality of pedophilia, the other "of-age" female characters in the book are not given a back story or insight to their thoughts and feelings beyond their initial introductions or brief interactions.
         Off the bat, I noted Humbert's views towards women as he begins telling his story. In the beginning he quotes, " I was, and still am, despite mes malheurs, an exceptionally handsome male... I could attain any adult female I chose" (25).  Humbert views these women are possessions and later describes his attraction to young girls as a "dangerous desire". By describing his illegal attraction for young girls as a "desire", in a way romanticizes and attempts to excuse his pedophilic behavior. He refers to these girls and women as things and does not really pay attention to their feelings in his actions. It also connects back to his lack of for these females.    Before Lolita is mentioned and he is speaking about Annabel. he mentions his relationships with her as a child. but then abruptly also mentions that she died from a sickness. The reason I bring this up is because I found it disturbing that he went into detail about their encounters and the way he felt about her, but then when she died he did not mention how he felt about it or how she died. She had just died and that was the end of that. Although she was the one who left, he also kind of "threw her away" and went about it like he could have easily found some else to replace her.
     When I was reading through this novel, I could relate it back to an Law & Order: SVU episode I saw once about a guy who was locked away in jail for many years after his 15-year old's GF's parents reported him to the police for being a sex offender. At the time of the incident, he was 18 and she was 15 but because he was locked away for so long he kept the image of her when she looked 15 in her head and when he got out of jail he looked for 15 year old girls who looked like her so he could kidnap them and have sex with them because his once 15 year old GF was now old when he got out jail. He did not want that. In both of these scenarios, the pedophiles had no thought for the child's life before their actions. They only look to fulfill their selfish needs and treat these women like possessions.

- Grecia