I've got no illusions as to how Nabakov intended the book, and I think it's a brilliant novel, but I do think an aspect not a lot of people mention is how a whole teen sub-culture has sprung up around the aesthetic of Dolores. The book is clearly an exploration of paedophillia, and most people argue on that merit alone whether or not it's an immoral book. But the impact the book has had on young girls is pretty terrifying tbh. I wouldn't necessarily advocate for a hitting-you-over-the-head-with-moralising version instead, but it does show we can't always dismiss concerns with a hand wave of "critical thinking".
Re the impact on young girls, it doesn’t help that particularly teens tend to feel like they’re older than they are - I definitely had my phase of ‘knowingly’ getting involved with older men when I was in my teens because I ’thought I knew what I was doing’ and ‘I was actually mature for my age', when in hindsight I was just surrounded by predators like every other young girl who has done the same.
Unfortunately they’re not ready to hear that, though, and I’m not even going to try to discuss the implications of ‘lolita fashion’, even on grown women, because the topic pisses me off too much.
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u/Dextrohal 12d ago
insane take. this person does not know how to comprehend or understand nuance or satire. nabokov was pretty clear that it was not a pro pedo book.