Literary Lepidopterology: Nabokov and the Book that Was a Butterfly

In this paper I examine Vladimir Nabokov's Lolita, arguing that contrary to many interpretations, the book does not assert a moral lesson, and is instead a work of art for art’s sake. I examine its formal structures to demonstrate this claim. First I look at a Doppelgänger motif between the characters of Humbert Humbert and Clare Quilty. Since this motif is independent of Humbert’s character arc, it is narratively insignificant and becomes merely one of many themes related to doubles, twins, and mirror images. I also explain how Nabokov was a lifelong scientist studying butterflies and moths, and saw them as natural expressions of aesthetic bliss. I note how the prose is heavy with butterfly-related or insectoid references and images, such as the main character Humbert’s word “nymphet.” The story is told in two equal and mirrored Parts, both of which meet in the middle at the most narratively significant scene. Conceptualized visually, therefore, the two Parts resemble a butterfly’s wings. Given the possibility that these structures were intended this way by the aesthetically-minded Nabokov, I conclude that his authorial intent was earnestly to produce aesthetically pure art, unconcerned with teaching a moral lesson.