''Vladimir Nabokov's Comic Quest for Reality' - Nottingham eTheses

-
208 -
to suicide. Sebastian overcomes the pessimism that
stands at the end of The Eye. He indicates that there
is a way, which is of a highly spiritual order, of
obtaining true knowledge of others, and thus shows
a way out of the isolation to which each individual
seems condemned at the end of that novel. He also
attains self-knowledge, which is again something Smurov
in The Eye is incapable of, thus being reduced to a
shadowy
existence.
How well does the reader know Sebastian at the end
of the novel? Knowledge is normally conveyed through
words. They are suitable and helpful where logic and
the intellect are concerned. It has however appeared
that both V's and Sebastian's experiences and knowledge
have nothing to do with logic. what they know is
therefore beyond words. It cannot be passed on and understood
by anybody but themselves; it must be experienced,
and everybody must go through that experience
for himself.
The reader's knowledge of Sebastian seems to consist
at the end of what V/Sebastian can put into
words. He has a vague idea of what Sebastian looks
like, of what his manners are, and his habits, and
he knows his reactions to certain things. He has a
fair idea of Sebastian's art, and at various points
sees Sebastian converting life into art. He also has
a fair idea of the thoughts and problems that mast'
occupy Sebastian's mind. It is even possible for him
to guess at the reason for some of Sebastian's peculi-
arities and eccentricities; to explain what strikes