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

241
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lowing the development of Shade's poem, and Shade's
life while he is writing it, Kinbote intends to show
how and why two lines from two completely different
spheres converge slowly until they meet at the moment
of Shade's death, when Gradus aims at Kinbote (the
King) and, missing him, shoots Shade. Doing this,
Kinbote follows the same method, which Sebastian
Knight follows for a similar purpose in his novel
Success.
47
The first instances of synchronization do not
seem very convincing, in fact, they look as
meaningless as the long note in which Kinbote announces
them. It does not seem meaningful at all that
Gradus should find himself "designated to track down
and murder the King" (150) on the same day on which
an "innocent poet" (151) starts working on a new poem
(July 2nd). It does not seem any more meaningful that
he should depart for Western Europe on the very day
on which the same "innocent poet" is beginning Canto
II of his poem (July 5th) (78). And so with all the
other seeming coincidences.
48
Again, it all acquires meaning only when looked
at in retrospect and with the end in mind. Then it
becomes indeed obvious that the "timing" is perfect,
and that the combination of incidents on the
last day and during the last few hours of
Shade's life is perfect too: Gradus arrives at New
Wye airport, goes by car to the Campus Hotel, goes
from there to the Library, gets lost in his search
for Kinbote (the King), comes back to the main desk,