Véra (Mrs. Vladimir Nabokov): Portrait of a Marriage - discussion questions

1 l. Schiff describes the Russia of Vera Slonim’s childhood as one in which Jewish families obligatorily engaged in "what must have seemed like a colossal, rigged game of Simon Says" Do you think this tells you anything about the woman who would become Mrs. Vladimir Nabokov?
2. To what do you attribute Vera Nabokov’s secretiveness? Relatedly, how do you explain the couple’s unwillingness to answer the question of how they first met?
3. Do you see Vera Nabokov as a victim? Does she strike you as an appealing character?
4. In your opinion, was the Nabokovs’ a happy marriage? Do you think Nabokov’s passionate affair of l937 left a lasting mark on the marriage? Did that affair come as a surprise to you, or did you sense it coming?
5. What did Vera Nabokov think of Lolita? Are her feelings toward the novel consistent? To your mind, was she happy to see it published?
6. What kind of childhood would you say Dmitri Nabokov had? Once, his mother sends him instructions for the Lermontov translation his parents secure for him, assuring him that he can count on assistance at their end. What do you make of his having been groomed as family translator?
7. Where is Vera Nabokov reflected in her husband’s work? And what does her life tell you about the creative process, and about the climate in which an artist creates?
8. What do you make of Nabokov’s insistence on having his wife at his side at all times? Why did he want her there for interviews?
9. What do you learn about Nabokov the man from reading about his wife? Has your opinion of him changed?
10. Are you aware as you read of an overall shape of Vera Nabokov’s life, and of recurrent or overall themes in that life? Do you think all lives have themes?