MovieChat Forums > Lolita (1962) Discussion > The REAL danger is the mirror of Humbert

The REAL danger is the mirror of Humbert

posted 10 years ago by Lester_Burnham_Risen
1 reply | jump to latest

In 1969 The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie [English movie] forecast what was to happen in 1970 with the small f feminist takeover of the so called nuclear family [ie the American Beauty that exists to this day].

The culprit was Germaine Greer and her book The Female Eunuch, and she was very much a "look alike" for Brodie, and in fact styled herself on Catherine from Jules and Jim 1962 [French movie].

If you have not seen Brodie I urge you to see it to compare Lolita as having matured emotionally by 17 having "got her wild oats" at 14 or so as opposed to Jean who missed her wild oats at 14 and became totally obsessed with that fact, and a DANGER to those she influenced as a school teacher.

The main difference Greer to Brodie is that young Sandy STOPPED Brodie but nobody stopped Greer.

In Lolita, the only harm Humbert could have done [apart from to himself] was perhaps to "emotionally harm" Lolita, but as we saw Lol was years ahead of Humbert emotionally, did the chasing and at the same time was having it off with Quilty and ending up in a very healthy, mature relationship with a husband by age 17.

http://www.kindleflippages.com/ablog/

[–] oldgoldtop 10 years ago

Lester wrote: "In Lolita, the only harm Humbert could have done [apart from to himself] was perhaps to "emotionally harm" Lolita,..."

Humbert's actions directly resulted in his death as well as the death of Charlotte and Quilty. The son and father who ran over Charlotte were also likely emotionally damaged having killed a human being...all a result of Humbert's self-centered sexual obsession. Certainly Lolita has her life changed forever...having done pornography with Quilty and now carrying a child at 16 or 17. In the novel I understand she dies in childbirth but in the film she is about to depart to the wilderness of Alaska and likely a much harder life despite your characterization as a "...mature relationship by age 17". Even today most people would say that she is missing out on an important time of her life and will not have opportunities she might otherwise have been expected to have.