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    Despair by Vladimir Nabokov Summary

    Despair
    Vladimir Nabokov
    Fiction
    Psychology
    Mystery
    Thriller
    Overview
    Key Takeaways
    Author
    FAQs

    Overview of Despair

    Nabokov's "Despair" - a psychological thriller twice translated by the author himself after Nazi bombs destroyed its first English edition. This rare gem of unreliable narration showcases the experimental brilliance that defined his career before "Lolita" captivated the literary world.

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    Key Takeaways

    1

    The Perfect Reflection: A Delusion Begins

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    Have you ever caught a glimpse of someone across a crowded room and felt a jolt of recognition so powerful it seemed like fate? For Hermann Karlovich, a failing chocolate businessman in 1930s Berlin, this moment arrives on a hillside near Prague when he encounters Felix, a vagrant whom Hermann believes to be his exact double. The resemblance strikes him as nothing short of miraculous-a perfect reflection of himself in tramp's clothing. "When I realized the full extent of our likeness," Hermann tells us, "I experienced a feeling akin to ecstasy, as if the world had suddenly revealed its innermost secret to me alone." What makes this encounter particularly fascinating is Felix's indifference to their supposed resemblance. While Hermann is transfixed by what he perceives as identical features-the same nose, chin, even gestures-Felix merely sees Hermann as a potential source of money. This fundamental disparity creates the first crack in our narrator's reliability. When Felix casually pockets Hermann's silver pencil before departing, Hermann feels simultaneously violated and exhilarated, as if some profound connection has been established between them. The encounter haunts Hermann long after he returns to Berlin, infiltrating every aspect of his daily life. He finds himself studying his own reflection with renewed intensity, imagining Felix's face superimposed over his own in every reflective surface. "I would stare at myself in mirrors," he confesses, "and see not just my face but the flawlessly pure image of my corpse."

    2

    The Artist of Deception

    3

    A Marriage of Manipulation

    4

    The Perfect Crime: An Exercise in Self-Deception

    5

    Through the Looking Glass: Mirrors and Identity

    6

    The Unreliable Narrator: Truth Through Deception

    7

    The Masterpiece of Failure