Rayne Xue L&S Arts & Humanities
Naturalizing Nabokov: Alienness and Citizenship in Academic Fictions
Naturalization has once again occupied a salient position in contemporary legal discourse about immigration. However, beyond the courtroom, novelists likewise play an important role in shaping our imagination of naturalization through narratives. My research project explores the relationship between fiction and immigration by focusing on the novels of Vladimir Nabokov, a Russian émigré author who lived in the United States from 1940 to 1961. From Pnin to Lolita, many of Nabokov’s novels portray foreign academics in American universities. By examining those characters’ creation, I ask: What does it mean to be a part of the United States because of one’s membership in a university? In the literary imaginary, could the university be a space beyond borders? Parallel to immigration laws, how do narratives create naturalized subjects? Perhaps most importantly, how can legal and literary studies learn from each other on the subject of immigration and naturalization?
Message To Sponsor
I am beyond grateful for this opportunity to begin an independent research that combines my interests in literature and legal studies. As an international student, I find this project to explore the meaning of naturalization in university fiction very close to my heart. I look forward to getting started with SURF in the summer and hopefully build toward an honors thesis in the Comparative Literature Department!