Lolita (term): Difference between revisions
HouseOfChange (talk | contribs) clarify other uses of "Lolita," for which Wikipedia has separate articles, disambiguation page is "loli" |
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{{short description|Term used to define a young girl as "precociously seductive...without connotations of victimization".}} |
{{short description|Term used to define a young girl as "precociously seductive...without connotations of victimization".}} |
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{{For|other uses|Lolita (disambiguation)}} |
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{{For|the Japanese fashion subculture|Lolita fashion}} |
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[[File:Storm Nymphs Study by Poynter.jpg|thumb|Study for the painting ''The Vision of [[Endymion (mythology)|Endymion]]'' by [[Edward Poynter]]]] |
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{{For|the Japanese term for an attraction to young girls, or associated media|Lolicon}} |
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"'''Lolita'''" is a term describing a "precociously seductive girl".<ref name="MW_Dictionary">{{Cite web |url=http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lolita?show=0&t=1289146883 |title=Lolita |work=Merriam-Webster.com |quote=In Vladimir Nabokov’s 1955 novel, Lolita, the character Lolita is a child who is sexually victimized by the book’s narrator. The word Lolita has, however, strayed from its original referent, and has settled into the language as a term we define as 'a precociously seductive girl.'...The definition of Lolita reflects the fact that the word is used in contemporary writing without connotations of victimization. |access-date=31 August 2020}}</ref> It is derived from [[Vladimir Nabokov]]'s 1955 novel ''[[Lolita]],'' which depicts the narrator's [[sexual fantasy|sexual]] obsession and victimization of a 12-year-old girl named Dolores, for whom him nickname is Lolita.<ref>Nabokov, Vladimir. ''Lolita''. New York: Vintage International, 1955. {{ISBN|0-679-72316-1}}</ref> The meaning of the term has since strayed from this usage, and it is often used in contemporary writing without a connotation of victimization.<ref name="MW_Dictionary" /> |
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==Nabokov's Lolita== |
==Nabokov's Lolita== |
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{{Lolita}} |
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[[Category:Sexual attraction]] |
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Revision as of 03:09, 14 March 2021
"Lolita" is a term describing a "precociously seductive girl".[1] It is derived from Vladimir Nabokov's 1955 novel Lolita, which depicts the narrator's sexual obsession and victimization of a 12-year-old girl named Dolores, for whom him nickname is Lolita.[2] The meaning of the term has since strayed from this usage, and it is often used in contemporary writing without a connotation of victimization.[1]
Nabokov's Lolita
Justifying his attraction to twelve-year-old Lolita, Humbert claims that it was a natural response to the "demoniac" nature of children who attract him:[3]
Now I wish to introduce the following idea. Between the age limits of nine and fourteen there occur maidens who, to certain bewitched travelers, twice or many times older than they, reveal their true nature which is not human, but nymphic (that is, demoniac); and these chosen creatures I propose to designate as 'nymphets.'[3]
Nabokov, however, does not endorse Humbert's fantasy that Lolita is a seductress. As Perry A. Hinton notes:[4]
At no point is Lolita anything but a typical girl of her age and time: tomboyish (she has a tendency not to wash her hair), interested in movies, celebrities, magazines, and soda pop. She does nothing to attract Humbert in any way. She does not dress or make herself up with any thought to attract him.
Eric Lemay of Northwestern University writes:
And in his arms or out, "Lolita" was always the creation of Humbert's craven self... The Siren-like Humbert sings a song of himself, to himself, and titles that self and that song "Lolita". ... To transform Dolores into Lolita, to seal this sad adolescent within his musky self, Humbert must deny her her humanity.[5]
Other usage
In the marketing of pornography, "Lolita" is used to refer to the sexualized presentation of a young girl, frequently one who has only recently reached the age of consent, appears to be younger than the age of consent, or child exploitation material depicting the sexual abuse of children.[6]
In Japanese culture, the term is used to describe the lolita fashion subculture of cute (see kawaii) or delicately feminine appearance reflecting what Hinton suggests is "an idyllic childhood, a girl’s world of frilly dresses and dolls."[4] The style, strongly influenced by Victorian and Roccoco fashions, is characterized by full skirts and petticoats, decorated with lace and ribbons. Words commonly used to describe the style include "porcelain doll", "delicate", and "childlike". Within the general Lolita style are variations of the fashion, such as "Gothic Lolita", "Sweet Lolita", "Hime (or Princess) Lolita", and "Punk Lolita". These few by no means complete the list of variations. Men who dress in the fashion are called "brolitas."[7]
See also
- Adolescent sexuality
- Bishōjo
- Bishōnen
- Ephebophilia
- Hebephilia
- JK business
- Lolicon
- Lolita fashion
- Pedophilia
- Shotacon
References
- ^ a b "Lolita". Merriam-Webster.com. Retrieved 31 August 2020.
In Vladimir Nabokov's 1955 novel, Lolita, the character Lolita is a child who is sexually victimized by the book's narrator. The word Lolita has, however, strayed from its original referent, and has settled into the language as a term we define as 'a precociously seductive girl.'...The definition of Lolita reflects the fact that the word is used in contemporary writing without connotations of victimization.
- ^ Nabokov, Vladimir. Lolita. New York: Vintage International, 1955. ISBN 0-679-72316-1
- ^ a b Nabokov, Vladimir (1991). Alfred Appel (ed.). The Annotated Lolita. Random House. ISBN 0679727299.
- ^ a b Hinton, Perry R (2013). "Returning in a Different Fashion: Culture, Communication, and Changing Representations of Lolita in Japan and the West". International Journal of Communication. 7: 1582–1602. Retrieved August 31, 2020.
At no point is Lolita anything but a typical girl of her age and time: tomboyish (she has a tendency not to wash her hair), interested in movies, celebrities, magazines, and soda pop. She does nothing to attract Humbert in any way. She does not dress or make herself up with any thought to attract him. Yet the Lolita of the book—the young, asexual tomboy exploited by the manipulative older man—is not the representation that is stereotypically thought of by the word Lolita. This is possibly because of the films that have been made, based on the book, present a very different representation.
- ^ Lemay, Eric. "Dolorous Laughter". p. 2. Retrieved 2 October 2012.
- ^ "Protecting our children from abuse and neglect", American Psychological Association. Retrieved 20 March 2016
- ^ "Lolita 101: This Japanese fashion craze is now for everyone" by Aja Romano, The Daily Dot, 17 September 2013
External links
- Constructions of Childhood in Art and Media: Sexualized Innocence, Alexandra Wood.
- "Little Deadly Demons: Nymphets, sexuality and a North American girl-child", Dawson, Kellie, American Sexuality Magazine.
- "Lola! Lola! Lola!", by Jascha Kessler in the California Literary Review, March 2007