The idea.

After listening to other comments about Nabokov’s purpose and portrait of the main character in The Enchanter in class, I couldn’t help but constantly go back to the moment the books changes—the moment his wife (the girl’s mother) dies. From this scene on, the character seems to lose control over every aspect of the situation, even his actions toward the girl. When he hears about his wife’s death, he becomes angry, even though his ultimate goal has been made (48). When I first read that scene, I thought it was a rather odd reaction to have; but, as I re-visit the story, I see how it was the turning point to his losing his enchantment toward the girl. As the story progresses, he turns into a very awkward and clumsy character. Before he was awkward, but he could still seem somewhat sociable. After this scene, however, he becomes angry. He yells at the police when they think he is someone he is not (66). The way Nabokov rights the story, it almost seems as if he is going to be caught. Even though they have the wrong person, his speech to the police made him seem as if he is guilty. “Wait for some accusations, gentlemen, wait for somebody to lodge a little complaint!” (66). During this time as well, the little girl was rather cold to him; she wanted to sit next to the driver and refused to sit next to him (62). However, the point at which he seemed to be the angriest was when he thought she had locked him out of their room, even though he merely tried to open the wrong door (68). It seemed odd of him to be so angry with her and the other occupants when he was the one who had made the mistake in the first place.

He looses all control, though, when he violates the little girl. The wording Nabokov uses makes the reader cringe during the scene. The reader, like the character, pushes through the scene… “Onward, onward” (73). The reader wants him to stop, but he doesn’t. His movements aren’t smooth when he is with her, as he had envisioned they would be. He’s clumsy and ends up ruining his entire goal. As soon as his wife dies, the story changes. He is no longer pursuing a goal, but obtaining it. Once he started obtaining the goal, had to push to get it. It was almost as if he didn’t want it (even though he did), but he kept going because he felt like he had to do it. He also seemed as if he didn’t like how it was going—it was much different from what he envisioned it being. It was awkward and his body moved awkwardly along hers. Instead of being a moment he thought he would love and something he wanted; it ended up being a moment he didn’t quite like at all. He didn’t find her as beautiful as when he first saw her (58).

It was strange to see his progression go from something he really wanted, but constantly struggled with and tried to suppress, to something he didn’t want but felt as if he had to finish. He was her prey. He had been hunting her for so long. It was all he wanted, but everything he didn’t.