Lolita brings to mind stories my mother used to retell, about her days growing up in the late 40's - early 50's in Toledo, Ohio. She lived near the zoo, and a large park in an older, slightly poorer part of town. Being the fifth of six children, she was often unsupervised by an adult when out to play. One day when she was at the park swinging, and a man approached her with a camera. He asked if he could take photos of her. She was very flattered, and pleased as she was, in her mind, very homely. He asked her to swing higher, and higher as he snapped away shots of her in her little dress. Suddenly, it occurred to her that she must get home for lunch, and told him so. He begged her to return afterward, and meet him in the gazebo. She excitedly ran home, and told her mother of her adventure over lunch. Her mother decided to have her friend, the neighborhood policeman, escort my mother back to the park, where they found the man, and confiscated his camera. It seemed he was in the habit of taking pictures of little girls undergarments.

She also told the story or an old man who lived on their street who offered the little girls each a piece of gum if they would touch his penis. My mother never took him up on the offer, however, her sister did. It seems they were so poor, her sister, Vicky would do almost anything for something as prized as gum. She was even known to pick up chewed gum off the street, and pop it in her mouth. He was arrested.

My mother used to ride the bus with her younger sister to the art museum every weekend. One winter day, they had to take a seat at the rear of the bus. My mother looked down to see a rather foul looking man sitting next to her, with his penis exposed, and lying against her coat. Revolted, and shocked she only looked at her sister, and pretended not to see, and moved away as quickly as seat openings permitted.

And you probably thought Toledo was boring.

yuck. well, perverts are everywhere, but Humbert in _Lolita_ is truly and tragically in love. he would do anything for her. He'd kill for her. and she wasn't fazed by it one bit. It's so beautiful and depressing.

Sorry, I didn't see it that way. I'll have to reread this. I may not be looking at it the way the writer intended. I assumed he was letting us see how consumed we could become if we allowed ourselves to cathex to the extreme about deep dark fantasies, Humbert's being a manifestation of his inability to grow beyond the immature stirrings he had as a boy which became full blown as a man with real physical needs.