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Definition of Stream of Consciousness
Stream of consciousness is a style or technique of writing that tries to capture the natural flow of a character's extended thought process, often by incorporating sensory impressions, incomplete ideas, unusual syntax... read full definition
Stream of consciousness is a style or technique of writing that tries to capture the natural flow of a character's extended thought process, often by incorporating... read full definition
Stream of consciousness is a style or technique of writing that tries to capture the natural flow of a character's... read full definition
Part 1, Chapter 11
Explanation and Analysis—Rumors, Rumor, Roomer:
Occasionally, Humbert’s narration takes the form of a stream of consciousness in which he details the processes of his own thoughts as they move from topic to topic without following the conventions of grammar. While sitting in the Haze household and trying to determine Lolita’s whereabouts, for example, Humbert writes:
Well, let us grope and hope. Ray-like, I glide in thought to the parlor and find the radio silent (and mamma still talking to Mrs. Chatfield or Mrs. Hamilton, very softly, flushed, smiling, cupping the telephone with her free hand, denying by implication that she denies those amusing rumors, rumor, roomer, whispering intimately, as she never does, the clear-cut lady, in face to face talk). So my nymphet is not in the house at all! Gone!
Here, his writing takes on a frenzied pace as his thoughts move quickly, often following the logic of free-association and ignoring the rules of grammar. He pictures Charlotte Haze on the phone (though he cannot in fact see her) and he describes her imagined actions in a series of quick images and actions: “flushed, smiling, cupping her telephone with her free hand, denying by implication that she denies those amusing rumors [...]” When he imagines her gossiping on the phone and conveying rumors, his thoughts play upon the similarities between words: “rumors, rumor, roomer.” Here, the notion of “rumors” makes him think about himself as a “roomer” renting out a room in the Haze household. This long chain of thoughts does not follow any obvious logic but is instead presented as a stream of consciousness reflecting Humbert's mental processes.
Related Themes:
