Professor Bainbridge...on law, politics, religion, culture & food

Nabokov’s Last Novel and His Last Wish

Bruce Boyden:

Vladimir Nabokov’s last, unpublished novel is written on index cards that are in the hands of his son, Dmitri. However, Vladimir’s dying request was not that the novel be published, but rather that it be destroyed.

This presents Dmitri with a bit of a dilemma: honoring his father’s request may mean destroying a novel that the world might love to read. Does he have any obligation not to destroy the novel? If not, then the decision should be an easy one. Presumably he has some sort of obligation to abide by his father’s wishes. If there’s no countervailing duty, then his decision is clear.

I don’t see the problem. Honor your father and mother. Respect the last wish of a dying man. Respect the wishes of the author. Three simple rules. Three strikes against publication.