Why I Chose to Read Lolita (Preliminary Post)

When I heard that we were about to pick our books for the Independent Reading Project, I had my heart set on picking the book that was going to be as controversial as possible. I am a quirky person who has a penchant for quirky things--thus, I intended to go outside of the norm by reading books with "sensitive" subjects.

Lolita was the first book that came to my mind, but I also considered other possibilities:

1. The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath

I wanted to pick this book at first to bring other people's attention to Plath's writing (I love her), and also because I wanted to read it again--but this time, I wanted to deeply analyze it. However, the prospect of re-reading a book didn't exactly seem appealing to me, and I thought it would somewhat defeat the whole purpose of the project. I think everyone should try to read her and try to understand her works, nonetheless.

2. Anything by D.H. Lawrence

Lady Chatterley's Lover had a controversial subject matter, and I think it would be interesting to read a book with a female protagonist in a position of sexual power, but everyone in my class wants to read it. Boring.

Sons and Lovers had a similar plot to Lolita, though... Moreover, it has a female character who isn't vulnerable--compared to the protagonist in Nabokov's novel. What more can I want? Of course, I chose the latter because, despite sexual power struggles and whatnot, it's not as revolting as the subject of Nabokov's novel. However, sometimes I regret not choosing Sons and Lovers. Oh well. Maybe I'll read it for leisure, after college apps...

3. Maurice - E.M. Forster

Since I couldn't get my hands on the book, I watched the 1980s movie. This was such a great story! The dialogue in the movie (copied verbatim from the book) had so much symbolism that I wanted to grab the book and read it myself! What better opportunity to read this than during IRP? YES, YES, and YES I WANTED THIS BOOK--but eventually, no, because 1) a copy of Maurice was just so damn hard to find on Barnes&Noble; 2) it wasn't on Sobrero's list of 'classic, really important books.' Maybe there just hasn't been much attention on Maurice? I just wish people would come to appreciate this novel more...

4. Other LGBT-themed books

I tried looking up LGBT-themed books on the internet (because LGBT-themed books are always a controversial issue in uptight 19th and 20th Century, they're a gem), but to no avail. Maybe I'll ask Ms. Sobrero for a recommendation of LGBT-themed books to read after college apps...