Lolita

Lolita (pronounced loh-lee-tuh)

(1) A female given name, a form of Charlotte or Dolores.

(2) A 1955 novel by Vladimir Nabokov.

(3) Referencing the eponymous character in the novel, a nymphet (or a representation of one in pornography) or a sexually precocious young girl (usually critically).

Lolita is a female given name of Spanish origin. It is the diminutive form of Lola, a hypocorism of Dolores (Lolita thus a double diminutive) which, depending on the source translates in Spanish as "suffering" or “sorrows”, the latter tending to be preferred because of the link with Maria de los Dolores.  Without any etymological evidence, some other (presumably fanciful) suggestions of meaning have included "a princess who loves pastel colors", "flower of love", "vivacious and beautiful" & "with a man's spirit".

As a given name, Dolores originated from La Virgen María de los Dolore (Virgin Mary of the Sorrows (dolores translating in Spanish as sorrows), one of the many titles given to the Blessed Mother in Spanish Roman Catholic tradition.  In the context of the Roman Catholic Church, Mary’s sorrows refer to seven events which occurred during her lifetime: (1) The Circumcision of Jesus, (2) the Flight from Jerusalem when Mary and Joseph take the baby Jesus to Egypt to protect him from King Herod of Judea’s orders to kill him, (3) the Finding in the Temple when Mary and Joseph lose the child Jesus only to find him later dwelling in the Temple among the elders, (4) Mary’s meeting with Jesus on the way to Calvary, (5) Jesus’ death on the cross, (6) Mary receiving the body of Jesus in her arms after he is taken down from the cross and (7) the placing of Jesus in the tomb.  The most observant Catholics observe a daily ritual in which they recite Our Father and seven Hail Marys in homage to the seven sorrows.  In the Spanish tradition, there are several given names derived from the many epithets given to the Blessed Mother, other examples including Concepción (referring to Mary’s immaculate conception); Corazón (referring to Mary’s immaculate heart); Luz (Our Lady of the “Light”); Mercedes (Our Lady of “Mercy”); Milagros (Our Lady of “Miracles”); Pilar (Our Lady of the “Pillars”); Rosario (Our Lady of the “Rosary”); and Soledad (Our Lady of “Solitude”).  From the late nineteenth century Dolores became popular among American Catholics and Nabokov’s novel seems briefly to have induced a spike in popularity which the later film adaptation (which reached a wider popular audience) may have quelled.  In the US, popularity peaked in 1963 and it’s never really recovered from the prurient associations explored by Nabokov.  Despite the reservations of parents in the English-speaking world, Lolita the name remains popular among Spanish speakers and in Europe.  In Latvia, Lolita’s name day is 30 May.

Sue Lyon in “Lolita Glasses” in Lolita (1962).  The most emblematic of the type are the sunglasses with the heart-shaped lens but the label is applied to many thick-rimmed styles, especially those with the sleek, “cats eye” shape.

Lindsay Lohan in Lolita glasses.

The 1955 novel by Vladimir Nabokov (1899-1977) was controversial even before being published in French, English language houses, sensing trouble, having initially declined the manuscript and nor has there ever been any consensus about the literary merit.  Coincidently or not, there had been a Imperial-era German short-story about a girl called Lolita.  Published in 1916 by Heinz von Lichberg (the pen-name of Heinz von Eschwege (1890-1951)), it was not dissimilar in its themes and there are a number of reasons it may have been Nabokov was influenced although, given the structural differences, plagiarism is too strong a word.  Whatever the qualities of the text, it remains interesting as a canvas onto which can be mapped the changing attitudes to child abuse (and its artistic depiction).  Tellingly, when Stanley Kubrick (1928-1999) in 1962 adapted the novel for the screen, many aspects of the original were toned down and twelve-year old Lolita was re-imagined as fourteen, a change necessitated by the rules in some markets and it may have been hoped that if that was acceptable for Shakespeare’s Juliet, it was good enough for Kubrick’s Lolita.  Even as a morality tale, it was ambiguous; although the transgressive male protagonists all die in various unpleasant ways, so too do Lolita and her mother, the nominal female victims.

Sue Lyon, photographed by Bert Stern in 1960 for a pre-release publicity set.

What came to be called “Lolita glasses” (which are to this day marketed under that label) are the thick-rimmed items worn in the 1962 by Sue Lyon (1946-2019), aged between 14-15 at the time of filming.  The most famous of the glasses, with the heart-shaped lens, were chosen by photographer Bert Stern (1929-2013) who Kubrick in 1960 commissioned to produce some still images to be used in pre-release publicity.  Stern was already well known for his photographs of Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, and would later create a famous set of images of Marilyn Monroe (1926–1962), the style of which he controversially reprised in 2008 with Lindsay Lohan (b 1986) as the subject.

Popularity of the name Lolita in the US, 1900-2017.  Impressionistically, as might be expected, a film will influence popular culture more than literary fiction, regardless of content.