Vladimir Nabokov’s Pnin: The Art of Writing a Life

This study argues that Pnin (1957) functions as a hypertext, as Timofey Pnin’s life story is continually reshaped and reinterpreted by other characters, generating a narrative that differs significantly from the protagonist’s own experience. This distinctive feature can be explained through the metanarrative framework that structures the novel. The narrator is ultimately revealed to be a character who knew and admired Timofey Pnin, constructing a complex symbolic matrix from which Pnin himself must struggle to escape. This narrative strategy provides a metanarrative explanation for the novel’s hypertextual dynamics. The interplay between hypertextuality and metanarration transforms Pnin into a hypothetical autobiography that deliberately blurs the boundary between fact and fiction. This hybrid form allows Nabokov to draw on elements of his own life while simultaneously rejecting the constraints of autobiographical authenticity.