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An Introduction to Synesthesia via Vladimir Nabokov

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Abstract

Nabokov belongs to a small “family” of great artists also known as synesthetes, suggesting a link between synesthesia and creativity. Moreover, Nabokov’s report of precise synesthetic associations between letters and colors already in his early childhood suggests that synesthesia is a gift, possibly innate. Could we suppose that the brain of Nabokov was special because of synesthesia? Could synesthesia relate to his metaphoric creativity, his strong visual mental imagery and memory or even some aspects of his personality? Here we show that the synesthetic experiences described by Nabokov are similar to those of synesthetes studied by scientists for the last twenty years. We review what cognitive neuroscience has learnt so far about the possible mechanisms of synesthesia and whether synesthetes display any special characteristics beyond synesthesia. We show that little is known and that there is little support to naturalize Nabokov’s creative process on the basis of him having synesthesia.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Brain and Cognition Research Center (CerCo), University of Toulouse Paul Sabatier and National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS), Toulouse, France

    Jean-Michel Hupé

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  1. Jean-Michel Hupé
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Toulouse, Toulouse, France

    Marie Bouchet

  2. University of Lille, Lille, France

    Julie Loison-Charles

  3. University Bordeaux Montaigne, Bordeaux, France

    Isabelle Poulin

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Hupé, JM. (2020). An Introduction to Synesthesia via Vladimir Nabokov. In: Bouchet, M., Loison-Charles, J., Poulin, I. (eds) The Five Senses in Nabokov's Works. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-45406-7_15

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