Liminal Intent: Nabokov and Burroughs

Abstract

A touch of shape-shifting in popular storytelling need not be associated with Ovid’s Metamorphoses. It is a universal element in folklore from everywhere and a common plot feature in comic books, fantasy, and science fiction. It is also found in fable-like modern fiction such as Stevenson’s Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. There are three factors that influence the impact and meaning of metamorphosis in fiction: our expectations based on the genre of the work; the function of transformation in the narrative; and the way these irregular events are explained.