All these Pale Fires...

Reading Shakespeare last night, came to the passage from which Nabokov chose the title for my favorite novel, Pale Fire. Then, this morning, there the term was again in a Flannery O'Connor short story, so here they all are together, along with some Nabokov Pale Fire paraphernalia....

The sun's a thief, and with his great attraction
Robs the vast sea. The moon's an arrant thief,
And her pale fire she snatches from the sun...
                                           - Shakespeare
                                             Timon of Athens
                                             Act 4, Scene 3

Tarwater lurched into the middle of the stream bed and crouched on his hands and knees. The moon was reflected like pale fire in the few spots of water in the sand... 
                                                                     - Flannery O'Connor
                                                                       "You Can't Be Any Poorer Than Dead"

Nabokov's endlessly great novel:                                                 His fictional poet's poem:

                                     Also Shades' famous index cards: 

Shade stuff from the beautiful Gingko Press edition, Berkeley 2011.