GMOs and Pale Fire

Well, now that I'm a partial expert in the policies that have allowed France to take practically all Genetically Modified Food off their supermarket shelves, I thought I would share some of my new found expertise.

First, Genetically Modified Organisms are each created with a distinct purpose. A particular section of a plants DNA is chosen for its properties, isolated from the rest of the DNA and then removed.
Second, a piece of DNA from another organism, often a bacterium, is selected for its specific properties, isolated and then removed.
Next is a lenghty process in which the DNA pieces are modified and placed in sort of parcels that are given to a bacterium that then transports the DNA and inserts it into the rest of the plant's DNA.
Finally, individual cells are sprayed with antibiotics, those cells that survive are kept while those that don't are discarded.
The plant's immune system has been changed through human intervention. The new plants are often either Herbicide tolerant, meaning they can withstand herbicides meant to destroy other plants, or insect tolerant, meaning they are immune to the insects that once destroyed them. They sometimes contain bacteria in their pollen that kills a targeted insect species. Some plants can also kill weeds or they were meant to. Before the local population came and destroyed the field, a group of scientists were working on a type of sunflowers that would kill off the local ambrosia, a plant that can cause severe allergic reactions (ironic isn't it).

Now, GMOs are controversial in many ways. For one thing, humans are interfering in the natural evolution of plant life (one can argue that breeding has been doing the same thing for eons, but this process is a bit more invasive). The use of antibiotics in the plants makes them resistant to those antibiotics which could lead to the humans ingesting those plants to be antibiotic resistant. This, as well as the plants new found resistance to insects and herbicides, could lead to the creation of superbugs that could lead to the end of humanity as we know it (sorry this is a bit too dramatic, but superbugs are no laughing matter). There is also the possibility of GM crops infecting heirloom crops, which could lead to the loss of those rare species. And of course, there are incidences where mysterious illnesses have caused lots of deaths and injuries and they can be related back to genetically modified dietary supplements.

In short, genetic modification is the process whereby an organisms is infused with the essence of another organism so that the original organism can better survive in the world we humans have created for it and there is the possibility that these modified organisms will kill everyone eventually.

So, how does this relate to Pale Fire? Well Kinbote obviously. Nabokov has engineered this crazy character by adding on bits and pieces of mythology, literature, history and his own life experiences and then in this world that Nabokov has created, Kinbote eventually kills off his best friend and all he's worried about is the survival of Shade's poem.

So, I would like to explore all the bits and pieces that Nabokov added to Kinbote, how this modification had an effect on the other weeds and insects (characters in the novel) and how all this led to John Shade's death, if he truly existed or if any of the characters truly existed.