she surrenders her bulk to the wicker armchair, which, out of sheer fright, bursts into a salvo of crackling.
In Vladimir Nabokov's "Speak, Memory," the imagery evokes a significant moment where the character's descent into the wicker armchair illustrates a blend of vulnerability and emotion. The chair seems almost alive, reacting dramatically as she settles into it, suggesting a tension between human presence and inanimate objects that heightens the atmosphere.
The phrase indicates not just a physical surrender but symbolizes a deeper emotional state, revealing the character’s inner turmoil or weariness. This startling reaction from the chair, described as a "salvo of crackling," transforms an ordinary moment into something almost surreal, emphasizing Nabokov's literary style of intertwining reality with the fantastical.
