While a professor at Wordsmith University, the main character and narrator eventually reveals that he is really named Xavier the Beloved and is the deposed king of Zembla.  
The main character is mocked by his colleague Gerald Emerald, and his academic subject is assassinated by Jack Grey, who mistook the man for Judge Goldsworth.  While a professor at Wordsmith University, the main character and narrator eventually reveals that he is really named Xavier the Beloved and is the deposed king of Zembla.  All this is revealed as the main character attempts to edit a 999-line poem, written by John Shade, which shares its name with this novel.  Considered an expository of the poem by scholar Charles Kinbote, FTP, identify this novel that centers on a poem by Vladimir Nabokov.
The main character is mocked by his colleague Gerald Emerald, and his academic subject is assassinated by Jack Grey, who mistook the man for Judge Goldsworth.  
Pale Fire