It brought to mind Armies of the Night, which had a profound effect on me when I read it. It was truly revolutionary, written in the third person, which was a sheer stroke of genius. I remember being so enamored with it that for about a year all the letters I wrote to my friends were in the third person. Looking back, that was a really liberating exercise. For some reason, I was able to get outside of myself more, sort of like the spirit of a dying man looking down on his body.
I immediately had an urge to read something from "Armies of the Night," if not the whole thing. I can't remember whether I still have a copy around but it's a moot point because we are remodeling right now so all of our books are packed away. So, I went on the Amazon site and called up "Armies of the Night" and then clicked on "Search Inside," then chose "Excerpt." This brought up the first few pages of the book and it was like being with an old friend I had not seen for far too long. A definite literary contact high! I may have to go out and buy a used version because it may be a while before the books get unpacked and I may not have it anyway.
Well, here are a couple of quotes from the brawler himself:
The sickness of our times for me has been just this damn thing that everything has been getting smaller and smaller and less and less important, that the romantic spirit has dried up, that there is no shame today. We're all getting so mean and small and petty and ridiculous, and we all live under the threat of extermination.
Ultimately a hero is a man who would argue with the gods, and so awakens devils to contest his vision. The more a man can achieve, the more he may be certain that the devil will inhabit a part of his creation.
1 comment:
I always had trouble with Mailer, and friends who dig him have been arguing with me for years, trying to get me to see the value of what I always saw as egotistic intellectual-rebel schtick, especially since my first encounter with him was in the New York tabloids as a kid when he was on their covers for having stabbed his then wife. I also didn't dig his macho stances, believing that in his heart it came from a fear of his own feminine side etc. But your little post on him actually wiped all that away and reminded me of how he was courageous in his own way, and that he had an impact on a lot of people, some of whom I love and admire, like you, and therefore is to be honored and accepted as he is. So thanks bro.
Post a Comment