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We have identified the central myth literature, in its narrative aspect, with the quest-myth. Now if we wish to see this central myth as a pattern of meaning also, we have to start with the workings of the subconscious where the epiphany originates, in other words in the dream. (Northrop Frye, 684) and reprinted here with the permission of the author.<blockquote>To begin with, the book is absolutely a myth--I'm trying to create a modern myth, (Conversations with Norman Mailer, 102)</blockquote>Norman Mailer's book An American Dream has been acclaimed by many critics, including the author himself, as possibly his finest novel. On the other hand, many scholars have attacked it for its unrealistic plotline and unbelievable characters. Reviews of the book were decidedly mixed. Life magazine call it "by conventional standards...a grotesquely implausible book, full of horrific occurrences and characters who appear to uniformly insane" (12). On the positive side, Joan Didion claimed "An American Dream is one more instance in which Mailer is going to laugh last, for it is a remarkable book"(39). Mailer scholar J. Michael Lennon writes that " The book's defenders, with few exceptions, [have] tended to see the novel as myth, fantasy, or allegory"(9).<blockquote>In support of interpreting An American Dream as a myth, I begin by citing Joseph L. Blotner's description of mythic exegesis of literature: When meaningful, coherent, and illuminating parallels are discerned, the work may be interpreted in terms of the myth. Often what appears fragmentary or only partly disclosed in the work may be revealed as complete and explicit through the myth .... It is not an interior approach asserting that myth was present at the conception and execution of the work; it rather asserts that myth may be brought to the work at its reading. (548)</blockquote>
We have identified the central myth literature, in its narrative aspect, with the quest-myth. Now if we wish to see this central myth as a pattern of meaning also, we have to start with the workings of the subconscious where the epiphany originates, in other words in the dream. (Northrop Frye, 684) and reprinted here with the permission of the author.
 
<blockquote>To begin with, the book is absolutely a myth--I'm trying to create a modern myth, (Conversations with Norman Mailer, 102)</blockquote>
 
Norman Mailer's book An American Dream has been acclaimed by many critics, including the author himself, as possibly his finest novel. On the other hand, many scholars have attacked it for its unrealistic plotline and unbelievable characters. Reviews of the book were decidedly mixed. Life magazine call it "by conventional standards...a grotesquely implausible book, full of horrific occurrences and characters who appear to uniformly insane" (12). On the positive side, Joan Didion claimed "An American Dream is one more instance in which Mailer is going to laugh last, for it is a remarkable book"(39). Mailer scholar J. Michael Lennon writes that " The book's defenders, with few exceptions, [have] tended to see the novel as myth, fantasy, or allegory"(9).
 
<blockquote>In support of interpreting An American Dream as a myth, I begin by citing Joseph L. Blotner's description of mythic exegesis of literature: When meaningful, coherent, and illuminating parallels are discerned, the work may be interpreted in terms of the myth. Often what appears fragmentary or only partly disclosed in the work may be revealed as complete and explicit through the myth .... It is not an interior approach asserting that myth was present at the conception and execution of the work; it rather asserts that myth may be brought to the work at its reading. (548)</blockquote>


I believe that bringing a mythic perspective to An American Dream is the best way to understand it because myth forms the structural and thematical core of the book. Myths often appear to have unrealistic plots and incredible characters because they deal with the universal and the extreme. In this paper I will attempt to demonstrate this mythic relationship in three ways. I will begin by establishing that myth and Mailer's particular cosmology underlie and inform the romantic nature of this novel. Next, I intend to discuss how the mythic elements Mailer uses in this work contribute to the evolving myth of America. In conclusion, I will show how the novel's particularly American hero, Stephen Rojack, and his ultimate feat--his walk upon the parapet, relate to specific ancient and modern myths. In addition, I will note that although Mailer does not use only one myth to tell his story (he borrows from many myths), his protagonist Stephen Rojack follows the basic quest-myth or monomyth as described by Joseph Campbell in The Hero With a Thousand Faces.
I believe that bringing a mythic perspective to An American Dream is the best way to understand it because myth forms the structural and thematical core of the book. Myths often appear to have unrealistic plots and incredible characters because they deal with the universal and the extreme. In this paper I will attempt to demonstrate this mythic relationship in three ways. I will begin by establishing that myth and Mailer's particular cosmology underlie and inform the romantic nature of this novel. Next, I intend to discuss how the mythic elements Mailer uses in this work contribute to the evolving myth of America. In conclusion, I will show how the novel's particularly American hero, Stephen Rojack, and his ultimate feat--his walk upon the parapet, relate to specific ancient and modern myths. In addition, I will note that although Mailer does not use only one myth to tell his story (he borrows from many myths), his protagonist Stephen Rojack follows the basic quest-myth or monomyth as described by Joseph Campbell in The Hero With a Thousand Faces.
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After Rojack impregnates Cherry, he engages in the ritualistic aspect of this mythic plot by journeying uptown to visit Deborah's father, Barney Kelly. His trip echoes that of the few mythic heroes who descended into the shadowland of Hades. While he is with Kelly, who describes himself as a "solicitor for the Devil" (236), Rojack realizes that, in atonement for Deborah's murder, he must walk the parapet on Kelly's balcony thirty floors above the city. This ritualistic act expresses Rojack's dilemma over the existential nature of good and evil. He completes one circuit of the parapet and jumps down to safety as Kelly reaches to knock him off. Intuitively, he knows that he needs to walk the parapet again for Cherry's sake, yet he does not. Consequently, he returns to Harlem to discover her dead and with her their future child. His failure to completely fulfill the demands of the ritual echoes the failure of the Grail heroes, especially that of Parzival. Alone, Rojack heads for the proverbial West. The book ends as he leaves first for Las Vegas, and then down into the primitive depths of South America where the aboriginal American dream may still exist.
After Rojack impregnates Cherry, he engages in the ritualistic aspect of this mythic plot by journeying uptown to visit Deborah's father, Barney Kelly. His trip echoes that of the few mythic heroes who descended into the shadowland of Hades. While he is with Kelly, who describes himself as a "solicitor for the Devil" (236), Rojack realizes that, in atonement for Deborah's murder, he must walk the parapet on Kelly's balcony thirty floors above the city. This ritualistic act expresses Rojack's dilemma over the existential nature of good and evil. He completes one circuit of the parapet and jumps down to safety as Kelly reaches to knock him off. Intuitively, he knows that he needs to walk the parapet again for Cherry's sake, yet he does not. Consequently, he returns to Harlem to discover her dead and with her their future child. His failure to completely fulfill the demands of the ritual echoes the failure of the Grail heroes, especially that of Parzival. Alone, Rojack heads for the proverbial West. The book ends as he leaves first for Las Vegas, and then down into the primitive depths of South America where the aboriginal American dream may still exist.


<blockquote>Mailer describes Rojack's journey in both fantastic and realistic terms. Critics have argued strenuously which is which. It is important while studying An American Dream to remember that Mailer is primarily writing a myth. Myth is the unifying principle underlying the romantic aspects of this novel. In this section of my paper I will show how both romance and realism contribute to the myth.
<blockquote>Mailer describes Rojack's journey in both fantastic and realistic terms. Critics have argued strenuously which is which. It is important while studying An American Dream to remember that Mailer is primarily writing a myth. Myth is the unifying principle underlying the romantic aspects of this novel. In this section of my paper I will show how both romance and realism contribute to the myth.</blockquote>


Ironically, most critics who are unhappy with the book mention its lack of realism. In some ways, Mailer uses the mythic aspects of An American Dream to explore his own concept of reality. Mailer basically thinks in mythic terms; he is a mythic realist (Adams 211). When asked about the basis of reality in this particular novel, Mailer replied:
Ironically, most critics who are unhappy with the book mention its lack of realism. In some ways, Mailer uses the mythic aspects of An American Dream to explore his own concept of reality. Mailer basically thinks in mythic terms; he is a mythic realist (Adams 211). When asked about the basis of reality in this particular novel, Mailer replied:
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The most astute critics realize that Mailer is writing his myth in the tradition of the 19th-century American romantics, who were also concerned with the mixed blessings of scientific advancement. John Aldridge discusses An American Dream as working in
The most astute critics realize that Mailer is writing his myth in the tradition of the 19th-century American romantics, who were also concerned with the mixed blessings of scientific advancement. John Aldridge discusses An American Dream as working in


    the tradition of the prose romance, in which fantasy and fact, witchcraft and melodrama, myth, allegory, and realism combine to produce what Richard Chase has called "a profound poetry of disorder." (161)
<blockquote>the tradition of the prose romance, in which fantasy and fact, witchcraft and melodrama, myth, allegory, and realism combine to produce what Richard Chase has called "a profound poetry of disorder." (161)</blockquote>


Mailer's characters are believable, although their actions are not always compatible with realism. However, Mailer believes that the characters in An American Dream are credible and that his plot is plausible. It is Mailer's melding of realism and romance that fuels the critical controversy. Ultimately, it is not the realistic Mailer, who produced The Naked and the Dead or The Executioner's Song, who is writing An American Dream, but the romantic Mailer, echoing the romantics of the American Renaissance. Using elements of this genre, Mailer feels free to indulge himself by developing his own cosmology while giving his mythic work a particularly 20th-century flavor. Aldridge insists:
Mailer's characters are believable, although their actions are not always compatible with realism. However, Mailer believes that the characters in An American Dream are credible and that his plot is plausible. It is Mailer's melding of realism and romance that fuels the critical controversy. Ultimately, it is not the realistic Mailer, who produced The Naked and the Dead or The Executioner's Song, who is writing An American Dream, but the romantic Mailer, echoing the romantics of the American Renaissance. Using elements of this genre, Mailer feels free to indulge himself by developing his own cosmology while giving his mythic work a particularly 20th-century flavor. Aldridge insists:


    The book's antecedents were not the novels of Henry James or Jane Austen but the romances of Cooper, Melville, and Hawthorne, and one of Mailer's contributions was to rehabilitate the form of the romance and adapt it to the literary needs of the immediate present. (161)
<blockquote>The book's antecedents were not the novels of Henry James or Jane Austen but the romances of Cooper, Melville, and Hawthorne, and one of Mailer's contributions was to rehabilitate the form of the romance and adapt it to the literary needs of the immediate present.(161)</blockquote>


Mailer's complicated interlacing of fantasy and reality is a product of the 19th-century American romance as defined by Nathaniel Hawthorne in his preface to The House of the Seven Gables:
Mailer's complicated interlacing of fantasy and reality is a product of the 19th-century American romance as defined by Nathaniel Hawthorne in his preface to The House of the Seven Gables:


    When a writer calls his work a Romance, it need hardly be observed that he wishes to claim a certain latitude, both as to its fashion and material, which he would not have felt himself entitled to assume had he professed to be writing a Novel. The latter form of composition is presumed to aim at a very minute fidelity, not merely to the possible, but to the probable and ordinary course of man's experience. The former--while, as a work of art, it must rigidly subject itself to laws, and while it sins unpardonably so far as it may swerve aside from the truth of the human heart--has fairly a right to present that truth under circumstances, to a great extent, of the writer's own choosing or creation. (vii)
<blockquote>When a writer calls his work a Romance, it need hardly be observed that he wishes to claim a certain latitude, both as to its fashion and material, which he would not have felt himself entitled to assume had he professed to be writing a Novel. The latter form of composition is presumed to aim at a very minute fidelity, not merely to the possible, but to the probable and ordinary course of man's experience. The former--while, as a work of art, it must rigidly subject itself to laws, and while it sins unpardonably so far as it may swerve aside from the truth of the human heart--has fairly a right to present that truth under circumstances, to a great extent, of the writer's own choosing or creation.(vii)</blockquote>


Mailer presents his mythic truths by using elements of romance supported by mythic structure. The mythic truths of the work--getting in tune with the universe and listening to one's inner voice--support the mythic structure of Rojack's quest (although Mailer truncates this form when Rojack fails to return from South America). Romance, in its looseness and freedom, is more like classical myth than the novel, which pretends to be real, although Mailer puts elements of both into An American Dream. One of the improbable elements of romance Mailer uses is Rojack's arsenal. In his battle, the hero Rojack does not use a real bow and arrow as weapons; he uses "psychic darts." When he is sitting in the bar listening to Cherry sing, he discusses his weapons:
Mailer presents his mythic truths by using elements of romance supported by mythic structure. The mythic truths of the work--getting in tune with the universe and listening to one's inner voice--support the mythic structure of Rojack's quest (although Mailer truncates this form when Rojack fails to return from South America). Romance, in its looseness and freedom, is more like classical myth than the novel, which pretends to be real, although Mailer puts elements of both into An American Dream. One of the improbable elements of romance Mailer uses is Rojack's arsenal. In his battle, the hero Rojack does not use a real bow and arrow as weapons; he uses "psychic darts." When he is sitting in the bar listening to Cherry sing, he discusses his weapons:


    My brain had developed into a small manufactory of psychic particles, pellets, rockets the length of a pin, planets the size of your eye's pupil when the iris closes down. I had even some artillery, a battery of bombs smaller than seeds of caviar but ready to be shot across the room. (97)
<blockquote>My brain had developed into a small manufactory of psychic particles, pellets, rockets the length of a pin, planets the size of your eye's pupil when the iris closes down. I had even some artillery, a battery of bombs smaller than seeds of caviar but ready to be shot across the room.(97)</blockquote>


When his psychical weapons hit their targets, he raises his mental shield to block retaliation.
When his psychical weapons hit their targets, he raises his mental shield to block retaliation.
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A look at Mailer's cosmology helps to explain the basic thematic patterns of his work, especially the mythic patterns in An American Dream. Mailer is often considered as having a personality which dominates and overshadows his writing or as "bursting with a passion too big for his pen" (Aldridge). His own personal quest transcends didacticism and emerges in the dialectic in his work. Although Mailer's philosophy seems intertwined with the mythology in An American Dream, we must be careful not to confuse the two. Chase discusses this potential problem:
A look at Mailer's cosmology helps to explain the basic thematic patterns of his work, especially the mythic patterns in An American Dream. Mailer is often considered as having a personality which dominates and overshadows his writing or as "bursting with a passion too big for his pen" (Aldridge). His own personal quest transcends didacticism and emerges in the dialectic in his work. Although Mailer's philosophy seems intertwined with the mythology in An American Dream, we must be careful not to confuse the two. Chase discusses this potential problem:


    [I]t is bad strategy to try to make dogma out of myth, for the same reason that it is bad strategy to make philosophy out of myth ... Myth is only art. And we do not think of studying art primarily as dogma or philosophy. (109-10)
<blockquote>[I]t is bad strategy to try to make dogma out of myth, for the same reason that it is bad strategy to make philosophy out of myth ... Myth is only art. And we do not think of studying art primarily as dogma or philosophy. (109-10)</blockquote>


Chase further states that "poetry is the indispensable substructure of myth" (109). In this context, Frye agrees that "every poet has his private mythology" (Archetypes, 680). Lennon, in an essay delineating Mailer's cosmology, agrees that it purposefully pervades his poetics. To begin with, "in several ways Mailer still must be considered an existentialist" (145). However, Mailer believes in God, albeit an "embattled God" (Adams, 216) whose destiny is linked with ours: "I'm an existentialist who believes there is a God and a Devil at war with one another" (Adams, 213). Our individual contribution to good or evil has a direct effect on the ultimate outcome of this cosmic battle. Unfortunately, in our existential void, we cannot be sure which choices are good and which are evil. Mailer discusses this dilemma:
Chase further states that "poetry is the indispensable substructure of myth" (109). In this context, Frye agrees that "every poet has his private mythology" (Archetypes, 680). Lennon, in an essay delineating Mailer's cosmology, agrees that it purposefully pervades his poetics. To begin with, "in several ways Mailer still must be considered an existentialist" (145). However, Mailer believes in God, albeit an "embattled God" (Adams, 216) whose destiny is linked with ours: "I'm an existentialist who believes there is a God and a Devil at war with one another" (Adams, 213). Our individual contribution to good or evil has a direct effect on the ultimate outcome of this cosmic battle. Unfortunately, in our existential void, we cannot be sure which choices are good and which are evil. Mailer discusses this dilemma:


    ... that moment we're feeling most saintly, we may in fact be evil. And that moment we think we're most evil and finally corrupt, we may, in fact, in the eyes of God, be saintly .... (Adams, 214-215)
<blockquote>... that moment we're feeling most saintly, we may in fact be evil. And that moment we think we're most evil and finally corrupt, we may, in fact, in the eyes of God, be saintly .... (Adams, 214-215)</blockquote>


The most important part of Mailer's cosmology is the awareness that there is a choice, that the choice has an effect, and that we must choose the best we can. Lennon further discusses Mailer's beliefs about the importance of choice. There is "an extraordinary emphasis on man's free will, his ability to rough-hew not only bis own destiny but to affect God's as well" (147). The existential nature of the choices tends towards the absurd and can lead to inaction. But, the resultant void would ensure the Devil's ultimate victory. In An American Dream, Mailer uses the mythic quest to raise awareness and to develop this existential dialectic. "Why write," Mailer asks in an interview with Lennon, "if you are not going to change consciousness?" (transcripts, 3). Lennon summarizes Mailer's private mythology on choice:
The most important part of Mailer's cosmology is the awareness that there is a choice, that the choice has an effect, and that we must choose the best we can. Lennon further discusses Mailer's beliefs about the importance of choice. There is "an extraordinary emphasis on man's free will, his ability to rough-hew not only bis own destiny but to affect God's as well" (147). The existential nature of the choices tends towards the absurd and can lead to inaction. But, the resultant void would ensure the Devil's ultimate victory. In An American Dream, Mailer uses the mythic quest to raise awareness and to develop this existential dialectic. "Why write," Mailer asks in an interview with Lennon, "if you are not going to change consciousness?" (transcripts, 3). Lennon summarizes Mailer's private mythology on choice:


    Choice for Mailer is the forward edge of the quest, existential because it is a foray of unknown strategic value in the war between God and the Devil, yet absolutely necessary because the alternative is entropy. (149)
<blockquote>Choice for Mailer is the forward edge of the quest, existential because it is a foray of unknown strategic value in the war between God and the Devil, yet absolutely necessary because the alternative is entropy.(149)</blockquote>


In the scene where Kelly is telling Rojack his philosophy on life, he alludes to this concept:
In the scene where Kelly is telling Rojack his philosophy on life, he alludes to this concept:


    it's not easy to get to the very top. Because you have to be ready to deal with One or the Other, and that's too much for the average good man on his way. Sooner or later, he decides to be mediocre, and put up with the middle. (246}
<blockquote>it's not easy to get to the very top. Because you have to be ready to deal with One or the Other, and that's too much for the average good man on his way. Sooner or later, he decides to be mediocre, and put up with the middle.(246}</blockquote>


In Mailer's eyes, America is riddled with people who settle for mediocrity. A hero is someone like Rojack who chooses to make the journey to the top, and then begins. Understanding the mixed genres that comprise the book also helps us to transcend the contemporary morality of 20th-century New York City. Deborah is not Rojack's first victim. He earned a Distinguished Service Cross because he singlehandedly killed four Nazis. In war, the enemy is easy to spot and their annihilation is socially acceptable. In contemporary society the scent of evil is often disguised, forcing the individual to ignore its presence or to take an action perhaps contrary to social mores. But what is the moral consequence or difference if the destruction of evil is the result? Before Rojack kills Deborah he describes himself as someone without a center. Earlier in the evening he had attended a party, and like many mythic heroes, he hears the voice of nature, in this story the moon, calling to him. Because Rojack is at a point of vulnerability in his life, he feels a "void," he can understand the voice, and it changes him forever. He says,
In Mailer's eyes, America is riddled with people who settle for mediocrity. A hero is someone like Rojack who chooses to make the journey to the top, and then begins. Understanding the mixed genres that comprise the book also helps us to transcend the contemporary morality of 20th-century New York City. Deborah is not Rojack's first victim. He earned a Distinguished Service Cross because he singlehandedly killed four Nazis. In war, the enemy is easy to spot and their annihilation is socially acceptable. In contemporary society the scent of evil is often disguised, forcing the individual to ignore its presence or to take an action perhaps contrary to social mores. But what is the moral consequence or difference if the destruction of evil is the result? Before Rojack kills Deborah he describes himself as someone without a center. Earlier in the evening he had attended a party, and like many mythic heroes, he hears the voice of nature, in this story the moon, calling to him. Because Rojack is at a point of vulnerability in his life, he feels a "void," he can understand the voice, and it changes him forever. He says,
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