The Mailer Review/Volume 4, 2010/Looking at the Past: Nostalgia as Technique in The Naked and the Dead and For Whom the Bell Tolls: Difference between revisions
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nostalgia as a silly distraction, particularly in contrast to the more difficult work of understanding the authentic past. Yet, what Mailer and Hemingway demonstrate is that nostalgia can be used, even with a touch of sentimentality, to add additional interpretive layers to fiction. Taking nostalgia seriously, the authors expand on the term and demonstrate its potential in advancing historical insight. | nostalgia as a silly distraction, particularly in contrast to the more difficult work of understanding the authentic past. Yet, what Mailer and Hemingway demonstrate is that nostalgia can be used, even with a touch of sentimentality, to add additional interpretive layers to fiction. Taking nostalgia seriously, the authors expand on the term and demonstrate its potential in advancing historical insight. | ||
=Mailer Enters | =Mailer Enters “The Time Machine”= | ||
Boldly declared “the best novel yet about World War II” by Time magazine, | Boldly declared “the best novel yet about World War II” by Time magazine, | ||
The Naked and the Dead launched Mailer’s career.{{sfn|"War"|1948|}} At twenty-five, the author stood atop the literary world, with fame and wealth at his side. The enduring power of the book, however, is its exploration beyond the traditional scope of the war novel. Rather than cast the battle as simply one of good versus evil, Mailer penetrates deeply into issues at humanity’s core. He showcases both the horror and humor of war, wadding it into a single existential romp through the jungles of tiny Pacific island Anopopei. | The Naked and the Dead launched Mailer’s career.{{sfn|"War"|1948|}} At twenty-five, the author stood atop the literary world, with fame and wealth at his side. The enduring power of the book, however, is its exploration beyond the traditional scope of the war novel. Rather than cast the battle as simply one of good versus evil, Mailer penetrates deeply into issues at humanity’s core. He showcases both the horror and humor of war, wadding it into a single existential romp through the jungles of tiny Pacific island Anopopei. | ||