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 The French language has plenty of words considered “indecent,”“taboo,” and “vulgar,” and all were allowed in the French translation. As might be expected, Malaquais takes full advantage of the opportunity to use them. This freedom represents an exercise in revenge on American publishers, American mores, and their complicit hypocrisy that Mailer and Malaquais must have relished.
-That is not to say that no one objected to the rough vocabulary in the book. André Maurois, in his Preface to the French edition, mentions this aspect of the book when he describes ''The Naked and the Dead'' as “difficult, unpleasant sometimes irritating” just before he adds “but unforgettable” {{sfn|Fuchs|2017|p=184}}. Maurois comments that upon publication of the novel in England (note that it is England and not France where the problems arise) “some legions of decency were alarmed and attempted to have the book banned” {{sfn|Fuchs|2017|p=184}}. The Attorney General of England denied that demand on the grounds that “The intention to corrupt was absent and the quality of the work justified its tone” {{sfn|Fuchs|2017|p=184}}. Maurois also stresses that “the brutal and obscene” nature of the characters was “inevitable” and resembles the way French soldiers behaved and spoke in a novel written about the Dunkirk invasion, which had won the prestigious Prix Goncourt1 {{sfn|Fuchs|2017|p=184}}.
+That is not to say that no one objected to the rough vocabulary in the book. André Maurois, in his Preface to the French edition, mentions this aspect of the book when he describes ''The Naked and the Dead'' as “difficult, unpleasant sometimes irritating” just before he adds “but unforgettable” {{sfn|Fuchs|2017|p=184}}. Maurois comments that upon publication of the novel in England (note that it is England and not France where the problems arise) “some legions of decency were alarmed and attempted to have the book banned” {{sfn|Fuchs|2017|p=184}}. The Attorney General of England denied that demand on the grounds that “The intention to corrupt was absent and the quality of the work justified its tone” {{sfn|Fuchs|2017|p=184}}. Maurois also stresses that “the brutal and obscene” nature of the characters was “inevitable” and resembles the way French soldiers behaved and spoke in a novel written about the Dunkirk invasion, which had won the prestigious Prix Goncourt <sup>1</sup> {{sfn|Fuchs|2017|p=184}}.
 First, the vocabulary needs to be examined. There are three verbs in French that all mean “to fuck”: “''baiser''”, “''foutre'',” “''enculer'',” and “''s’enculer''” (the reflexive form of “''enculer''”).
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 “''Baiser''” as a noun is innocuous and simply means a “kiss” (''le baiser''); over time, starting about in the Sixteenth Century, it came to mean sexual intercourse and is not used in polite conversation; “''foutre''” as a noun means “sperm” but as a verb it means the same as “''baiser''”; “''enculer''” also means the same as “''baiser''” but it has two extra added attractions: it refers to anal sex with “''cul''” as its root, which means “ass” and used reflexively, it can mean something you do to yourself, or something you can tell others to do to themselves. All three verbs, in one form or another, are used in Chapter 1 of the novel.
-Then, there are nouns that are vulgar and essential to the narrative: one is derived from the verb “''enculer''”: “''l’enculé''” and means “asshole”; the men refer to “''les enculés''” several times. Gallagher uses the verb when referring angrily to how many times Levy is shuffling the cards (think of the motion of card shuffling and the link becomes clear): Gallagher screams, “''Arrête de les enculer et qu’on joue'',” to Mailer’s, “Let’s stop shuffling the fuggers and start playing” (7 & 21).2
+Then, there are nouns that are vulgar and essential to the narrative: one is derived from the verb “''enculer''”: “''l’enculé''” and means “asshole”; the men refer to “''les enculés''” several times. Gallagher uses the verb when referring angrily to how many times Levy is shuffling the cards (think of the motion of card shuffling and the link becomes clear): Gallagher screams, “''Arrête de les enculer et qu’on joue'',” to Mailer’s, “Let’s stop shuffling the fuggers and start playing” (7 & 21) <sup>2</sup>
 Another noun,“''con'',” which is the same as the “c” word in English, is used as “pussy” when Wilson talks about the woman, the wife of a friend, with whom he had repeated sex, which he thoroughly enjoyed. However, “''con''” is one of the most commonly used curse words in French. It is also used as an adjective and means “stupid” in an obscene way: “''ilest con''” could mean “he’s fucking stupid.” The second advantage that the French translation provides over English is the use of the familiar form of the verb, the second person singular: “''tu''”; it is most appropriate in the situation the characters in Chapter 1 are in, as well as throughout the novel.
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 When the soldiers speak to one another, they “''tutoyer'',” which is a verb that means to use the familiar or “tu” form of the verb.
-In French, the “''tu''” form is used with family, among students and intimates, and in prayer. 3 In addition, Malaquais often contracts the form: the “u” in “''tu''” is dropped and elides it with the verb: instead of “''tu as''” (you have) the character speaking often says “''t’as''” (think “gonna” “wanna”), which is colloquial speech. The familiar form underscores the register of language used among the soldiers and is especially salient when men are preparing for battle, are vulnerable, and their nerves are strained. They are also equals in terms of their existential situation. Another colloquial way of speaking is to omit the first part of the negative, the “''ne''”. There are two parts to a negative in French: ''ne'' + verb + ''pas'', so “''je n’ai pas''” (I don’t have) becomes “''j’ai pas''”. ''Je “n’ai pas d’argent''” (I don’t have any money) becomes “''j’ai pas d’argent''.”
+In French, the “''tu''” form is used with family, among students and intimates, and in prayer.<sup>3</sup> In addition, Malaquais often contracts the form: the “u” in “''tu''” is dropped and elides it with the verb: instead of “''tu as''” (you have) the character speaking often says “''t’as''” (think “gonna” “wanna”), which is colloquial speech. The familiar form underscores the register of language used among the soldiers and is especially salient when men are preparing for battle, are vulnerable, and their nerves are strained. They are also equals in terms of their existential situation. Another colloquial way of speaking is to omit the first part of the negative, the “''ne''”. There are two parts to a negative in French: ''ne'' + verb + ''pas'', so “''je n’ai pas''” (I don’t have) becomes “''j’ai pas''”. ''Je “n’ai pas d’argent''” (I don’t have any money) becomes “''j’ai pas d’argent''.”
 The informality of the language indicates either the class similarities among the men or the differences between the men and the officers; it also underscores camaraderie among the men. They are literally in the same boat.