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{{byline|last=Hampton|first=Jill}}
{{byline|last=Hampton|first=Jill}}


{{notice|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.}}
{{notice|From . . . 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>


{{cquote|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.{{sfn|Frye|1957|p=684}} }}


Norman Mailer's book ''<u>An American Dream</u>'' 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 "''<u>An American Dream</u>'' 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).
{{cquote|To begin with, the book is absolutely a myth—I’m trying to create a modern myth.{{sfn|Lennon|1988|p=102}} }}


<blockquote>In support of interpreting ''<u>An American Dream</u>'' 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>
 
[[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 called it “by conventional standards . . . a grotesquely implausible book, full of horrific occurrences and characters who appear to uniformly insane.”{{sfn|Aldridge|1965|p=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.”{{sfn|Didion|1965|p=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.”{{sfn|Lennon|1986|p=9}}
 
In support of interpreting ''An American Dream'' as a myth, I begin by citing Joseph L. Blotner's description of mythic exegesis of literature:
 
{{quote|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)}}


I believe that bringing a mythic perspective to ''<u>An American Dream</u>'' 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 ''<u>An American Dream</u>'' 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 leaving Kelly, Rojack continues his quest. Like the eternal American cowboy he heads West, delving deeper into himself, knowing that "the only true journey, of knowledge is from the depth of one being to the heart of another" (11). In search of this knowledge, his Grail, he ventures South into the primitive origins of America. Like other heroes in myth--Wolfram's Parzival, Ovid's Orpheus, and Lucas's Luke Skywalker-Mailer's Rojack has dealt with the necessity of violence, the lure of sexuality, the importance of ritual, and the despair of failure. Failure is rife in the desert of New York City. Campbell describes the reason: "it's the problem of the Waste Land--people living life inauthentically, living not their life but the life that's put on them by society" (251). Rojack's tenacity and courage endure as he continues his journey towards authenticity. Bufithis places the mythic center of the novel squarely on Rojack's shoulders: "the cosmos can improve if Rojack acts bravely. Such is the mythical meaning Mailer attributes to Rojack" (68). In ''<u>An American Dream</u>'', Mailer, through Rojack, has reached new mythical heights.
After leaving Kelly, Rojack continues his quest. Like the eternal American cowboy he heads West, delving deeper into himself, knowing that "the only true journey, of knowledge is from the depth of one being to the heart of another" (11). In search of this knowledge, his Grail, he ventures South into the primitive origins of America. Like other heroes in myth--Wolfram's Parzival, Ovid's Orpheus, and Lucas's Luke Skywalker-Mailer's Rojack has dealt with the necessity of violence, the lure of sexuality, the importance of ritual, and the despair of failure. Failure is rife in the desert of New York City. Campbell describes the reason: "it's the problem of the Waste Land--people living life inauthentically, living not their life but the life that's put on them by society" (251). Rojack's tenacity and courage endure as he continues his journey towards authenticity. Bufithis places the mythic center of the novel squarely on Rojack's shoulders: "the cosmos can improve if Rojack acts bravely. Such is the mythical meaning Mailer attributes to Rojack" (68). In ''<u>An American Dream</u>'', Mailer, through Rojack, has reached new mythical heights.


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==Citations==
{{reflist}}


== Works Cited ==
== Works Cited ==
* Adams, Laura. "Existential Aesthetics: An Interview with Norman Mailer." Partisan Review. 42, (1975), 197-214. Rpt. in Conversations with Norman Mailer. Ed. J. Michael Lennon. Jackson: UP of Mississippi, 1988. 200-227.
* Adams, Laura. "Existential Aesthetics: An Interview with Norman Mailer." Partisan Review. 42, (1975), 197-214. Rpt. in Conversations with Norman Mailer. Ed. J. Michael Lennon. Jackson: UP of Mississippi, 1988. 200-227.
* Aldridge, John W. "The Big Comeback of Norman Mailer." Life. 19 March 1965, 12 .. Time to Murder and Create:T he Contemporary Novel in Crisis. New York: Mckay, 1966.
* {{cite magazine |last=Aldridge |first=John W. |date=March 19, 1965 |title=[[The Big Comeback of Norman Mailer]] |url= |magazine=Life |location= |page=12 |access-date= }}
* Begiebing, Robert J. Acts of Regeneration: Allegory and Archetype in the Work of Norman Mailer. Columbia: U of Missouri P, 1980.
* Begiebing, Robert J. Acts of Regeneration: Allegory and Archetype in the Work of Norman Mailer. Columbia: U of Missouri P, 1980.
* Blotner, Joseph L. "Mythic Patterns in To The Lighthouse." PMLA Sept. 1956: 547-62.     
* Blotner, Joseph L. "Mythic Patterns in To The Lighthouse." PMLA Sept. 1956: 547-62.     
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* Cassirer , Ernst. The Myth of the State. New Haven: Yale UP, 1946.
* Cassirer , Ernst. The Myth of the State. New Haven: Yale UP, 1946.
* Chase, Richard. Quest for Myth. New York: Greenwood P, 1949.
* Chase, Richard. Quest for Myth. New York: Greenwood P, 1949.
* Didion, Joan. "A Social Eye." National Review. 20 April 1965, 329-30.
* {{cite magazine |last=Didion |first=Joan |date=April 20, 1965 |title=A Social Eye |url= |magazine=National Review |pages=329–330 |publisher= |access-date= |ref=harv }}
* Friedman, Norman. Form and Meaning in Fiction. Athens: U of Georgia P, 1975.
* Friedman, Norman. Form and Meaning in Fiction. Athens: U of Georgia P, 1975.
* Frye, Northrop. Anatomy of Criticism. Princeton: Princeton UP, 1957.
* {{cite book |last=Frye |first=Northrop |date=1957 |title=Anatomy of Criticism |url= |location=Princeton |publisher=Princeton University Press |page= |isbn= |author-link=w:Northrop Frye }}
* "The Archetypes of Literature." The Critical Tradition: Classic Texts and Contemporary Trends. Ed. David H. Richter. New York: St. Martin's, 1989. 677- 685.
* "The Archetypes of Literature." The Critical Tradition: Classic Texts and Contemporary Trends. Ed. David H. Richter. New York: St. Martin's, 1989. 677- 685.
* Geismar, Maxwell. "The Shifting Illusion: Dream and Fact." American Dreams, American Nightmares. Ed. David Madden. Carbondale: Southern Illinois University P, 1970. 45-57.
* Geismar, Maxwell. "The Shifting Illusion: Dream and Fact." American Dreams, American Nightmares. Ed. David Madden. Carbondale: Southern Illinois University P, 1970. 45-57.
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* Gutman, Stanley. Mankind in Barbary: The Individual and Society in the Novels of Norman Mailer. Hanover: UP of New England, 1975.
* Gutman, Stanley. Mankind in Barbary: The Individual and Society in the Novels of Norman Mailer. Hanover: UP of New England, 1975.
* Hawthorne, Nathaniel. Preface. The House of the Seven Gables. New York: Signet-NAL, 1961.
* Hawthorne, Nathaniel. Preface. The House of the Seven Gables. New York: Signet-NAL, 1961.
* Heilman,Robert B. "The Dream Metaphor : Some Ramifications." American Dreams, American Nightmares. Ed. David Madden. Carbondale: Southern Illinois University P, 1-18.
* Heilman, Robert B. "The Dream Metaphor : Some Ramifications." American Dreams, American Nightmares. Ed. David Madden. Carbondale: Southern Illinois University P, 1-18.
* Holman, C. Hugh. Ed. A Handbook to Literature. 4th ed. Indianapolis: Bobbs, 1980.
* Holman, C. Hugh. Ed. A Handbook to Literature. 4th ed. Indianapolis: Bobbs, 1980.
* Jung, Carl. "On the Relation of Analytical Psychology to Poetry." Trans. R.T.C. Hall. The Critical Tradition: Classic Texts and Contemporary Trends. Ed. David H. Richter. New York: St. Martin's, 1989. 656-66.
* Jung, Carl. "On the Relation of Analytical Psychology to Poetry." Trans. R.T.C. Hall. The Critical Tradition: Classic Texts and Contemporary Trends. Ed. David H. Richter. New York: St. Martin's, 1989. 656-66.
* Leigh, Nigel. Radical Fictions and the Novel of Norman Mailer. New York: St. Martin's,1990.
* Leigh, Nigel. Radical Fictions and the Novel of Norman Mailer. New York: St. Martin's,1990.
* {{cite book |editor-last=Lennon |editor-first=J. Michael |chapter=Norman Mailer on ''An American Dream'' |date=1988 |title=Conversations with Norman Mailer |url= |location=Jackson and London |publisher=University Press of Mississippi |series=Literary Conversations |author-link= |pages=100–103 |ref=harv }}
* {{cite book |last=Lennon |first=J. Michael |authormask=1 |contribution=Introduction |date=1986 |title=Critical Essays on Norman Mailer |url= |location=Boston |publisher=G.K. Hall & Co. |pages=1–31 |ref=harv }}
* Lennon, J. Michael. Introduction. Critical Essays on Norman Mailer. Ed. J. Michael Lennon. Boston: Hall, 1986. 1-31.
* Lennon, J. Michael. Introduction. Critical Essays on Norman Mailer. Ed. J. Michael Lennon. Boston: Hall, 1986. 1-31.
* "Mailer's Cosmology." Modern Language Studies 12 (1982): 18-29. Rpt. in Critical Essays on Norman Mailer. Ed. J. Michael Lennon. Boston: Hall, 1986. 145-56.
* "Mailer's Cosmology." Modern Language Studies 12 (1982): 18-29. Rpt. in Critical Essays on Norman Mailer. Ed. J. Michael Lennon. Boston: Hall, 1986. 145-56.
* Madden, David. Introduction. American Dreams, American Nightmares. Ed. David Madden. Carbondale: Southern Illinois University P, 1970. xv-xlii. I Mailer, Norman. An American Dream. 1964-65. New York: Owl, 1987 .
* Madden, David. Introduction. American Dreams, American Nightmares. Ed. David Madden. Carbondale: Southern Illinois University P, 1970. xv-xlii. I Mailer, Norman. An American Dream. 1964-65. New York: Owl, 1987 .
* Merrill, Robert. Norman Mailer. Twayne's United States Authors Ser. 322. Boston: Twayne, 1978.
* Merrill, Robert. Norman Mailer. Twayne's United States Authors Ser. 322. Boston: Twayne, 1978.
* "Norman Mailer on An American Dream." New York Post. 25 March 1965, 38. Rpt. in Conversations with Norman Mailer. Ed. J. Michael Lennon. Jackson: UP of Mississippi, 1988. 100-03.
* Tanner, Tony. City of Words: American Fiction 1950-1070. New York: Harper, 1971.
* Tanner, Tony. City of Words: American Fiction 1950-1070. New York: Harper, 1971.
* Wagenheim, Allan. "Square's Progress: An American Dream." Critique: Studies in Modem Fiction. X (1968): 45-68.
* Wagenheim, Allan. "Square's Progress: An American Dream." Critique: Studies in Modem Fiction. X (1968): 45-68.
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