Norman Mailer’s Anti-Fascist Eloquence
Peter Keough reviews A Mysterious Country in The Arts Fuse. Keough laments that America seems to lack a current figure who might guide us through these interesting times. Keough writes:
Unfortunately, these days we don’t have anyone of the caliber of a Mailer — or a Hunter S. Thompson, or a Gore Vidal — to counter the madness with ruthless mockery. The art of invective is just another American institution that Trump and the MAGA crowd have devalued, reducing it to repeated puerile taunts and name calling. But Mailer could be a master of it, as with his descriptions of Barry Goldwater at the 1964 Republican convention: “…he radiated…the skinny boyish sincerity of a fellow who wears glasses but is determined to have a good time…he had indeed the mind of a powerful freshman…” Almost endearing.
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