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The Naked and the Dead is a 1948 novel, by Norman Mailer. It is based on his experiences during World War II. It was later adapted into a movie of the same title in 1958.
Set in the South Pacific and dealing primarily with a single reconnaissance platoon of riflemen, the novel contains several combat scenes, but focuses on the psychological portraits of the men in the squad. The tension of the novel derives mostly from the conflict between officers and men, including the lieutenant of the squad and the men under him as well as his superiors.
The Naked and the Dead was Mailer's first published novel and was hugely successful, establishing his reputation as a novelist and bringing international recognition.
Trivia
The publishers of The Naked and the Dead persuaded Mailer to use the euphemism "fug" in lieu of "fuck" in his novel. After the book's publishing, Mailer met the writer/poet Dorothy Parker; her first words to him were, "So you're the man who can't spell fuck." * Mailer's version of the incident follows: "...The word has been a source of great embarrassment to me over the years because, you know, Talullah Bankhead's press agent, many years ago, got a story in the papers which went..."Oh, hello, you're Norman Mailer," said Talullah Bankhead allegedly, "You're the young man that doesn't know how to spell..." You know, the four-letter word was indicated with all sorts of asterisks... I thought she * should have hired a publicity man who had a better sense of fair play." (1968 Panel Discussion, CBLT-TV, Toronto, moderated by Robert Fulford) From "Conversations with Norman Mailer", 1988. Edited by J. Michael Lennon.
The band The Fugs took their name from this word.
1948 novels | American novels | Modern Library 100 best novels
"The Naked and the Dead"