Tales of the “Great Bitch”

Murder and the Release of Virile Desire

Authors

  • Michael Meloy Madison Area Technical College Author

Keywords:

An American Dream, masculinity and virility, sexual violence, "The White Negro", Cold War culture, gender performance

Abstract

As early as the mid-1950s, Norman Mailer was already linking creative expression and sexual performance, using both to construct a vision of masculinity centered in virility and sexual release. An American Dream serves as a reflection of these beliefs—the culmination of a paradigm whose inception can be traced to World War II. Mailer’s perception of his relationship to women parallels his relationship to the novel.

Author Biography

  • Michael Meloy, Madison Area Technical College

    Michael Meloy received his PhD from the University of South Carolina in 2007 with a dissertation titled Sex Fiends of the Fifties. His research primarily focuses on the intersections of sexuality and masculinity in postwar American literature. His work has recently appeared in The Journal of Men’s Studies and Americana. He currently teaches at Madison Area Technical College.

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Published

2026-03-14

Issue

Vol. 3 No. 1 (2009): Beyond Fiction

Section

Articles