May 28, 2024
Lipton’s: A Short Introduction[1]
The mid-1950s were a turbulent time for Norman Mailer. His 1948 novel The Naked and the Dead, achieved significant success, receiving critical acclaim and maintaining bestseller status for over a year. His sophomore novel Barbary Shore (1951) was not as well received, and its negative critical reception left a lasting mark on Mailer, increasing the stakes for his third novel. Set against the backdrop of the Red Scare in Hollywood, The Deer Park was initially accepted for publication by Rinehart. However, it was later canceled by the president of the firm due to Mailer’s refusal to remove a controversial scene. This rejection, which came just months before the planned publication date, was a significant blow to Mailer, who saw this book as a chance to redeem his literary reputation and prove to himself that he was not an imposture.
During this challenging period, Mailer began a journal which he called “Lipton’s,” named after the slang for marijuana. The journal, which he started in December 1954, was a collection of musings that reflected his intellectual and creative processes, often recollected from his experiments with cannabis. The journal documents the effects of marijuana on his creativity and thought processes, in the vein of Thomas De Quincey’s Confessions of an English Opium-Eater. Mailer described the ideas in "Lipton’s" as coming rapidly, a testament to his intense and often quixotic mental state. The journal spanned thirteen weeks, concluding in March 1955, and accumulated over 104,000 words across 708 entries.
"Lipton’s" serves as an unflinching examination of Mailer’s intellectual capacities, literary ambitions, personal relationships, and psychological state in his early thirties. Mailer’s reflections in “Lipton’s” influenced many of his subsequent works, including his short fiction, his famous essay "The White Negro” (1957), and Advertisements for Myself (1959). The journal explores Mailer’s fascination with psychoanalysis, inspired by his readings of Freud and his circle, as well as the works of Wilhelm Reich, who linked sexual repression to societal norms. Mailer’s use of marijuana is portrayed as both a means of exploring his unconscious mind and a tool for enhancing various aspects of his life, from sexual performance to his appreciation of jazz. He believed the drug helped him marginalize his “despised image” of himself and embrace a more rebellious and authentic persona. However, the journal also reveals the darker side of his drug use, including moments of intense fear and visions of a divided, chaotic universe.
Mailer’s relationship with psychoanalysis is a dominant theme in “Lipton’s.” After focusing on social and political themes in his early novels, he turned inward, aiming to bridge the gap between Freud’s theories and Marx’s ideas. This shift reflected his desire to understand the deeper psychological and symbolic underpinnings of human behavior and societal structures. Mailer’s engagement with psychoanalysis was further enriched by his relationship with Robert Lindner, a prominent psychoanalyst. Lindner’s book, Prescription for Rebellion, which criticized the conformity encouraged by psychoanalysis, resonated deeply with Mailer. Lindner argued that rebellion was a natural response to societal repression, a view that Mailer found compelling.
Mailer and Lindner developed a close friendship, exchanging ideas through letters and conversations. Mailer even sought Lindner’s professional analysis, which Lindner declined for fear it would harm their friendship. Their intellectual exchange profoundly influenced Mailer, who referred to their dialogue as “inter-fecundation.” Lindner’s insights and support helped Mailer navigate his creative and psychological challenges during this period, and their friendship lasted until Lindner’s untimely death from congenital heart disease in 1956.
Mailer’s relationship with his second wife, Adele Morales, also figures prominently in the journal. Their marriage, which began in April 1954, was marked by emotional intensity and creative stimulation. Morales, a dark, sensuous artist, contrasted sharply with Mailer’s first wife Beatrice Silverman and played a significant role in his exploration of freedom and living a more authentic life. Mailer’s love for Adele is evident throughout the journal, although their relationship later deteriorated, culminating in a violent altercation in 1960.
“Lipton’s” marks a critical point in Mailer’s development as a writer, showcasing his emerging literary style and his recognition of the importance of voice and public persona that he would later hone, particularly in AFM where he attempted to incite “a revolution in the consciousness of our time.” In his journal, he experimented with new forms of expression, which later culminated in his work for the Village Voice and his more mature writing. The journal is a rich, frenetic, contradictory, and complex mixture of ideas and reflections, documenting Mailer’s quest for personal and artistic authenticity amidst the broader cultural and intellectual currents of his time. It captures his intellectual curiosity, his experiments with psychoanalysis, philosophy, metaphysics, and marijuana, and his efforts to carve out a distinctive literary voice. The journal documents Mailer’s quest for personal and artistic authenticity amidst the complexities of mid-20th-century America.
The following excerpts exemplify the deeply introspective and honest writing in “Lipton’s.” They address the duality of human nature, the conflicts between societal norms and personal authenticity, identity and existence—including sexuality, creativity, rebellion, and mortality.
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notes
- ↑ This is a short introduction for an article of excerpts that a magazine might publish.
