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Eunice M. Flanders's avatar

Wow! My father loved him and you just enlightened me to understand my father more and to see why I did not see eye to eye with my dad. Thank you for this.

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Brett A Dill's avatar

I think I read that same letter once as required reading, your summary felt very familiar. Hopefully there are a few history profs out there requiring it these days, but I doubt that.

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Red's avatar

I haven't read Mailer, but I came across this quote some time ago, and it stuck with me.

“In the middle classes, the remark, “He made a lot of money,” ends the conversation. If you persist, if you try to point out that the money was made by digging through his grandmother’s grave to look for oil, you are met with a middle-class shrug.”

Norman Mailer, The Presidential Papers, P. 233

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