The Last Party: Scenes From My Life with Norman Mailer
AuthorAdele Morales
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
SubjectNorman Mailer
GenreMemoir
PublisherBarricade Books
Publication date
1997
Pages380 pp.
ISBN1-569-800-987
OCLC35758291

The Last Party: Scenes From My Life with Norman Mailer is a 1997 book by Adele Morales, second wife of Norman Mailer, whom she married in 1954. It was published in the US by Barricade Books.

The book is a memoir of Morales' and Mailer's marriage; among other things, it outlines an incident Saturday, November 19, 1960,[1] when Mailer stabbed her with a penknife at a party. He cut through her breast, only just missing her heart. Then he stabbed her in the back. As she lay there, hemorrhaging, one man reached down to help her. He snapped: "Get away from her. Let the bitch die."[2] He was involuntarily committed to Bellevue Hospital for 17 days; his wife would not press charges, and he later pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of assault, and was given a suspended sentence.[3][4] Morales was admitted to University Hospital in Manhattan for treatment of her injuries. In the short term, Morales made a partial physical recovery. She divorced Mailer in 1962 as a result of the incident. The stabbing incident has been a focal point for feminist critics of Mailer, who point to themes of sexual violence in his work.[5]

References

  1. "Norman Mailer Arrested in Stabbing of Wife at a Party", The New York Times, November 22, 1960. Retrieved April 26, 2008.
  2. "Johann Hari: Why do we ignore the abuse of women?", The Independent, November 15, 2007. Retrieved March 10, 2011.
  3. "Of Time and the Rebel." Time. December 5, 1960. Retrieved April 26, 2008.
  4. "Crime and Punishment; Norman Mailer Stabs His Wife At A Party In Their New York Apartment." Entertainment Weekly, November 15, 1991. Retrieved April 26, 2008.
  5. Millet, Kate. Sexual Politics Virago, 1991. pp. 314–5.
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