Tough Guys Don't Dance is narrated in the first person by Tim Madden. The use of this voice is an effective way for Mailer to pursue the theme of identity and for Madden to discover what actually happened and what he is capable of as a man. It is Madden's quest to act honorably and courageously that is most important. His role model is his father, a stoical Irishman who fought hard for what he believed. His nemesis is his wife, a hard but beautiful blonde, who has tried to use him in pursuit of wealth and power.

The characters relate to each other as in a medieval romance, and Madden even refers to his wife as "my long lost medieval lady." Lareine, after all, means "the queen," and as in the Arthurian legend, Madden discovers she has had another lover, Deputy Police Chief Alvin Luther Regency, a...