Jack Kerouac, was an American novelist and poet who, alongside William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg, was a pioneer of the Beat and Counterculture Generation. ON THE ROAD, published in 1957, is his most famous work and chronicles the travels of Kerouac and his friends in the late 1940s and early 1950s back and forth across the United States and finally into Mexico all the way to Mexico City. So what is the Beat Generation? I always thought it related to music and a lifestyle ripe with drugs and sex, but according to Kerouac, "the term Beat describes a state of exalted exhaustion, but is also linked to a Catholic beatific vision, the direct knowledge of God enjoyed by the blessed in heaven." The novel according to Kerouac took him only three weeks to write on a single scroll of paper, with Kerouac on a Benzedrine and caffeine fueled period of creativity. This prompted Truman Capote to sneer, "That isn't writing; its typing!" Kerouac started his book in 1951 and then after much editing, including changing the names of the characters (Allen Ginsberg was called Carlo Marx, William Burroughs was Old Bull Lee, Neal Cassady was Dean Moriarty and Kerouac was Sal Paradise) it was finally published in 1957.
The novel mainly involves Kerouac (Sal Paradise) and Cassady (Dean Moriarty) as they make several road trips across the US and finally into Mexico. The story is told against a backdrop of drugs, alcohol, jazz, and women. I'm sure this was an influence on the young people of America and was a precursor to the Hippie movement of the 60s. The language used in the novel is somewhat cliche now but was probably the first time such terms as "get your kicks," "dig it," "bop music," and "beat" were used in literature. An example: "Then he got his suitcase, the 'beatest' suitcase in the USA. It was made of paper with designs on it to make it look like leather. . .with a great rip down the top." The novel also describes a lot of drug use including the use of Benzedrine (amphetamine), marijuana (called tea), and heroin. Some of the worst use was by Old Bull Lee (William Burroughs) who was a heroin addict and who performed some very strange and dangerous acts including shooting things randomly with a shotgun.
Overall, I thought this was a volume well worth reading. It was very nostalgic and described the crazy period leading up to the sixties probably better than any other piece of literature. It also showed the depravity and hardships of both the travelers involved in the story and many of the people they met along the way. These included a lot of people who were just surviving with little money or resources. I'm glad I finally read this one but I don't think I can look back on the events described with any kind of fondness or desire.
The novel mainly involves Kerouac (Sal Paradise) and Cassady (Dean Moriarty) as they make several road trips across the US and finally into Mexico. The story is told against a backdrop of drugs, alcohol, jazz, and women. I'm sure this was an influence on the young people of America and was a precursor to the Hippie movement of the 60s. The language used in the novel is somewhat cliche now but was probably the first time such terms as "get your kicks," "dig it," "bop music," and "beat" were used in literature. An example: "Then he got his suitcase, the 'beatest' suitcase in the USA. It was made of paper with designs on it to make it look like leather. . .with a great rip down the top." The novel also describes a lot of drug use including the use of Benzedrine (amphetamine), marijuana (called tea), and heroin. Some of the worst use was by Old Bull Lee (William Burroughs) who was a heroin addict and who performed some very strange and dangerous acts including shooting things randomly with a shotgun.
Overall, I thought this was a volume well worth reading. It was very nostalgic and described the crazy period leading up to the sixties probably better than any other piece of literature. It also showed the depravity and hardships of both the travelers involved in the story and many of the people they met along the way. These included a lot of people who were just surviving with little money or resources. I'm glad I finally read this one but I don't think I can look back on the events described with any kind of fondness or desire.
