Allen Ginsberg’s America and Kerouac’s Vanity of Puluoz
Throughout the words and the lives of the Beat Generation, one theme is apparent: America, everywhere from Allen Ginsberg’s “America,” to Jack Kerouac’s love for Thomas Wolfe. Although the views of America differ, they all find some reason to focus in on this land. Ginsberg, in his poem “America,” makes a point that not many of us can see as obvious: “It occurs to me that I am America. I am talking to myself again.” Each and every one of us make up America, and when we complain about something that is wrong, we are complaining about ourselves. Being raised by his mother as a Communist, and being homosexual, Ginsberg found many things wrong with America, and he does his fare share of complaining, but at the end he decides, “America I’m putting my queer shoulder to the wheel.” Ginsberg didn’t want to sit and watch everything go wrong. He was going to do something, despite the fact that he was not the ideal American.
Kerouac’s view of America was completely different from Ginsberg’s view. Kerouac saw America as a beautiful place, with many unexplored regions for himself, and the rest of the people in the country. Kerouac credited his love for America to Thomas Wolfe. In Kerouac’s book Vanity of Puluoz he said that Wolfe made him realize that America was not a dreary place to work and struggle in, it was a poem. If everybody thought of America as a poem rather than a place where we just come to in order to live work and die, this country would be the ideal place that Kerouac wanted it to be.
The “Night of the Wolfeans” was an event in the lives of the Beats that affected them for a long time. It brought together all of the Beat’s feelings toward America. They were put into two categories: “Wolfeans,” and “non-Wolfeans.” Kerouac and Hal Chase were heterosexual, all-American boys who believed in America, the perfect image of the American citizen. The non-Wolfeans (William Burroughs and Ginsberg) were also known as “Baudelaireans” or “Black Priests.” They wanted to destroy the Wolfeans and all that they believed in. The Beats felt that everybody fell into one of these two categories.
One thing that all the Beats agreed upon, was that in order to truly become a great writer, you had to be considered an American writer.
Many writers have considered the identity of America. Two remarkable writers of two different time periods have shouldered this. They created two important works. The first, Abraham Lincoln; a great leader in the midst of an incredible time of change and confusion, delivered the Gettysburg Address to an assembly that came to him saddened and horrified by the trials of war. These same people left, changed, that day from the cemetery. The other, Allen Ginsberg, wrote the poem "America" for a generation of people caught between World War II and the Cold War. The comparison between these two works is important for learning the identity of all Americans.
Ginsberg, Benjamin, Theodore J Lowi and Margaret Weir. We the people. New York: W.W. Norton, 2005. Print.
Even during the worst economic downturn, the advantages of a universal health care system remain hidden from society. Instead, the adverse impacts continue to occupy the minds of many Americans. Misguidedly, citizens are repeatedly ensnared into ideological disputes inc...
Recently, there has been much debate about universal health care in the United States. Both sides of the issue have many valid points to support their argument. They bring up points about the effect on the economy, individual costs, and whether or not healthcare is a right or not. In two particular editorials, the authors approached the topic with two very different argumentative structures. Both could have been effective in convincing readers to side with them, but one was more effective as it had far more elements of logos and ethos.
Despite the fact that they were granted military status in the late 70s their fight continues, not a single member of the WASPs have been buried at Arlington Cemetery (Weiner). There is less than 300 members left and their ashes are not permitted (Weiner). The WASPs worked just as hard as the men. These woman are still fighting for the right to be buried at a place with other
John Storey’s text, Rockin’ Hegemony: West Coast Rock an Amerika’s War in Vietnam, outlines the 1960’s West Coast counterculture movement, which had dual aspects of political attitudes, and the music involved with the movement. Storey puts forth the blueprint that resulted in the movement’s failure, plus the subsequent rebirth of legacies by using Gramsci’s theories of hegemony. Storey argues that while the movement had good intentions, the problem that the counterculture faced was the structure of hegemony. Especially within a capitalistic hegemony like America the movement was just another adjustment that was integrated and dealt with by the hegemony. Storey presents his case in three sections including counterculture, resistance, and incorporation.
Robert Hayden is an African American poet whose poems, most of the time portrayed the ill-treatment and pains of the African America. This poem takes a turn from his usual racial theme and perspective. I will be referring to the diver as a male character to avoid repetition. In this poem the diver or the speaker tried to commit suicide at first but when he got close to death and saw how difficult and uneasy it made him feel, he had a second thought and he decided to let go of death and go back to his life. I see irony in this poem in that the diver, though suicidal, dove into the sea with
Dante makes himself everyman, and the journey that God decreed through hell is one man’s personal transcendent journey from deep intellectual moral confusion to a sound and steadfast faith and hope, in which Dante renews his faith. Dante awakens our hope, and warns against moral complacency by peeling away the dangerous illusions of adequacy, leading one upward, toward the eternal heart of reality. Dante compels the reader to share his growing abhorrence of sin and his obligation to uphold God’s will. The poem’s purpose is to re-awaken Dante, and, by extension, the reader, to the reality of sin and the accompanying need for confession and repentance, to return to the straight path that leads to eternal salvation.
During the 1950’s, a group of young American writers began to openly oppose societal norms in favor of other radical beliefs. These writers believed in ideas such as spiritual and sexual liberation, decriminalization of drugs, and opposition to industrialism as well as consumerism (Parkins). Over time, these writers became known as the Beat Generation and created the Beat Movement. Among the members of this rebellious group was the infamous Allen Ginsberg, who is considerably one of the most influential poets of his time. By utilizing tools like imagery, allusions, and symbols, Allen Ginsberg’s “A Supermarket in California” discusses themes such as consumerism, sexuality, and alienation, which reflect Ginsberg’s personal beliefs and desire for change.
The Inferno was written by Dante Alighieri around 1314 and depicts the poet’s imaginary journey through Hell. Dante spent his life traveling from court to court both lecturing and writing down his experiences. His Divine Comedy – the three-part epic poem consisting of Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso (Hell, Purgatory and Heaven)– is generally regarded as one of the greatest poetic feats ever accomplished. All three parts are incredible literary feats with symbolism so complex and beautiful that scholars are still unraveling all the details today. However, this essay will focus on the first part of Dante’s work, Inferno, which consists of 34 cantos. Dante’s Inferno is a masterpiece of allegorical imagery where Virgil represents human reason, Beatrice love and hope, and Dante mankind on the journey of the human soul through life to reach salvation.
This essay directed the reader’s attention on how Dante’s compassions changed throughout the Canto’s in the Inferno sections in The Divine Comedy with Virgil’s directions along the way to help Dante reach his new direction in his life.
During the 1950s to 1960s, a new cultural and literary movement staked its claim on America's national consciousness. The Beat Generation in sheer numbers was never a large movement, but in cultural status and influence, they were more visible than any other contending aesthetics. The years continuing after the Second World War the wholesale reappraisal of conventional structure of society began. During the time the postwar economic boom was taking place, students in universities were beginning to question the excessive materialism of their society. The product of this question was the Beat Generation. Allen Ginsberg, a founding member of the historical movement, like many saw runaway capitalism as destructive to the human spirit and antithetical
From the beginning of the journey, Dante knew from the moment he saw “Abandon every hope, all you who enter” (Canto 3) his life was about to change. At this point of the journey he has met his guide Virgil. Virgil showed him the rightful way in life and he also introduced Dante to everyone who influenced him throughout his
To understand The Divine Comedy and its impact, an understanding of Dante Alighieri’s life of tragic love and civil war can assist in unraveling the truth on Dante’s philosophical epic. Alighieri’s grief of a lost love and his involvement in a civil war led to his philosophical masterpiece, The Divine Comedy, influenced by classical writers like Homer and Virgil, using a distinct style and use of language that reflect Alighieri’s early life and philosophical involvement.
... without someone Heavenly to guide them. Dante shows that Virgil usually gets what he wants throughout the Inferno, but is now restricted by his lack of faith. He shows that even though Virgil is one of the greatest poets and a huge role model for Dante, Virgil can also fail. Dante has Virgil illustrate his imperfections to the character of Dante, because it is vital for Dante to understand that he must be mindful of God and sin to avoid the fate of Virgil. Virgil cannot ever move on to Heaven from Limbo as he cannot completely put his faith in God, so he guides Dante to do so. This growing faith in God allows Dante to grow more judgmental of sinners as they progress on their journey, as opposed to his sympathy for sinners before. By having his hero fail, Dante learns that he must avoid the mistakes of his guide, Virgil, by understanding the divine justice of God.