"And his criminality was not something that sulked and sneered; it was a wild yea-saying overburst of American joy; it was Western, the west wind, an ode from the Plains, something new, long prophesied, long a-coming..."
Take a look at this brief clip about Neal Cassady. And here's the trailer for the 2010 movie adaptation.
I bought a new copy of the novel yesterday at Barnes and Noble, and when I put it on the counter, the cashier shrieked: "I love this book!" Many have. It was published in 1957 and there's a good chance it has never been out of print. The basic narrative is about several road trips Kerouac made starting in 1947, some by himself, some with Neal Cassady. The original manuscript, the famous scroll, uses the names of the real people in the story: Jack, Neal, Allen, etc. But this is not that version. So...
1. Without using the passages I quotes above, what passage or line stuck out to you in the reading: and why?
2. What is Sal looking for on the road? Quote from the text in your answer.
3. Dean Moriarty in the book so far. Your opinion of him? Would you want to spent time with him? What makes him special? Is he special? In fact, how would you characterize him?
Write a couple hundred words answering the three questions above.
Look at the following clips: they are the songs for the lyrics we handed out in class today. First: "Hey Jack Kerouac" by 10,000 Maniacs.
Second, "The Persecution and Restoration of Dean Moriarty" by Aztec Two-Step.
And third, Bob Weir and "Cassidy."
A line that greatly stood out to me in the first part of On the Road was: “Nonetheless we understood each other on other levels of madness.” This line stuck out to me because it describes the strange yet interesting relationship that Cassady and Kerouac had. A friendship built on understanding each other’s insanity is one that I find very interesting. I also liked this line because it can be used as a description of the Beats as a whole. They were brought together by their own levels of madness.
ReplyDeleteSal is searching for individuality and the impulsive freedom that Dean Moriarty exhibits. He describes what he is feeling here: "..I was beginning to get the bug like Dean... He was conning me and I knew it... and he knew I knew..., but I didn't care and we got along fine... I began to learn from him as much as he probably learned from me." (4) Sal attempts to find the freedom that he is searching for through his journey.
Dean Moriarty is an impulsive, intelligent, admired, strong-willed, and overall very important character in Kerouac’s novel. He is the character that drives Sal’s journey and brings the group to push themselves further. I would want to spend limited time around him. I think it would be interesting to see how he speaks and moves around the world. Sal obviously admires Dean’s free spirit and mad essence so it would be interesting to see those in action. Kerouac’s description of him here is a funny one: “he liked to talk in the tone and using the words, but in a jumbled way, that he had heard from “real intellectuals.” Although Dean may be different from the actual Neal Cassady, it can be argued that he is an extremely special character in the book.
Besides the line you quoted (which, incidentally, is the reason I read On The Road... another book referenced it and I knew I had to go check it out), the line that stuck out to me most was on page 7, where Sal comments that Dean's way of speaking reminds him of "the voices of old companions and brothers under the bridge, among the motorcycles, along the wash-lined neighborhood and drowsy doorsteps of afternoon where boys played guitars while their older brothers worked in the mills." Immediately after, Sal laments that "all [his] other current friends [are] 'intellectuals'," with a heavily implied eye roll. Dean's openness and unapologetic excitement are refreshing, as they remind Sal of a class of people less stuffy and artificial than his classmates. On the road, Sal is looking for "new experiences" because his "life hanging around the campus had reached the completion of its cycle was stultified." So far, Dean seems like the perfect antidote to Sal's stagnation. He is Sal's personal cheerleader as he writes, and the two travel from one place to another searching for the "girls, visions, everything," that Sal is looking for. Dean's never-ending energy and excitement do, indeed, make him a special character, and the perfect one to compliment Sal.
ReplyDelete1. I really liked the line, "and I was beginning to get the bug like Dean. He was simply a youth tremendously excited with life, and though he was a con-man, he was only conning because he wanted so much to live." I loved how Kerouac described Cassady's complex mind as a "bug", as if Kerouac was just waiting for Cassady's madness to infect himself. I thought that the way Kerouac explained that Cassady conned to live was interesting and shows a lot about Cassady's character. Cassady used crime/deception to feel alive, rather than just being constricted by the law. From what we have read by Cassady, I can tell that he doesn't care about what you are "not supposed to do", instead he just does things that make him feel good and alive. Cassady demonstrates the theme that the importance of life is to feel good and alive, and one can obtain these things by simply doing what they want.
ReplyDelete2. Sal appears to be tired of living at his college campus and he feels that his life there has reached the "completion of its cycle." Sal says,"All my New York friends were in the negative, nightmare position of putting down society and giving their tired bookish or political or psychoanalytical reasons, but Dean just raced in society...". This line shows that Sal has outgrown his New York friends who only think negative thoughts and seem to have a limited imagination. Sal wants to travel on the road to change his mindset and not be constricted by New York. Sal seems intrigued by Dean's energy and impulsiveness. He wants new experiences and wants to explore a new horizon of living. Sal wants to experience a world of madness yet complete happiness, something that Dean has already seemed to have reached. Sal also mentions that he wants his writing to take off, and with new adventure and surroundings would offer a great opportunity to explore his writing and become a completely new person.
3.Dean Moriarty lives a free spirited life and does not appear to care about anything except making himself feel good. Although some may view this is selfish, Dean offers a new perspective of living. Dean lives life to the fullest, meaning that every moment he appreciates, learns from, and adds to his character. I think that Dean appears to have intelligence of a new and different level. He does not appear to be a "tedious intellectual," instead he offers an incredible sense of energy to living and allows other, such as Kerouac, to appreciate life moment by moment. I think that one of Dean's talents is that he adds a certain sense of energy to his life which influences those around him. An example of this is when Dean works in a parking lot. Instead of simply working at this average job, Dean makes it entertaining and fun and worthwhile. I found that like Kerouac, the more I learned about Dean, the more I became intrigued by his need to feel alive and his energy.
1) A line that really stood out to me was, “In those days he really didn’t know what he was talking about; that is to say, he was a young jailkid all hung-up on the wonderful possibilities of becoming a real intellectual, and he liked to talk in the tone and using the words, but in a jumbled way, that he had heard from ‘real intellectuals’- although, mind you, he wasn't so naive as that all other things, and it took him just a few months with Carlo Marx to become completely in there with all the terms and jargon.” I liked this line because it shows how Dean was sort of an outsider. It also shows you how Dean wanted to know as much knowledge as he could in order to get the most out of life. Another reason I find this line interesting is because it makes the reader question “What is a ‘real intellectual?’”
ReplyDelete2) Dean just lives for himself and for nobody else, and Sal wanted to experience that. He wanted to live simply, and he wanted to live in the moment like Dean. Sal wanted to fully experience life and not just live in a sheltered little bubble. He wanted to have a genuinely authentic, real, and messy experience. He said, “Although my aunt warned me that he would get me in trouble, I could hear a new call and see a new horizon, and believe it at my young age; and a little bit of trouble or even Dean’s eventual rejection of me as a buddy, putting me down, as he would later, on starving sidewalks and sickbeds-what did it matter? I was a young writer and I wanted to take off.”
3) I think Dean is a very interesting character. It is very clear that he is based of off Neal Cassidy; he is selfish, happy, silly, free from any form of restraint, impulsive, and doesn’t care about societal norms. I definitely would want to spend time with Dean because I think I have a lot to learn from him about how to be happy and how to be free from both societal restraints and internal restraints, but I wouldn’t want to get too close to him because I know he would not hesitate to screw me over in order to help himself get ahead.
1) I think that the line that stood out most to me was “We understood each other on levels of madness.” I know it’s been said before, but I think it perfectly describes why Sal and Moriarty get along so well. They’re both a little bit crazy, see that trait in the other, and totally understand the youthful vibrancy, the lust for life (and just lust in general) that keeps them moving forward. It paints a good picture of who the beats were and why they got along with each other so well even when they felt disconnected from the vast majority of people.
ReplyDelete2) I think that the most important driving force in Sal leaving and going on the road is just what he says; “I was a young writer and I wanted to take off.” He’d always dreamt of leaving, and the journey around the country would, he thinks, improve his writing because he would be more experienced. I think that he just wanted to follow through with his Moriarty-influenced feelings of manic energy.
3) I think Dean is very much like the Neil Cassidy we described in class. Moriarty has all sorts of ideas and energy that are so characteristic of the Cassidy we discussed. I think that he seems less psychopathic than I thought he would be, he just seems very caught up within himself, his own life and what he wants to do/learn. I think spending time with him would be interesting, but I doubt I’d be able to stand him for long periods of time. I think he is special in the way that h brings out his own love for life and romanticism in almost anyone he meets. His ability to bring out those emotions in other people, especially hardened cynics like Sal or Carlo Marx, is truly amazing. I would characterize him as a Pied Piper. He follows the beat of his own tune, but the tune he plays is so captivating that many who hear it have no choice but to follow him for some time.
1) One of the main things that stuck out to me was the humor of the reading. "for to him sex was the one and only holy and important thing in life, although he had to swear and curse to make a living and so on." That last part about having to make a living is almost comical. It's like the mentality "I guess I'll do it because I have to. The so on meaning other responsibilities that we are expected to do fulfill. One of the main lines that struck to me about Dean was, "He was simply a youth tremendously excited with life, and though he was a con-man, he was only conning because he wanted so much to live and to get involved with people who would otherwise pay no attention to him." I can tell how selfish Dean is (in both a good and bad way). He uses other people to benefit him ultimately and although that is not what we consider "morally right" it is what makes him happy which at the end is all he cares about. His character brings up the question of who's/what's more important? Yourself or the others and doing what's morally correct? He obviously chooses himself.
ReplyDelete2) To me, Sal is looking for living like Dean. He often praises him. Anytime he talks about Dean it's all good. "And a kind of holy lightning I saw flashing from his excitement and his visions, which he described so torrentially that people in buses looked around to see the 'overexcited nut'." The image of "holy" instantly connects to God like figure, angels. Overexcited nut to him is good, not what most people would think. Adding onto Sal seeing Dean as something to strive for he always sees the best in him. With the story about what happened with Dean and Marylou he automatically took Dean's word, blaming Marylou. Also, mainly I think he's just trying to get away from reality considering his wife and him had just split up. I think that split made him wonder about "the norm". We just assume that we will get married and live happily ever after. No one really talks about divorcing when you say your life plan. But when something happens, like splitting up from your partner, what you think will happen with your life no longer makes sense. Because like I said, you never think you'll divorce your partner you expect to live happily ever after but life never goes how you expect it. I think Sal knowing that rather let life be unexpected doing things that'll make him happy not conforming to what everyone wants and expects. He wants to find his happiness like Dean has.
3) I think he's kind of an ass. I mean sure he lives the life he wants to live but he treats people like crap. Maybe people can get past that but I can't. He's sexist and uses people to get what he wants. And the story is told by Sal and you feel sorry for him because he craves to have a relationship with Dean but Dean only used him to get a place to stay at. The strange thing is, Sal doesn't stop praising or wanting to have a relationship with Dean. Obviously that must mean Dean has something special about him. He sure does, no denying that. He seems like a chill person to hand out with. Of course there's this comfort with him. I feel like getting his approval would feel good just because his life is in his own hands and that's essentially what people want. "Dean just raced in society, eager for bread and love; he didn't care one way or the other, "so long's I can get that lil ole gal with that lil sum pin down there tween her legs, boy," and "so long's we can eat, son, y'er me?...". I mean there's no denying that we wish we were as careless as Dean. What's so revolutionary and controversial is that someone broke out free from everything tieing us to be a certain way. I read about Dean and I'm in awe because i couldn't imagine living a life like that, not having responsibilities. Caring about only myself and not anyone else. It's truly crazy. He is special because he broke the rules of what's normal in society. That makes him stand out, different (what The Beat strive to be.)
ReplyDelete“He was simply a youth tremendously excited with life, and though he was a con-man, he was only conning because he wanted so much to live and to get involved with people who would otherwise pay no attention to him” (4). Kerouac is showing readers the bright side of Dean. Up until then all we had known was about the theft and Marylou, but now we have an entire new side. Kerouac goes on to talk about how Dean look over his shoulders when he is typing, and this stuck with, because I could paint a picture of a man who wants to learn. A man who is determined.
ReplyDeleteSal is going to Denver, but I think that he is looking for an adventure, a story. “This was to tempting an offer. What was in Ogden?” Sal doesn’t care if he gets to Denver later, he is happily drinking and smoking and having a good time. He wants an adventure, He wants to see another side of America.
I can see that Dean is a smart person, but he also seems to be complicated. My first two impressions of him was a thief and then he got into a bad argument with marylou (then went to see some girls). I don’t know if he is the type of person I would spend time with, but Kerouac likes him a lot. Dean is special because he is young and has a curiosity and determination to learn. He is already intelligent, but he wants to continue learning with these extremely smart and well known writers. I think that he is special in his study and how intelligent he is, but I also see him as a person who is very immoral.
1)I chose the quote, “He was simply a youth tremendously excited with life, and though he was a con-man, he was only conning because he wanted so much to live and to get involved with people who would otherwise pay no attention to him,” because I think it represents the beats. From what we’ve talked about in class, I see the Beats as a group of people who are willing to be set apart from society to fit into groups that are abnormal and edging toward a counter-culture. I think this quote really portrays this idea in an immense way. We talked about Levittown, and how everything was set in stone. This shows Dean setting himself apart into this group of people.
ReplyDelete2)On the road, Sal is looking to be more of an individual. He seems to be inspired by Dean and his ways. He seems like he wants to be more of a free spirit than in the past. This is what Dean inspires in him. He says, “I was beginning to get the bug like Dean.” I interpret this as a realization of hope and aspirations to be like Dean. Also, he says, “...[I] needed new experiences that I wanted to know Dean more, and because my life hanging around the campus had reached the completion of its cycle and was stultified, but becuase some how in spite of our differences in character, he reminded me of some long-lost brpther.” the fact that he brought brotherhood into this shows the respect he has toward Dean. The road is to find himself as an individual.
3) I see Dean as a very truly beat person. I really think he is willing to set himself apart, as shown in the quote I chose in question 1. This is, as we talked about in class yesterday, a really important aspect of the beats generation. In a way, it is inspirational to be able to achieve what you want as an individual, and Dean does a good job of this.
(I posted this earlier, but had blog problems)