Jack Kerouac's "On the Road"

Paper Summary:

This paper describe the beat generation, a close group of American writers of the 1950s of whom Jack Kerouac is associated. This group rejected materialism and consumer society and put forth a new set of values. The paper relates that Jack Kerouac in his 1957 novel "On the Road" speaks about this dissatisfaction with contemporary society by presenting a moral and psychological portrait . The paper also points out that Kerouac uses the stream of consciousness technique to recreate his and his friends' deeply philosophical and spiritual cross-country road trips across America. The paper highlights the two main characters of the novel, Sal Paradise and Dean Moriarty, who in reality are Jack Kerouac and his closest friend Neal Cassady.

From the Paper:

"The Beats were intellectuals, writers who experimented with Zen Buddhism and drugs; the spiritually enlightening experiences that came as a result of the experimentation are described in the novel by characters such as Carlo Marx - real life Beat icon, Allen Ginsberg - and Dean Moriarty. What is interesting to mention here is that Sal Paradise, the main character and narrator of the novel, does not participate in his friends' experiments with Benzedrine. Moreover, he expresses his reluctance as to the possibility of finding one's soul i.e. what the other members of his entourage were looking for."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Kerouac, Jack. On the Road. Penguin Books, 1999.

More papers on Jack Kerouac's "On the Road":

• Analytical Essay # 67736 : "Jack Kerouac' "On the Road"
• Analytical Essay # 123816 : "Jack Kerouac and the Beat Generation"
• Analytical Essay # 71757 : "Jack Kerouac's "On The Road"
• Book Review # 73933 : "On the Road"

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