“垮掉的一代”文化在《在路上》中的体现(英文)

Such instances are very obvious in the novel. Kerouac, quite plainly, pays no effort to add some scenes with any purpose and apparent reasons which blurs the boundary between the reality and illusion. During travels without Dean, Sal experiences a mirage-like scene:

The next few days I wandered around Denver. It seemed to me every bum on Larimer Street maybe was Dean Moriarty’s the tinsmith. I went in the Windsor Hotei, where father and son had lived and where one night Dean was frightfully waked up by the legless man on the roller board who shared the room with them; he came thundering across the floor on his terrible wheels to touch the boy. I saw the little midget newspaper-selling woman with the short legs, on the corner of Curtis and 15. I walked around the sad honkytonks of Curtis street, young kids in jeans and red shirts: peanut shells, movie marquees: hooting parlors, beyond the glittering street was darkness, and beyond the darkness the west. I had to go. [8]

4. 2. 3 Life of Kerouac’s friend and their relationship in On the Road
All the characters can not be capped with people in the real life in every aspect, but On the Road was inspired by Kerouac’s many friends as well as by himself. The most important one is Neal Cassady who is the model of Dean Moriaty in the novel. Just as described in the novel, Cassady’s father is a hobo addicted to alcohol. In 1926, he was born in benevolent hospital when his parents were roving in Salt City. He had been wild since little. But he was portly and read a lot, so he was kin-witted and decisive. Among the educated Beats, he never felt self-contemptuous. On the contrary, he was confident. Moreover, he was endowed with unique enchantment, especially for women. And he had special sex relationship with Jack Kerouac and Allen Ginsberg. In the novel, Dean is a reckless and energetic man as well. He is so confident that he once told Sal that “I can go anywhere in America and get what I want because it is the same in every corner. I know the people, I know what they do. We give and take and go in the incredibly complicated sweetness zigzagging every side.” [8] In the novel, Dean enamors lots of woman. He gets married with three women, but they leave him because of his debauchery. Meanwhile, many men are enamored with Dean. Carlo Marx is one who loves him. And Carlo Marx’s model is Allen Ginsberg. In reality, Ginsberg is also a gay. In Kerouac’s opinion, Dean’s persistence, ardor and criticism are the best mirror for the Beat Generation’s characteristic to be an outlier.

5  Influence of On the Road
Jack Kerouac’s On the Road, the Bible of the Beat Generation, is one of the most controversial American novels of the 20th century. But its influence can never be ignored, and lasting for year, is even far more significant now.
The affection was very visible after the publication of the book. Objection to the conventional materialism filtered through all the country, so do some other viewpoints and actions of the Beat Generation, such as critics against the politicians and government, dissatisfaction with present social systems and life, pursuit for experience and freedom, enthusiasm for jazz and pop music, even the addiction to drug and abuse of sex. Together with the Beat Generation, On the Road stimulated the counterculture movement in the 1960s. To some extent, it affects the following cultural movements in the next decades. Now, its influence even reaches the world. Today, boys and girls born after 1980s in China are also called “Beat Generation”. They may not go so far as American Beats in 1950s, but they are really influenced by the 1950s’ Beats.
One of the literary features of On the Road is spontaneous writing. Jack Kerouac typed the novel in three weeks, without any interruption. Not only does its method of creation reflect the spontaneous writing, but the content of the novel does, which is embodied through the main characters. This main feature of On the Road perfectly matches the instinctual attitude of the Beats and profoundly influenced the following literary creation and the writers.

Conclusion
    The Beat Generation took place about 60 years ago and soon developed to a national-wide movement. After the dust settles down, now it is a better place to observe them deeper and more objectively. In apparent, their radical behavior such as drug-taking and sex promiscuity invite a movement of decline and a close examination of the visions and lifestyles of the Beat Generation leads to the discovery that their forever setting on the road is more escaping than probing for a way out, just as the novel On the Road shows that Dean just throws away his sorrows and responsibility in kicks. They concern themselves more with anti-establishment than with a new order. Such attitude leads to the inevitable result that they can never find a way out. However, it profoundly influenced the young and the youth played a vital role in the Beat Movement. As showed in the analysis of On the Road concerning Jack Kerouac whose aggressiveness had been cultivated since his childhood, adolescence and early adulthood is a period for shaping and establishing one’s values and ideas. Such effects on the young were revealed later. Young people are smart, active and curious, which all motivate them to break away from the limitation of the conventions and to pursuit new things they are interested in. These effects are outstanding in the following counterculture movement in the 1960s, American consciousness of environment Protection, anti-war protest, Civil Right and Women’s Liberation Movement. Now, part of the Beat value has already been assimilated into the mainstream culture and its influence reaches out of the American land. Many people take the Beat Generation to be the courage to oppugn authority and the impact to break the dehumanizing conformity. Beyond question, it is admitted that what I discussed above is just a small part of the Beat culture. But I still hope all my efforts are helpful for a better understanding of the Beat Generation.转贴于 酷文网-论文下载中心 http://www.coolwen.net