I've started reading 'On the Road' by Kerouac. I've feared this book for a long time, simply because I already wanted to travel and felt like I was trapped and unable to do so. Thanks to Mr. Vinyl (my Senior year AP Lit teacher) shoving the Beats in my face I'd read 'Dharma Bums' and 'Howl' and talked about the wondering lifestyle presented in the stories of train hopping, but I didn't dare purchase, borrow or peak inside 'On the Road,' I was angsty enough and my feet were already itching when my eyes met the interstate.
Finding myself living in another country, I felt I was ready to tackle the book, though I always thought I would read it while traveling the US, sleeping on the beaches and hiking in Yosemite ala 'Dharma Bums.' And, being all caught up with the show 'Mad Men,' despite feeling that it lacks depth and plot but has amazing fashion and intriguing references to important historical events, I think it's interesting I chose to read this piece of literature. Maybe I'm more influenced by the show than I thought? Oh, America in the 50s and 60s, what a crazy time.
I'm 50 pages in, and I have to say that I love it. It's not what I expected. Kerouac doesn't make travel seem easy and beautiful, and he clearly points out the different hardships of it and the absurdities of himself and his peers. It is addictive and I had to talk myself into putting the book down, I want to keep reading it and wish I could stay up all night and day reading from "the scroll." It flows well, it isn't just a stream of experiences, but there are a few points that seem unclear until reading further on.
I am glad I waited to read it until I'd seen a bit of the world on my own, I probably wouldn't have noticed the hardships so much as the adventure if I had read it earlier and I'm curious to see if re-reading 'Dharma Bums' would yield a more grounded interpretation. It doesn't seem as mystical as I previously thought the work of the Beats to be, it just seems like an honest observation of life--which is how I believe it's meant to be seen. Nobody's a prophet, just an observer.
I never read "On the Road", only Kerouac's "Orpheus Emerged" which has that same observational quality you are talking about. I also want to thank you for the comment on my own travel piece. I think travel helps me to develop the discipline of being present in the moment somehow, more so than I typically am during my normal muggle life.
ReplyDeleteGiven you read that one, I want to share another "Saint Gotthard Tunnel"... http://www.leftyparent.com/blog/2010/01/02/saint-gotthard-tunnel/