“That’s not writing, that’s typing.” None other than Truman Capote had that to say about what is considered by many to be Jack Kerouac’s greatest personal achievement, On the Road. Despite this harsh assessment by one of America’s most legendary authors, On the Road today can be viewed as a groundbreaking work that inspired a generation of Americans to challenge the social norms of the day and give way to the Beatnik movement.
Kerouac’s tale of wandering America, with the now famous character of Dean Moriarty, was based primarily on his own period of rootless existence with his friends and fellow writers of the Beat generation. In it he captured the restlessness and rebellion that was beginning to simmer beneath the surface in the youth of the nation that would explode in the late-1960s. The restiveness of Sal and Dean in On the Road as they drifted across America struck a chord with the disenfranchised youth of the nation. The “hippies” of the late sixties are more famous today in our pop culture, but it was Kerouac and the other Beatniks that had paved the way in the decade before. He had a willingness to set aside a need for material possessions and many of the so-called status symbols of the day, and discussed this mindset in a frank, straightforward manner that was unlike anything in the mainstream. He needed no permanent home or permanent job to keep him rooted in one area of the country. In fact, it seemed he preferred the ability to stay in a town for a short time, and then resume his wandering. He is able to continue doing this for years due to a network of friends, acquaintances, and connections that he accumulates over the course of his travels. It seems that these are the only “possessions” that he collects, as they continued to afford him friendship, conversation, and the means to continue on his chosen course.
The inclusion of tales on the topics of alcohol and drug abuse and the rejection of accepted values was controversial, even making it difficult at first for Kerouac to get a publisher. Despite this, he can now be credited for having influenced another generation of writers with his original style, among them Hunter S. Thompson and Lester Bangs. After pressure from friends, he penned Belief and Technique for Modern Prose, where he gave a list of thirty suggestions for writing in his new method. His free-flowing style was perhaps best demonstrated in the way he actually wrote the book – he famously attached sheets of paper so that they could be fed through his typewriter with no interruption, allowing him the possibility of a near endless stream of writing. The legend, fueled by Kerouac’s response to a question asked by talk show host Steve Allen, is that he wrote On the Road in three weeks. It was this story that drew the rebuke from Truman Capote, but it was this story that also increased his notoriety and further endeared him to his followers.
He was praised by some reviews, including one by the New York Times that called the publishing of his book a “historic occasion.” But On the Road was considered “morally objectionable” by many other critics. Today, some critics debate whether it should have been considered to be a pivotal text for the beatnik and counterculture movement. They point to his disillusion with his travels that he expresses near the end of the book. The mere fact that Kerouac is still inspiring discussion and debate, while still capturing the interest of some of the youth of this nation at a time where the love of material possessions is perhaps at an all time high, demonstrates the impact he and his book have had.
Kerouac would have been uncomfortable with any praise that would have been associated with his impact on the Beatniks, and even tended to distance himself from the many admirers he had in the counterculture movement. During his service in the Navy during World War II he was honorably discharged for having an “indifferent character” towards training and the conflict, yet he then expressed support for the controversial conflict in Vietnam, stunning many of the individuals that looked to him as an inspiration.
The “never stop going until you get there” attitude of some of his characters in On the Road was reflected not just in his writing methodology, but also his lifestyle. He died of an alcohol-related liver hemorrhage at the age of 47, but not before having an impact on the lifestyle and culture of a generation of Americans.
Other good reads: The Subterraneans, The Dharma Bums, and Lonesome Traveler.
Where Was It 