Blog Post #4, Option #1

          The Beat Generation of the 1950s believed society’s structure was destroying human rights (Britannica.com). The name originated from its double meaning, referring to both the beat of the jazz music that was erupting during this time, as well as the ‘beat down’ many received physically and emotionally (Lecture 05.15.17). They were bold, blunt, and expressive (online-literature.com). A well-known proponent, was Allen Ginsberg whose work titled Howl detailed the destruction of his generation as they turned to drugs, jazz, sex, and violence. Another proponent of this era was Diane DiPrima, whose Revolutionary Letters outlined her ideas about revolution as a response to dealing with this situation. DiPrima’s Revolutionary Letters reads as a response to Ginsberg’s Howl by providing solutions to the problems he presents.

            Ginsberg’s shares his outrage through his overzealous observations of people’s conditions. This is especially true in section one as he is sharing how people with such potential were destroyed by drugs, sex, violence, and even jazz.  He described some people “…who sat in boxes breathing in the darkness under the bridge…” or others “…who sang out of their windows in despair, fell out of the subway window…cried all over the street…finished the whiskey and threw up groaning into the bloody toilet…” (51). Through these descriptions, he suggests how these people have begun to turn to jazz and alcohol as means to express their anti-establishment attitudes. Though his objective is most likely to express his rage for the society neglecting the individual’s needs, DiPrima provides the proper response by taking it a step further in offering a solution. In Revolutionary Letter #1, she shares her realization that “…the stakes are myself…this flesh all I have to offer, to make the play with this immediate head, what it comes up with, my move…” (55). Here she proclaims her control and power to make choices for herself. This provides a response to many of the individuals Ginsberg describes. Rather than sitting in darkness and despair, DiPrima uses her personal revelation to inspire revolution and change in others.  

            In Section Two of Howl, Ginsberg blames Moloch for the destruction of “the best minds of [his] generation” (49). Moloch is a false god or idol to which people sacrificed kids in fire and also represents how social authority exists without people choosing to follow (Lecture 05.15.17). He characterizes Moloch as “Solitude! Filth! Ugliness!...the incomprehensible prison!...the crossbone soulless jailhouse and Congress of sorrows!” (53). He portrays this figure as the embodiment of being trapped to conform to societal norms. Revolutionary Letter #19 tackles this subject arguing that if you feel you need a job, housing, or a degree, for example, that you are not considering the real meaning of these things. For instance, she says, “If what you want is housing…you have chosen to sacrifice the planet for a few years of some science fiction Utopia…” (57). In the end, she adds to Ginsberg’s mere complaint by providing motivation to actually consider the repercussions of your decision before you fall into the trap of doing what society says you should be doing, explaining, “you are selling yourself short, remember you can have what you ask for, ask for everything” (58).

            To say Ginsberg’s poem “demands” such a response from DiPrima feels extreme, but the response is indeed appropriate. Ginsberg’s poetic work merely presents problems with the way society is treating people, but DiPrima advances the argument by not only agreeing with the points he makes, but then providing a guide for how these people not only have the power to change their situations, but also how to use that power.