On The Road - Kerouac and the Beats

Seminar paper from the year 2001 in the subject American Studies - Literature, grade: very good, University of Graz (Institute for American Studies), course: Exterior and Interior Journey in US literature and film, language: English, abstract: Introduction . Practically all of Kerouac's books are said to be autobiographical(1) . In my seminar paper I draw a comparison between the real life of Kerouac and his Beat colleagues and the events depicted in his novel 'On the Road'. In order to do so, I focus on the biographies of both Jack Kerouac and Neal Cassady, whose personas build the main characters Sal and Dean. Furthermore, I illustrate the Beat movement - how it came into existence and why - and the attitudes within the Beat Generation. This is of importance to show that Kerouac's novel 'On the Road' not only stands within the tradition of the Beat movement but also defined it. Another focus is on the development of the novel's main characters which consequently leads to the question of the meaning of journey in the novel. I demonstrate that at different stages the main characters had different motifs for travelling. In addition, I also show that the journeys changed with the progress of the plot. [...] ______ 1 cf. Seymour Krim, 'Introduction'. Jack Kerouac. Desolation Angels. New York: Coward-McCann, 1965. xxii.