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249
Mobility
as
resistance:
a
geographical
reading
of
Kerouac's
'On
the
road'
TIMCRESSWELL
VisitingAssistantProfessor,epartmentfGeography,UniversityfConnecticut, torrs,Connecticut6269,USARevisedMS receivedNovember1992
ABSTRACTInthispaperexamine hethemeofmobilitynJackKerouac's ovel On theroad.arguehatKerouac sedmobility,alongsideotherhemes,oexpressesistanceoestablished ormsnthe culturefthe UnitedStatesduringhenineteenfifties.sketch heuse ofmobilitynboth thecontentandthe structure f the novelandrelatettoexpectationsffamily,progressndattachedexuality.Thisresistance,suggest,sambiguousnthat trebelsgainstdealsoffamilyndhomeatthesame imeas treproducesheestablishedmericanmythologyofmobile,maleoutlaws.Thisnterpretationsplacednthe contextofthe counter-culturef thenineteen iftiesandnineteenixtiesntheUnitedStatesaperiodwhenmanyyoungpeoplewerestrikingutagainsthepresuppositionsfrootedness,amilyaluesandhe'American ream'.Usingtheinsightsofnew 'culturaleography'ndculturaltudies'suggestthat heuse ofmobilitynOntheroad,keytext inthecounter-culture,epresentscontestation facentral hemenAmericanulture.MobilitysclearlynmportantartofNorthAmericanmythologyandassuchtisopentochangeandchallengeromresistantub-cultures.KEYWORDS:Mobility,Resistance,nitedStates,Counterulture,Literature,ulturaltudiesINTRODUCTIONMuch hasbeen madeinrecentyearsof therelationsbetweengeography(space,place,landscape),popularcultureandcounter-hegemonicstruggle.InthispaperIprovideanexampleof theuse of ageographicthemein apopularculturalproductin ordertodemonstratehowsuchathemecan be asitewherehegemonicandcounter-hegemonictensionsareplayedout in anambiguousandmediatedfashion.SpecificallyIexploretheapparentparadoxofthewaysinwhichmobilityisusedinJackKerouac'snovel Ontheroad195 7).Ontheone hand thefranticdirectionlessmobilityofthe centralfiguresinOntheroadrepresentsaform ofresistance to the'establish-ment'.Ontheother handmobilityisclearlyacentralthemeinmainstreamNorthAmerican'culture,atleast asimportantto the'AmericanDream'as smalltownvalues andapple pie.Asimilarcontradictioncanbeseen inmanycounter-cultureproductsfrom WaltWhitman,throughJackLondontoBobDylan,BonnieandClyde,EasyRiderand theplaysofSamShepherd.RecentlythemovieThelmaandLouisehastaken auniquetwistto thestoryof menon the roadescapingthemaritalambitions ofwomenbygivingus astoryoftwowomen onthe roadstrikingoutagainstabusebymen. In allof thesecases,mobilityisclearlyusedas arebellionagainstauthorityandculturalnorms.Simultaneously,however,themobilitytheme fitsintothecentralpioneerimageofmobileAmericans.Inaddition,the themeof men onthe roadreinforcesthetiredgendereddualismofpublic(male)andprivate(female).Myaimin thispaperistodemonstratethesubtletiesandambiguitiesinherentin thehegemoniccontestationof therelationshipbetweenageo-graphictheme(inthiscasemobility)and itsattachedvalues.Ialso revealthebenefits(anddifficulties)ofageographicalanalysisof literaturerom aperspectivethat concentrateson theambiguitiesofculturalcontestation.ThemeaningofmobilityinOn theroad,Isuggest,cannotbesimplydescribed asareflectionfagenericAmericanconcernwithmobility,norasasimpleformofresistanceto thecharmsoftheAmericanDream.MyexplorationofmobilityinOntheroadisdividedintothreesections. First Idescribe theway
Trans. nst. Br.Geogr.N.S.18:249-262(1993)ISSN:0020-2754
PrintednGreatBritain
 
mobilityisconveyedandvaluedthroughanexamin-ation ofboth thecontent andform ofthenovel.SecondlyIconsider the themeofmobilityinlightof itsambiguousrelationtogenderandsexuality.FinallyIsketchsome of thewaysinwhichthemobilityof thecharactersis tiedupwithcentralthemes inAmericanculture.Beforeexaminingthenovel itselfIbrieflyplaceit in thewidercontexts ofthebeatgeneration,the countercultureand theUnited Statesinthepost-warera inorder tounderlineitsimportanceandrelevance as acounter-culturalproduct.First,however,Ilinkthisprojecttoareformulatedculturalgeography.AREFORMULATEDCULTURALGEOGRAPHYIndiscussingmobilityasresistanceI amfollowingacurrentincontemporaryculturalgeographywhichseekstoexplicatetheprocessesofstruggle throughwhich cultural valuesandlandscapesare formed. InthissectionIdiscuss thisnewdirection,inageneralsense,inrelationto aconcernfor'popularculture'andinthe tradition of'geographyand literature'tudies.Several commentators(Daniels,1990;Jackson,1989)haverecentlytalked of a'new'culturalgeographyrepresentingaconvergenceofseverallong-standinginterests and ideas frompreviously'unmined' iteraturesoutsidegeography-particularlythose of 'culturalstudies'. Themajorinfluences herehave been thewritingsof AntonioGramsci,RaymondWilliams and theCenterforContemporaryCulturalStudies.A1988editionofSocietyandSpacewasdevoted to this newapproach.In the introductionGregoryandLeywrote:[Culture'seographiesavean]nsistentlyriticaloliti-cal resonance.Theyare notelegiesforlost worldsbutvitalmomentsn theconstructionf newones.(GregoryandLey,1988,p.115)HereGregoryandLeycompareolder traditionsprevalentinNorth Americato this new culturalgeography.The new'criticalandpolitical'resonancestandsincontrastto much humanisticgeographywhilstthe new versus old worlddichotomyappearsto refer o the Sauerian raditionn culturalgeography.Sauerianculturalgeographyhas involveda'super-organic' conceptionof cultureandpreoccupationwith themateriallandscape(seeDuncan, 1980, 1990;Jackson,1989).This has led somecriticstosuggestthat'orthodox'culturalgeographyisinadequatefordealingwith socialprocessandchange.JamesDuncan,writingin1980,feltthatviewingcultureasaunitaryandsuperorganicentityleads tothe'drowningoflivingcolour inderivedstereotypes'aprocesswhich'obscures more thanitreveals'.Inshort heworldofthe culturaleographersaworldnwhichtheindividual slargelyabsent,consensuspre-vails,deviance signored;tis aworld untouchedbyintraculturalonflict.Thusheunintendedonsequencesofthesuperorganicheoryhasbeentodiscourageinquiryntoimportantuestionsf social nteractionyrootingexplanationnatranscendentalealm.Duncan,
1980,p.191)
Onenew direction isaconcernwith the nature ofcultureand,inparticular,withtherole ofpeopleasactiveagentsinmaintainingandtransformingulture.Usingconceptsfromculturalstudies,geographerscan see culture assomethingotherthanthe realmofmeaning.Ideas,values andmeaningsareseeninrelationtoawhole set ofmaterialpractices,insti-tutions and relations ofproduction. Importantly,culturalgeographyisnolongerseen asamonolithicentity.RatherGregoryandLeyrefer to 'culture'sgeographies', emphasizingthemultiplicityofculturesandgeographies.Later inthispaperIdescribe howZelinsky(1973)describedmobilityas one of the fourdefiningcharacteristicsof'American'character andhowthischaracteristicwas reflectedin alandscapeofhighwaysandstripdevelopments.Mypointis thatmobilitycannot be sosimply'mapped'ontothelandscape.Mobilityis alsoadeeplythreateningandtransgressiveform ofbehaviouroftendescribedas'deviant'(thinkof thethreatin the term'drifter').Themeaningofmobilityinthe United States(andin Ontheroad)sthereforeambiguousat best.Culturalgeographershavebegunto view cultureasaproductofthe wholeprocessoflivingwhichcruciallyincludes theprocessbywhichsubordinategroupscontest dominant formsof consciousness.Althoughthere isadominant culturewhichrepressesandmanipulatesdeas,itisnot allpowerful.There isroom for a variableprocessofdominance and resist-ance. Theconceptof'hegemony'wasdevelopedtodescribethisprocess.Alivedhegemonysalwaysaprocess.t isnot,exceptanalytically, systemora structure.t isarealized om-plexofexperiences,elationshipsndactivities,withspecificndchangingpressuresnd imits.. Moreover(andhisscrucial,emindings of thenecessaryhrust250TIMCRESSWELL
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