DestinyBetley

EnglishIIPeriod5
14June2016
TheBeatGeneration
FinalPaper

TheBeatgenerationwasatimeafterWarWorldII,inthe1950s.Atthistimetherewas
depression,discrimination,poverty,etc.ThewordbeatintheBeatgenerationreferstohow
Americansareexhaustedandfeelusedandsomewhoarebrokebecausetheyspenttheirmoney
todrinkanddodrugsaftergoingthroughthewaranddepression.Therewasthreemajorbeat
member,writers,theywereAllenGinsberg,WilliamBurroughs,andJackKerouac.Theywrote
poemsandstoriesaboutthegenerationatthattime.Theysaidanythingtheywantedandfelt
about,theyspoketheirminds.ThequalitiestheBeatGenerationvaluearefaithandhope.They
hadfaithandhopeinfindingtheirhumanity.
ThiscountryisevilandWhitmanandInowspitonitandtellittobeniceordie,
becausethatswhatscoming.IHATEAMERICA(Ginsberg).LikeAllenGinsbergsaidinhis
lettertoJackKerouac,Americaisdefendingthemselvesagainstsocialistsandmakinggasbombs
insteadofmakingfoodandpower.Therearepeopleinthiscountrythatarestarvingandisin
poverty.GinsbergismadthatAmericaisnotcaringforthemostimportantthing,caringforthe
people.
Icantansweryouquestionsboutpoliticsbecauseitisallbloodyimpossible
discriminationofriotsandyellinghorroronaccountdontblameemforfearofbombs

(Kerouac).Atthattime,thereweremanydiscriminationagainstrace,communistsandsexuality.
Theythinkitswrongsoritsasicknessandyoucancatchit.Theyteachchildrenatschoolthese
thingsandbrainwashthemintobelievingthemandtobecomesoldiersofMoloch.Jack
Kerouacistiredofallthediscriminationriotsandalltheviolenceitcausesandisscaredwhatis
tocomeinthefutureifsomethingdoesnotchange.

Buttheyhaveneverbeenabletokeeptheworldoutoftheirdreams(Holmes).The
qualitiesthattheBeatGenerationvalueisfaithandhope.Even
though,theyhatethethingsthat
arehappeninginAmerica,theystillhavesomefaithinthecountry.Theystillbelieveitcanget
bettersomeday,theystilldreamandfightforit.Iprayforworldandprayitworks(Kerouac).
Eventhoughhesayssomethingsarebloodyimpossible,hestillwriteandcomplainaboutthe
worldbecausetheycareandbelievethereisachangethatcanbedone,likeallthebeatwriters.
TheyaretryingtogetpeopletounderstandandstandbesidesthemtochangeAmerica,theywant
thebestforitspeopleandstopallthehateandtheviolence.
TheBeatGenerationisallabouthavinghopetofindtheirhumanity.Theytryingtofind
it,buttheyareexhaustedaboutallthehateandviolenceintheworld.Thebeatsareexhausted,
butkeepfightingtomakeitrightandstilldreamthebeatforAmericaanditspeople.Theywant
AmericatofocusonthestarvationanddiscriminationofitsAmericansandhowtheyaregoing
againsteachotherinsteadofplanninganotherwarwithanothercountry,TheywantAmericato
focusonitspeoplebeforeanythingelse,tofocusonthemostimportantthingsfirst.Theyfight
fortheirgenerationandthefuturegenerations.