Respond to the following questions and reply to classmates. Check back and add to the conversation!
Is Dean a hero, a failure, or both?
Some critics have claimed that the world Kerouac depicts in On the Road glorifies the deeds of uneducated, criminal young men leading irresponsible lives, committing sacrilegious acts. Given today's low tolerance for youthful rebellion, particularly drug use, do you find the behavior of Dean Moriarty and Sal Paradise repugnant and totally inappropriate? Do you think Kerouac is approving or critical of his characters' behavior?
Why do you think On the Road, after more than fifty years since its original publication, still maintains a magnetic hold on American youth culture? Is the novel's significance to your generation different from its significance to younger and to older generations? How has the meaning of On the Road changed for you since your first encounter with it?
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I actually think that Dean is none of the above. Instead he's just a person who solely follows whatever he wants the most. At times this is showed when he abandons his "friends" when he has used them to whatever degree he wanted. This can give him the criminal like personality, but Kerouac also sees in him his extreme capacity for living life with exuberance. I don't think that Kerouac is specifically approving of the criminal tendencies that they have, but is more approving of a free attitude and a pursual of your needs without any restrictions as something to be respected. However Kerouac doesn't really consider the effects much personally on the actual people that Dean affected towards the end of the reading.
ReplyDeleteI think On the Road still holds the youth because just like them we have no idea where we want to go, and any life that just embraces everything seems like the route to go. Even though what they're doing in the book is more radical for previous generations, the life and ideals in it remains similar for all people. Everyone wants to have freedom, sometimes in the form of escaping and traveling everywhere. It definitely raises up a desire to cast off all restrictions that we've been under our entire lives. When younger people read On the Road I think it might always remind people of growing up, and what they're going to be faced with in terms of responsibilities and what they actually want to do. That's exactly what it changed into for me, at first I thought it was about him escaping from responsibility, but it was really him trying to find himself and gaining experience to support himself.
I agree with Jess. Dean is just a normal person, who makes normal mistakes. He really isn't a hero, he doesn't do heroic things. Nor is he a failure he makes mistakes but so does everyone else, so that doesn't make him a failure.
ReplyDeleteI don't find it inappropriate at all. I think its apart of society, well at least here, that kids are going to do certain things, including drugs. Every kid has to go through their own mistakes to learn from them. I think that essentially that is what Kerouac is bringing out, not intentionally though.
It is like a classic story that tells people that they can do whatever they want to. If they want to pick up and leave and go cross-country they can. I think that's why this book is so timeless. It has the same meaning to me. I knew that I can do whatever I want to as long as I put my heart in it, and that is exactly what these characters did. I did love this book way more than the rest though!
i agree with both of them. Dean is after all human his mistakes will follow him for the rest of his life, but is he not allow to make them? after all he only has one life to live why not live it and learn?
ReplyDeletei don't think it is inappropriate in today's society, our society does, what could be considered much worse with drugs sex and alcohol, they would seem like saints, they tried to do something with their life and figure out their lives unlike some of today's society whom are going no where fast.
I don't think it maintains the culture it was made for entirely i think it was changed as people started to get use to the idea of rebelling against the norm. First the meaning was just boring and seem like it was going to be about a road trip but now its much more its about these young men trying to discover life.
For me this book inspires a desire to travel and see some of the places the characters go to. It was really amazing to be in San Francisco and the "promised" land of California that both Sal and the Joads so desired to get to.
ReplyDeleteDean is not a hero at all. He is just an inspiration for Sal and the rest of the people they hang out with. I would not call Dean a hero because he really didnt do anything that would consider him to be more than a normal person who just so happened to express his true feelings.
ReplyDeleteI think that the guys are just doing what they believe is right. They arnt misbehaving per-say because they are doing what they believed in. Also during the time period a lot of people wanted to live for the now and didnt care about what happened to them tomorrow. Today's society, i dont think that people will care because we are raised on the belief that we should be able to do whatever we want without any consequence.
I feel like On The Road is a novel that everyone can relate to. The whole being free and unchained to what society tells you that you have to do is what everyone now wants. Each teenager wants to be free from their parents and live their own life. The book basically is saying how free a person can be if they were. While reading the novel, i thought that it was really boring but once i started to read into the book, i finally got the message of the novel which is to do what you as a person want to do and not what the people around you want you to do.
I think that Dean is a hero for a person such as Sal. Sal looks up to Dean because he has had and was having a wild and activity filled life and he didnt let anything stop his dreams and fantasies. He lived an adventurous life that most teens wish they could have so i think he was a hero for teens as well.
ReplyDeleteLiving in the generation I live in, their behavior does not bother me one bit. Now Im so used to seeing things that they did back then that it seems like the norm of society that all teens should one day experience. I also agree with anthony because we do worse things now when it comes to sexual tendencies and drugs. I expect it now. I also think that Kerouac approved of his past behavior while writing this novel because he explained his life in ways that made me want to do the things that he did. He made me feel like my life wasnt as important because it wasnt as exciting.
This novel is so significant even now because they were the first to do this and we still follow their mentality in our current society. Teenagers are now known to be rebellious and get into lots of trouble because of their precedence. I dont think that this novel is as important to us as it was in the generations before the Beats and right after them. Its not surprising to us so we dont care as much as they did back then. This book bothered me because it seemed more like a biography to me. I like stories and this book seems so real and it resembles something I would find in a magazine. I also felt like he was trying to brag and show off his "great" life and he makes me feel like im missing out on something.
Is Dean a hero, a failure, or both?
ReplyDeleteI think Dean is a hero to Sal because he represents complete freedom of thought and the expression of his opinions, and that's what Sal strives to have. I think he is also a hero to the people reading the book because he doesn't seem to care what people think about him and his opinions, and he seems comfortable with himself. But, I also think Dean thinks of himself of a failure sometimes, because even though he seems completely carefree, he really doesn't know what he wants. He is lost in the middle of two lifestyles - staying at home with his wife and daughter, or travelling and getting drunk all the time. He's too weak to choose one, and he knows that. So I think he's both.
Do you find the behavior of Dean Moriarty and Sal Paradise repugnant and totally inappropriate? Do you think Kerouac is approving or critical of his characters' behavior?
I think they are living how they want to live, and if that's fine with them, it should be fine with everyone else. Even if other people don't approve of their lifestyles, they have no right to tell Sal and Dean and all their friends how they are supposed to be spending their lives. I personally don't think it's "innapropriate", it's just not considered the norm at that time. I think Kerouac completely approves of his characters' behaviors because his life was just like theirs. Sal is even based off of Kerouac and his experiences. Kerouac wanted to share what his life was like with others, so obviously he wasn't reluctant about sharing or embarrassed about everything he did during his Beat days.
Why do you think On the Road, after more than fifty years since its original publication, still maintains a magnetic hold on American youth culture? Is the novel's significance to your generation different from its significance to younger and to older generations? How has the meaning of On the Road changed for you since your first encounter with it?
I think On the Road still maintains a magnetic hold on American youth culture because it shows young people, who are looking for adventure and freedom, that that kind of lifestyle is possible to obtain and enjoy. It doesn't just have to be a dream. All people look/have looked at this kind of lifestyle at least once in their lifetimes and thought "I'd like to live that freely." They might even look at Dean and Sal in awe and envy them. I think this novel is significant to all generations when they are teenagers, but maybe especially ours because we have a lot of drugs/drinking nowadays, and we can relate to generation. Also, our generation completely depends on technology, and back in the 1950's there weren't any cellphones, iPods, computers etc. for people to focus all their time on. They spent their time outside, travelling. Our generation could learn from this: the simplicity of that generation's everyday life might be lost in the near future. We have to try to and learn to keep that. I've always enjoyed On the Road, and the whole theme of freedom. But before the book I never even knew about the "Beats" and how they completely influenced the 1960's, which is well-known throughout our country and the world. It makes me wonder why no one has talked about the Beats of the 1950's in the past 60 years. I think it might be because they were repressed by the government and the American people. The media put them in a bad light. The hippies of the 1960's were looked down upon too, but have always been looked up to by many at the same time. The Beats were known to be criminals, so that overshadowed the good and made it hard for people to look at them and see good, and dig deeper into what they were fighting and searching for.
I think that Dean was a hero because whenever Sal gets drawn back to the traditional 1950's society in America, Dean always reminded him to be himself. Just like many people have said, Dean was an inspiration for Sal. Others might not get his idea of life other than Sal. Beatniks wanted individualism to return to America which is why Dean always got Sal back on the right track. Dean being care free showed everyone that they shouldn't be afraid to live life or care about being criticized by society. For Sal, Dean showed him how to life to the fullest.
ReplyDeleteI personally don't consider their behavior to be inappropriate because in the book they were adults and basically they can make their own decisions. Such behaviors would be inappropriate for teenagers back then which is why it was censored and not public. In our generation today, such behavior would just be ignored even with teenagers because it had become part of the American culture. Americans now, drink and do drugs when they feel stressed out which is very common considering the fact that we have so much going on in our lives.
I think that the book still maintains a magnetic hold on American youth culture because it influenced the youth to stick to what they believe in. It also insured the youth that if they want change, they can rebel and not be afraid to speak out against or for certain issues. It gave the youth more confidence and made them more comfortable with themselves since they're not paying as much attention to the public's criticism.
I don't think Dean is either a hero, or a failure. I think he's a regular guy, who had a different idea of the way life should be lived. I don't really care for Deans character, I think he's pretty much a jerk. He's really selfish, and he doesn't make long lasting decisions. I think he's the type of person who wants to have his cake and eat it too, for example him having a relationship with both Camille and Marylou. This was incredibly selfish of him, and he broke two girls hearts. Not cool. I don't think it's fair to say anyone is a failure. Who am I to judge? However I definitely do not think Dean is a hero. He's just a guy, with a lot of problems. He's an opportunist, and he's ignorant to other peoples feelings. He does what good for Dean. He always puts Dean first. I wouldn't be friends with him.
ReplyDeleteOn the Road may "glorify" irresponsibility according to critics, but that's a load of crap. All Kerouac was doing was telling his life story, if he left out parts if wouldn't be honest, or real, and it wouldn't be his life. I don't find their behavior to be inappropriate. "to each his own" is a saying I strongly believe in. It may not make everyone happy, and I often fight with myself to keep that view on life, but it really isn't fair to try to control anothers life. I don't think Kerouac was really approving or disapproving of the characters. I don't know that he thought it was the best way to live, but they knew it was better then the way of life society had offered previously. Like I said before, he was telling his life as honestly as possible, including all of the bad. People make mistakes, and wrong choices, and his raw attitude towards life was portrayed in his writing for sure.
I absolutely believe that On the Road had a magnetic hold on Americas youth culture. I've read On the Road before, and every time I read it I find myself questioning everything around me, and all of the rules society has put in place. It makes me wonder if I'm living my life to the fullest. I question the rules that have been given to me telling me how I have to live my life - and I think that was Kerouac's goal in igniting the Beat Generation. For every generation On the Road will have a significance, people are naturally curious, rebellious, and constantly questioning, there for On the Road will always be relate-able.
I think Dean is both a hero and a failure. Dean is a hero because he helped Sal on his journey, he pushed Sal along at some points and heled him find what America is all about. Dean is a failure because of his personality. He would only think about himself and do things that only better himself. He cheated in his relationships and didn't care for the others.
ReplyDeleteThe characters behavior is not innapropriate because it's a normal thing. A lot of people do the things they did, and that's not going to stop just because someone told them to. Kerouac was just showing society what goes on, he didn't censor the actuality of the real world. That's the government's job. They can censor it all they want but that's not going to stop it.
A lot of people can relate to this book and that's why it is so popular. Everyone wants to be free, free of rules and restrictions, able to do whatever you want, and thats exactly what this book is about. No one likes being told what to do, it makes you feel small. On the Road shows kids that they can do what they want, they don't have to do what adults tell them to. The book showed me that the world is bigger than it seems, were not limited to New York or even the U.S. It's my choice where i want to go.