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Ginsberg's Poem, "Howl"
Allen Ginsberg's poem, Howl, and Other Poems, published 1956 presented a vision of America that was characterized by an apocalyptic journey and hope for the future. Most fundamentally, the poem revealed a movement of writers that existed in an intense cultural atmosphere dominated by jazz music, the use of drugs, sexual liberty, and hitchhiking trips across the United States. As one of the primary figures of the counterculture of 'Beat writers' during the 1950s, Ginsberg portrayed an image of America as a nation struggling under the bondage of a capitalistic conglomerate that artistically, economically, and spiritually stifles individuals. According to Ginsberg, the movement or group dubbed the 'Beat Generation' entailed a heterogeneous conglomerate of writers who were "trying to get published." It thus exemplifies a period in which the nation is full of disillusion, malcontent, and dystopian ideals.
Nevertheless, Ginsberg further provides a sense of hope that things could change under the right conditions, thereby shifting America to a relatively kind and sympathetic nation as compared to its current state. Therefore, the essence of this essence entails the depiction of the vision of America that is presented throughout the poem. It will further illustrate what Ginsberg's poem reveals about America that is not embodied in other mainstream history books.
The revelation of the Country that is depicted in Mainstream History Books
At the time Ginsberg wrote the poem, the American culture was faced with great turmoil which, in turn, contributed to the rise of countercultural movements baptized as 'The Beats' and 'Flower Children.' These movements played an integral role as representations of an outcry against political, social, and sexual conformity, crucial elements demanded by the American culture. Ginsberg's publication, however, sought to narrate these experiences and pigeonhole the encounters of the countercultural movements. On the one hand, the poem, divided into three sections, utilizes a blend of autobiographies and philosophical ideologies, as well as the illusion of prophetic insight to depict the American culture during the time. For instance, the first section of the poem gives an account of the exploits that Ginsberg and his friends, most of the Beat Writers, went through in their stay in New York during the early post-war years.
The 1950s in America were, to a large extent, times of comfort and the improvement of the living standards. However, it was a period of great social turmoil as the people were beginning to live better than in the previous years that were characterized by hardships following the Second World War and the Great Depression. Most fundamentally, the war significantly led to the stimulation of the industrial economy hence economic growth, and through it, the government put in place various reforms aimed at facilitating the access to services such as medical care, college education, and loans for the veterans to purchase homes and utilities. Although this pristine affluence changed the mindset of most Americans due to better opportunities and wealth, it further led to the growth and development of a conformist spirit. On the one hand, the leaders and influential people in society brought in the notion that the sustenance of the newfound prosperity machine and the avoidance of unforeseen dangers of the world necessitated living up to fulfill an American profile. The profile they promulgated was characterized by hard-working, successful, and laborious individuals being considered as 'real' Americans, while those who opposed or contradicted these conditions or were different in any way would be regarded with suspicion. Nonetheless, in the poem, Howl, Ginsberg describes the part of society that opposed the American consumerist ideology outlined in his time. Ginsberg himself was part of this counterculture society, and the personal, as well as political stances he provided in the poem, plays a significant role in damaging the moral sensitivity of the general public.
Depiction of the Vision in the Poem
The personal reflections and descriptions provided in the first section of the poem indicate a sensitive period that extends to the point of confession to criminality. Nonetheless, these narrations differ from the second section of the poem that delves into the exploration of the level of capitalistic oppression and greed within the American culture. For instance, the author portrays Beat Writers as a group of like-minded individuals who were against the American imposed values of success and conformity. These individuals idolized people with less conventional lives such as jazz musicians, artists, and, antiwar, as well as political activists. In fact, in his narrations, Ginsberg describes figures characterized by loneliness, voracious sexual desires, and a great passion for music and drugs. These are coupled with the description of individuals driven by a wave of insatiable anger for self-discovery and knowledge. Arguably, in recounting these characters, Ginsberg, similar to other Beat Writers sought to embrace their deepest desires and thus had to reject the values imposed particularly with regards to their conservative nature.
Moreover, the 'Best Minds' as stipulated in the poem can be interpreted as other Beat Writers that include characters such as Jack Kerouac and William Burroughs, whom Ginsberg held in high esteem. These characters represent the general American population that rejected materialism and went through enriching spiritual visions after initiating long trips often equipped only with their clothes and a few dollars. In fact, the presentation of their destruction brings on the tone of an outcry of rage and despair against an abusive and oppressing society. These are further exemplified in the allusion to the black culture where great minds are shown living in impoverished conditions in areas such as the Bronx and Harlem. The depiction of the oppressing incidents indicates Ginsberg's identification with characters that made a significant impact in his life and who facilitated the development of the rebellious attitude. For instance, after the implication with Huncke's crime and his condemnation to jail, Ginsberg chose to go to the Columbia Psychiatric Institute. It is here that he was required to undergo treatment for his homosexuality, which by the time was considered a psychological disorder. He also befriended Carl Solomon, an individual who greatly inspired him poetically. However, at the mental institution, Ginsberg and Carl closely experienced the horrors suffered by the patients and such incidents, coupled with his mother's insanity, created in him an obsession regarding the topic, Howl.
These incidents reveal the hardships and torture that those individuals who failed to live up to specific moral values went through and their metaphorical consideration as rotten apples. Nevertheless, the third section of the poem focuses on more confessions that provide some sense of deliverance from the apocalyptic vision of America. The allusion to the supermarket in California serves as an elaborate example of Ginsberg economic vision of modern society. For instance, he compares the commoditization of the natural world with the concept put forth by Walt Whitman regarding the beauty of nature and the individuality of humanity. On the one hand, he creates an image to the reader of a mythological River Lethe to describe how modern society had detached the natural world from its original environment and history. On the other hand, he uses the metaphor of a peach to exemplify the fact that when it is brought to the supermarket, changes its meaning from the point of picking from the tree.
Similarly, the vision of hope s exemplified in the use of anaphora based on the refrain 'I'm with you in Rockland,' an allusion to the time Ginsberg spent with Carl Solomon in the mental institution. In this line, the author allows the reader to identify with Solomon as he symbolizes an individual defeated by the imperious hand of the capitalist bourgeois American ideal. It further serves as a representation of the ordinary American individual who is in dire need of deliverance. Seemingly, it is in this section that Ginsberg provides the highest sense of hope and salvation from the dystopian vision of America through the presentation of a feeling of unity and empathy with Carl Solomon, whom the poem has been directed. Additionally, the sense of unity and togetherness is further articulated by the references made by Ginsberg to Marxist ideology.
Most importantly, the juxtaposition of fascism and socialism in this line indicates a dilemma between what was considered good and evil, while the contrast between Christianity and Judaism represent personal faith and belief. For instance, the allusion to Hebraism brings on the notion of freedom from slavery. It further portrays the vision that deliverance from the bondage of Moloch would soon come and end the cycle of capitalist repression as well as transform the dystopian state of the American culture.
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