This course will introduce you to a sample of texts produced by writers of the mid-twentieth-century American literary movement known as The Beat Generation. We will explore the ways they critique American society of the period, and explore new ways of looking at the world and individual identity and freedom. The popularity of the ‘Beat Generation’ keeps growing, as shown through Hollywood adaptations such as Kill Your Darlings (2013), On the Road (2012) and Queer (2025). This ‘youth movement’ permeates much modern culture, though few realize that influences on The Beat Generation range from the American ‘hard-boiled’ ‘pulp’ fiction of the 1930s to W.B. Yeats’ visionary poetry.
This course will examine the major works by the central figures of the Beat Generation, Allen Ginsberg’s Howl, Jack Kerouac’s On the Road, and William S. Burroughs’ Naked Lunch, and will survey the literary/historical contexts in which these writers formed themselves, their visions, and their styles.
How do they continue important traditions, even as they rebel against them? We will pay close attention to the differences as well as the similarities between them, as well as their outside influences, and in the process will examine notions of spontaneity and authenticity, the influence of “foreign" cultures, and their social, cultural, and political legacy.
Seminars will be a mix of lecture and class discussion. Additional reading materials and film clips will be provided to aid class discussion. There will be additional exercises such as quizzes, seminar leading, presentations (assessed), concept mapping, and free writing as appropriate.
An excellent opportunity to develop your skills for further study in this field, in Taiwan and beyond.