Items related to Why Kerouac Matters: The Lessons of On the Road (They're...

Why Kerouac Matters: The Lessons of On the Road (They're Not What You Think) - Hardcover

  • 3.74 out of 5 stars
    344 ratings by Goodreads
 
9780670063253: Why Kerouac Matters: The Lessons of On the Road (They're Not What You Think)

Synopsis

Legions of youthful Americans have taken On the Road as a manifesto for rebellion and an inspiration to hit the road. But there is much more to the book than that. In Why Kerouac Matters, John Leland embarks on a wry, insightful, and playful discussion of the novel, arguing that it still matters because it lays out an alternative road map to growing up. Along the way, Leland overturns many misconceptions about On the Road as he examines the lessons that Kerouac?s alter ego, Sal Paradise, absorbs and dispenses on his novelistic journey to manhood, and how those lessons?about work and money, love and sex, art and holiness? still reverberate today.

"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.

Review

The author of Hip: The History reveals the lessons of the original hipster bible, On the Road

Legions of youthful Americans have taken On the Road as a manifesto for rebellion and an inspiration to hit the road. But there is much more to the novel than that.

In Why Kerouac Matters, John Leland embarks on a wry, insightful, and playful discussion of the novel, arguing that it still matters because at its core it is a book that is full of lessons about how to grow up. Leland’s focus is on Sal Paradise, the Kerouac alter ego, who has always been overshadowed by his fictional running buddy Dean Moriarty. Leland examines the lessons that Paradise absorbs and dispenses on his novelistic journey to manhood, and how those lessons— about work and money, love and sex, art and holiness—still reverberate today. He shows how On the Road is a primer for male friendship and the cultivation of traditional family values, and contends that the stereotype of the two wild and crazy guys obscures the novel’s core themes of the search for atonement, redemption, and divine revelation. Why Kerouac Matters offers a new take on Kerouac’s famous novel, overturning many misconceptions about it and making clear the themes Kerouac was trying to impart.

Celebrating 50 Years of On the Road

In three weeks in a Manhattan apartment in April 1951, Jack Kerouac wrote his first satisfactory draft of On the Road as a single, 120-foot scroll. On the Road: The Original Scroll prints the text of this remarkable literary artifact in book form.
A 50th anniversary edition of Kerouac's classic novel that defined a generation. On the Road is the quintessential American vision of freedom and hope, a book that changed American literature and changed anyone who has ever picked it up.

Questions for John Leland

Amazon.com: There is a great legend around the composition of On the Road. What parts are true and what parts aren't?

Leland: The legend is that Kerouac wrote the book in three frenzied weeks on a scroll of tracing paper. In truth he had already written a couple drafts, and had written and re-written many of the scenes in his notebooks and letters to friends, which he kept in scrupulous order. I liken the three-week spree to a jazz musician improvising a solo using riffs and phrases he has worked out in the woodshed: it's part spontaneous composition, but building on mountains of practice and planning.

Amazon.com: In Why Kerouac Matters you make the against-the-grain argument that On the Road is not an ode to permanent adolescent transience and rebellion but rather a guide in moving toward adult responsibility. Could you explain?

Leland: Like any good book, On the Road sustains at least two threads. The one that gets the most attention is the book of Dean Moriarty (Neal Cassady), the wild, yea-saying overburst of American joy who sounds an irresistible call to adventure. Dean is the circus that every boy dreams of joining. Dean’s road is pure carnal excitement, all speed and jazz and sex. But there's also the book of Sal Paradise, the narrator, who follows Dean out onto the road but then ultimately outgrows him, finishing the book off the road. Sal comes to recognize Dean's road as destructive and limiting--as long as Dean keeps going through the same motions, leaving a new baby and a new ex-wife in every town, he isn't really on the road, he's stuck in a rut. Sal, by contrast, is learning to be a man and a writer, searching for meaning and a home. For all its frantic adventures, the book ends with Sal nesting with his new love, Laura (Joan Haverty, Kerouac's second wife) and ready to write the book we're still reading.

Amazon.com: Do you think its enduring popularity comes from the appeal of Dean's endless summer or from Sal's development? (In other words, do you think people like it for the wrong reasons or the right ones?)

Leland: Dean is one of the most compelling characters in American literature; we'll always be drawn to him. The speed of the prose encourages us not to ask to questions, just be cool and enjoy the ride. Sal is a much more recessive character, shambling behind his friends "as I’ve been doing all my life after people who interest me." Kerouac regretted that so many readers saw only Dean's wild ride. But I think much of the book's power comes from the tension between these two ideas of manhood.

Amazon.com: You quote a line from David Gates, "A 21-year-old applying to a writing program is as ill-advised to cite Jack Kerouac as an influence as O. Henry or H.P. Lovecraft." Has On the Road been a novel more for readers than for writers?

Leland: Writers who try to write like Kerouac are bound for trouble. More bad prose has been committed in his name than good. His famous dicta, "No revisions" and "You're a genius all the time," obscure the discipline and erudition behind his work. But there’s another way to read On the Road, as a tale of a writer in search of his voice. On Sal's first journey, he arrives in Denver and imagines himself in his friends' eyes, "strange and ragged like the Prophet who has walked across the land to bring the dark Word, and the only Word I had was 'Wow!'" He's not ready to tell his story. But by the end, after Dean abandons him with dysentery in Mexico, Sal receives his writerly mission, from a character Kerouac called the Great Walking Saint, who tells him, "Go moan for man." Now he's ready to write, and compelled to do so. Writers who take Kerouac's work as a license to develop their own voices have greatly benefited, even if they don't sound anything like Kerouac. For the others, there's always bongos and reruns of The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis.

Amazon.com: To what extent do you think On the Road is a different book to readers 50 years later?

Leland: We're now longer shocked by the sex and drugs. The slang is passé and at times corny. Some of the racial sentimentality is appalling, and we’re revolted--in ways the characters aren't--when Dean busts his thumb on Marylou's head. There's a line in the book when the guys are driving into New York that now takes my breath away: "Dean had a sweater wrapped around his ears to keep warm. He said we were a band of Arabs coming to blow up New York." But the tale of passionate friendship and the search for revelation are timeless. These are as elusive and precious in our time as in Sal's, and will be when our grandchildren celebrate the book's hundredth anniversary. And the music still kicks.

About the Author

John Leland is a reporter for The New York Times and former editor in chief of Details magazine. He is the author of Hip: The History.

"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.

  • PublisherViking
  • Publication date2007
  • ISBN 10 0670063258
  • ISBN 13 9780670063253
  • BindingHardcover
  • LanguageEnglish
  • Edition number1
  • Number of pages205
  • Rating
    • 3.74 out of 5 stars
      344 ratings by Goodreads

Buy Used

Condition: Good
Item in good condition. Textbooks...
View this item

FREE shipping within U.S.A.

Destination, rates & speeds

Other Popular Editions of the Same Title

9780143114376: Why Kerouac Matters: The Lessons of On the Road (They're Not What You Think)

Featured Edition

ISBN 10:  0143114379 ISBN 13:  9780143114376
Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group, 2008
Softcover

Search results for Why Kerouac Matters: The Lessons of On the Road (They're...

Stock Image

Leland, John
Published by Viking, 2007
ISBN 10: 0670063258 ISBN 13: 9780670063253
Used Hardcover

Seller: SecondSale, Montgomery, IL, U.S.A.

Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars 5-star rating, Learn more about seller ratings

Condition: Good. Item in good condition. Textbooks may not include supplemental items i.e. CDs, access codes etc. Seller Inventory # 00056648946

Contact seller

Buy Used

US$ 5.77
Convert currency
Shipping: FREE
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds

Quantity: 1 available

Add to basket

Stock Image

Leland, John
Published by Viking, 2007
ISBN 10: 0670063258 ISBN 13: 9780670063253
Used Hardcover

Seller: Wonder Book, Frederick, MD, U.S.A.

Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars 5-star rating, Learn more about seller ratings

Condition: Very Good. Very Good condition. Very Good dust jacket. A copy that may have a few cosmetic defects. May also contain a few markings such as an owner's name, short gifter's inscription or light stamp. Seller Inventory # I02L-00483

Contact seller

Buy Used

US$ 5.79
Convert currency
Shipping: FREE
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds

Quantity: 1 available

Add to basket

Stock Image

Leland, John
Published by Viking, 2007
ISBN 10: 0670063258 ISBN 13: 9780670063253
Used Hardcover

Seller: ThriftBooks-Dallas, Dallas, TX, U.S.A.

Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars 5-star rating, Learn more about seller ratings

Hardcover. Condition: As New. No Jacket. Pages are clean and are not marred by notes or folds of any kind. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less 0.8. Seller Inventory # G0670063258I2N00

Contact seller

Buy Used

US$ 6.35
Convert currency
Shipping: FREE
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds

Quantity: 1 available

Add to basket

Stock Image

Leland, John
Published by Viking, 2007
ISBN 10: 0670063258 ISBN 13: 9780670063253
Used Hardcover

Seller: ThriftBooks-Atlanta, AUSTELL, GA, U.S.A.

Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars 5-star rating, Learn more about seller ratings

Hardcover. Condition: As New. No Jacket. Pages are clean and are not marred by notes or folds of any kind. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less 0.8. Seller Inventory # G0670063258I2N00

Contact seller

Buy Used

US$ 6.35
Convert currency
Shipping: FREE
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds

Quantity: 1 available

Add to basket

Stock Image

Leland, John
Published by Viking, 2007
ISBN 10: 0670063258 ISBN 13: 9780670063253
Used Hardcover

Seller: ThriftBooks-Atlanta, AUSTELL, GA, U.S.A.

Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars 5-star rating, Learn more about seller ratings

Hardcover. Condition: Very Good. No Jacket. Former library book; May have limited writing in cover pages. Pages are unmarked. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less 0.8. Seller Inventory # G0670063258I4N10

Contact seller

Buy Used

US$ 6.35
Convert currency
Shipping: FREE
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds

Quantity: 1 available

Add to basket

Stock Image

Leland, John
Published by Viking, 2007
ISBN 10: 0670063258 ISBN 13: 9780670063253
Used Hardcover

Seller: HPB Inc., Dallas, TX, U.S.A.

Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars 5-star rating, Learn more about seller ratings

hardcover. Condition: Very Good. Connecting readers with great books since 1972! Used books may not include companion materials, and may have some shelf wear or limited writing. We ship orders daily and Customer Service is our top priority! Seller Inventory # S_425252764

Contact seller

Buy Used

US$ 3.00
Convert currency
Shipping: US$ 3.75
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds

Quantity: 1 available

Add to basket

Stock Image

Leland, John
Published by Penguin Publishing Group, 2007
ISBN 10: 0670063258 ISBN 13: 9780670063253
Used Hardcover First Edition

Seller: Better World Books, Mishawaka, IN, U.S.A.

Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars 5-star rating, Learn more about seller ratings

Condition: Good. First Edition. Former library book; may include library markings. Used book that is in clean, average condition without any missing pages. Seller Inventory # 710546-6

Contact seller

Buy Used

US$ 6.91
Convert currency
Shipping: FREE
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds

Quantity: 2 available

Add to basket

Stock Image

Leland, John
Published by Viking, 2007
ISBN 10: 0670063258 ISBN 13: 9780670063253
Used Hardcover

Seller: HPB-Diamond, Dallas, TX, U.S.A.

Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars 5-star rating, Learn more about seller ratings

Hardcover. Condition: Very Good. Connecting readers with great books since 1972! Used books may not include companion materials, and may have some shelf wear or limited writing. We ship orders daily and Customer Service is our top priority! Seller Inventory # S_233149294

Contact seller

Buy Used

US$ 3.50
Convert currency
Shipping: US$ 3.75
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds

Quantity: 1 available

Add to basket

Stock Image

Leland, John
Published by Viking, 2007
ISBN 10: 0670063258 ISBN 13: 9780670063253
Used Hardcover

Seller: Midtown Scholar Bookstore, Harrisburg, PA, U.S.A.

Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars 5-star rating, Learn more about seller ratings

Hardcover. Condition: Very Good. unmarked, light shelfwear-NICE Standard-sized. Seller Inventory # 0670063258-01

Contact seller

Buy Used

US$ 2.40
Convert currency
Shipping: US$ 6.00
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds

Quantity: 1 available

Add to basket

Stock Image

Leland, John
Published by Viking, 2007
ISBN 10: 0670063258 ISBN 13: 9780670063253
Used Hardcover

Seller: HPB-Ruby, Dallas, TX, U.S.A.

Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars 5-star rating, Learn more about seller ratings

Hardcover. Condition: Very Good. Connecting readers with great books since 1972! Used books may not include companion materials, and may have some shelf wear or limited writing. We ship orders daily and Customer Service is our top priority! Seller Inventory # S_429784790

Contact seller

Buy Used

US$ 4.79
Convert currency
Shipping: US$ 3.75
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds

Quantity: 1 available

Add to basket

There are 33 more copies of this book

View all search results for this book