Week 2 Reaction

In this week’s reading the journey finally begins after a slow start.  The next two chapters seem to set the tone for what I assume will be the entire story.  The main character’s happy go lucky spirit pours out of every decision he makes.  He simply loves travelling, and has no fear of strangers or hitchhiking.  The setting of the story is kind of hard to connect to due to the serious time difference.  Hitchhiking is no longer acceptable, the amount of farmers has seriously diminished, and only a few travelling circuses actually remain.  It is hard to relate to the spirit of the open road, because I really haven’t travelled across the U.S. with a bunch of strangers and a few friends.  I’m assuming a larger section of the story will center on Denver due to the amount of hype the main character is giving it.  With the majority of his friends already in Denver, I am really anticipating the Denver section of the book to be rather important and central to the theme of this story.  I also find it interesting in how much of the story takes place on the open road.  When I drove from Dallas to Miami there wasn’t a whole lot of stuff to describe or really talk about in an interesting way, yet Jack Kerouac has written an interesting 300 page novel about just that.  Another thing that I think definitely doesn’t relate to our time period is the quality and kindness of the strangers.  They have lots of respect and care for the hitchhikers, and don’t seem to mind having someone to talk to on their individual journey’s.     

Sharon's Response to Ciara's Reaction

I think it’s interesting how Ciara says that the narrator is going through a midlife crisis as the comparison is, for the most part, true. The narrator’s attitude changes dramatically after splitting with his wife and he becomes depressed. Yet after meeting Dean, the narrator becomes drawn towards the adventure and exuberance Dean embodies and seems to finally recognize his own freedom and the value of excitement. The narrator now purposefully initiates the trip to the West that he had before only vaguely thought about but never got around to. I don't think his change in attitude is necessarily tied to realization of his age, but more of the recognition of his new situation and the ability to take advantage of it after becoming inspired by Dean.  In addition, I don’t particularly think that the narrator tries to live vicariously through Dean, as Ciara says. This could imply that the narrator does not really apply himself and is happy just observing Dean without attempting anything himself. The narrator does use Dean as a sort of muse to write and enjoys hearing about his adventures, yet he is not completely sedentary as he joins Dean on trips to New York. However, I do see what Ciara means as Dean inspired the narrator into developing his current attitude and is the reason why the narrator aimed to undertake the trip towards the West.

In Response to Sharon- Ciara Keane

It is interesting what Sharon said about the tile representing a "journey that the narrator takes across the United States to the West", because the sentences that Sharon provided afterwards suggested that she meant not only a physical journey, but a spiritual journey as well.  Without his wife, the narrator has the  freedom to leave his old life behind, and his bold decision to trek across the country to start a whole new life shows his willingness to change.  Sharon also mentions that the narrator and Dean are so drawn to each other because they "seem to be exact opposites".  While this is true, I feel that the narrator is more drawn to Dean than Dean is to the narrator.  Dean is only staying with the narrator to use him for room, board, and knowledge, not because he was particularly looking for a friend in Dean.  After all, Dean is a young, intelligent kid with big hopes for the future, while the narrator is a depressed divorcee without a purpose.  Dean was "conning [Jim] and [Jim] knew it", but this does not bother the narrator because he is just happy for the companionship he finds with Dean.  For this reason, even though Dean is using the narrator, their relationship is not one-sided because the narrator is using Dean too.  He is using Dean as a source of happiness, as well as an inspiration for his future.

Week 1 Reaction to On the Road

I had heard about this story before in my United States history class last year.  It didn't seem that interesting, just two hippies hitchhiking their way through the U.S.  I didn't think there could be an interesting plot developed around hitchhiking buddies in the late 1940’s.  My opinion has been reversed after the first two chapters.  Sal Paradise (the main character) narrates the story, and we experience everything that he thinks and feels.  He is a complex character who he is very smart and intellectual, but is bored with his current life.  He likes Dean because of Dean’s smart and adventurous spirit, connection to the open west, and slightly crazy attitude.  Everyone has had a moment in their life in which they had an urge to go do something different and exciting. The  main character’s adventurous spirit and determined outlook on the journey seems similar to Bilbo Baggins, the main character of The Hobbit.  It feels like an action adventure movie, and I’m along for a long ride.

Sharon's Reaction to Part I, Chp. 1-2

After reading the beginning of Jack Kerouac’s On the Road, I believe that the title seems to represent a journey that the narrator takes across the United States to the West. From the first two chapters, the narrator comes off as a reserved intellectual who, until he and his wife separated, did not especially attempt to step outside his boundaries or try anything new. He is normal and ordinary, staying behind the scenes. Yet the narrator now yearns for a new adventure and finds this positive spontaneity and exuberance that he lacks in the character of Dean. However, I find it to be interesting that Dean and the narrator seem to be exact opposites yet it is precisely for this reason that they are bound towards each other. To Dean, who has a checkered past, the narrator is the intelligent, knowledgeable man who Dean can learn from to create a better future and life; to the narrator, Dean represents the West and all its mystery and exuberance –qualities the narrator wishes he has and looks towards as his inspiration to write. It is also interesting to observe the narrator’s frustrated remarks in the second chapter as he gets mad at himself for getting lost the first time he starts off his own journey –he believes that he himself is incompetent and naïve. However, as the title relates, I believe he will eventually grow more relaxed and mature as his travel experiences increases and the story goes on.

Reaction to First Two Chapters- On the Road Blog- Ciara Keane

In the first two chapters, I got a good idea of the kind of person the narrator is.  Having just broken up with his wife, the narrator is going through a difficult time and Dean is just the right person to get him out of his slump.  Dean is intelligent and eager to take on life, and the narrator is attracted to hos vivacious character.  The narrator wants to be young, wild and free once more, and he tries to live vicariously through Dean while Dean is in New York because this is how the narrator once was in his childhood. The narrator wants excitement in his life and decides to make the move West like his friend Dean did, in hopes of finding a more exciting, promising life.  One could say that the narrator is going through a midlife crisis.  Dean is also an intriguing character, and I cannot blame the narrator for having such a interest in him.  Dean has been in and out of jail, which would leave him labeled as a lost cause in the eyes of many; but Dean has other plans, big plans, for his future.  He wants to become a successful writer with the tongue of an intellect, and nothing is going to get in his way.  I am interested to see where Dean ends up as the story progresses, because his effervescent character shows that he has the potential to do great things.

On the Road Blog first impressions

So far (Chapter 6) , Kerouac  has presented many great characters as the protagonist made his way to Denver,Colorado. One of the first impressions I got from this book was the initial listlessness of the narrator.  The author finds his "intellectual" friends lofty and pretentious and no longer finds comfort in Academia, claiming that "life hanging around campus had reached the completion of its cycle and was stultified". He promptly sets off west in search of new experiences and in hopes of better getting to know Dean Moriarty. I find it interesting how Sal admires certain people throughout the novel , he admires Dean for his inexhaustible energy , claiming him to be a long lost brother of sorts. Similarly , he admires Eddie for the same exuberance and travels with him for a while until Eddie abruptly departs. In many ways that is what makes the character interactions in "On the Road" so meaningful ; Ultimately , they are  the fleeting encounters of strangers but encounters that are meaningful on a deep emotional level. Most of the people Sal meets are lost souls just like him,trying to find some sort of self-fulfillment in post-war America.