Jack Kerouac - Big Sur

[Indian Boy]

Ok, I just finished reading "Big Sur" written by 'the great' Jack Kerouac. I am so baffled by this guy's writing, or maybe I should rephrase that to say I am baffled by how this guy became a popular American writer.

What the hell is the story of Big Sur? As far as I can tell it's just a guy's daily journal of his time spent at a cabin in Big Sur, then his time spent in San Francisco, and only about a quarter of the writing in the book makes sense. What the hell is New York Times talking about when they say, "His grittiest book." ???? I've said it before after reading "On the Road" and "Dharma Bums" and now I'm yelling it after reading "Big Sur" - THIS GUY SUCKS!!!

I feel like Borders scammed me when they sold me "Big Sur" for fourteen dollars. I'm a sucker, I know. I've now read three of Keroauc's literary 'master pieces' and I'm convinced the guy couldn't write a story if his life depended on it. I've read "On the Road" three times this year alone (four times total) and I'm still lost for what the story is in that book??? I don't know what the beginning is, I don't know where the middle is, I don't know what the plot is, I don't know how the ending means anything. ??

So I guess my question now to everyone on this forum, and hopefully someone can enlighten me, because I am lost, but why is this guy considered a good author???
His books contain no story, the writing itself at times lacks any coherence or sense, to the point where a reader can read three or four pages and have no idea what he's reading. So what am I not seeing that others are?

I'd like to just state this- I like the idea of Jack Kerouac. The idea being that he was this wild, free spirited, boozer guy who journeyed across the roads of the U.S. at will with other wild guys all before the 60's and the hippies and all that. But as far as a writer goes, Kerouac was terrible. I guess maybe I'm just baffled with people's inability to go against the public opinion. I know, I know, Jack Kerouac was sooo cool and we're all supposed to love and admire "On the Road" and all that, but why can't someone else please agree with me that after really thinking about Kerouac and his writing, he sucks?

[Dinkleberry2010]

First of all, I'll say this: On The Road has no plot--none, zip. Kerouac is one of the most overrated writers in history. So much of On The Road is made up of phrases that were at the time--the 1950s--in style, but now they have lost any meaning they had. Just an example of Kerouac's writing from On The Road: "So we sat for awhile and pulled wrists." Okay, in the 1950s, that meant something--pulling wrists was some kind of phrase among the "hip" and "cool" that meant something to them. But now, it means nothing. It's incomprehensible. So much of Kerouac is incomprehensible, because he was writing for a certain time to a certain group of people. Kerouac is one of the most limited writers of all time.

[sixsmith]

First of all, I'll say this: On The Road has no plot--none, zip. Kerouac is one of the most overrated writers in history. So much of On The Road is made up of phrases that were at the time--the 1950s--in style, but now they have lost any meaning they had. Just an example of Kerouac's writing from On The Road: "So we sat for awhile and pulled wrists." Okay, in the 1950s, that meant something--pulling wrists was some kind of phrase among the "hip" and "cool" that meant something to them. But now, it means nothing. It's incomprehensible. So much of Kerouac is incomprehensible, because he was writing for a certain time to a certain group of people. Kerouac is one of the most limited writers of all time.

While it's certainly true that Kerouac's dialogue and idioms are indicative of the period and movement to which he belonged , that hardly makes him incomprehensible. I don't know what 'pulled wrists' (amongst other things) is meant to signify either, but forgoing that knowledge is hardly fatal to my understanding of the characters or the narrative. If you're baulking at the 50's vernacular, then you're not really giving yourself a chance. Similarly, dismissing a novel because it lacks a traditional 'plot' is a rather superficial move.

The novel has a lot of detractors: I sometimes wonder how much of that is an a priori distaste for the 'beat' culture. Personally, I find that Kerouac's much maligned prose frequently illuminates a captivating adventure: Sal's yearning, his confusion and eventual exhilaration still resonate with me today. Ultimately, however, I find it to be a powerful novel about loss and manhood, about the sadness and inevitability of having to face your own identity.

[Red-Headed]

Kerouac is one of the most overrated writers in history.

I'll second that!

[Dinkleberry2010]

You're implying that I am dismissing On The Road because it lacks a traditional plot. I didn't say that On The Road lacks a traditional plot. I said that it doesn't have a plot. And it doesn't.

You're also implying that the detracters of On The Road dislike it because of a distaste for the "beat culture." No, that has nothing to do with it. I dismiss On The Road because so much of it is made up of phrases that have lost any meaning they once had.

What I stated holds true: On The Road was written for a certain time to a certain group of people, and it is full of phrases that were once "hip" and "cool" in the 1950s, but now they mean nothing and are incomprehensible.

[Blanket Heist]

"Corporate America" needed a face to slap onto the "Beat Generation" so that it could be repackaged and sold to American teenagers.

Jack Kerouac: Beat Generation.
Kurt Cobain: Grunge.



thenagainIdoenjoysomeofKerouac'swork.

[LitNetIsGreat]

You're also implying that the detracters of On The Road dislike it because of a distaste for the "beat culture." No, that has nothing to do with it. I dismiss On The Road because so much of it is made up of phrases that have lost any meaning they once had.

So by the same token we can dismiss Shakespeare, Milton, Dante, Chaucer, certainly Joyce - in fact any literature written prior to 2008/9 and then only literature which is written to conform to the mainstream vernacular.

I know, I know, Jack Kerouac was sooo cool and we're all supposed to love and admire "On the Road" and all that, but why can't someone else please agree with me that after really thinking about Kerouac and his writing, he sucks?

No, I don't agree that "he sucks" I think that Kerouac has some very good moments - he is perhaps overrated to the extent of his writing, but I thought on the whole, One the Road, Dharma Bums and Big Sur worked.

[sixsmith]

You're implying that I am dismissing On The Road because it lacks a traditional plot. I didn't say that On The Road lacks a traditional plot. I said that it doesn't have a plot. And it doesn't.

OK. But I can only infer that the lack of plot informs your dislike of the novel. You asserted that 'On the Road has no plot', as if that fact, without more, somehow went to the quality of the work.

You're also implying that the detracters of On The Road dislike it because of a distaste for the "beat culture." No, that has nothing to do with it. I dismiss On The Road because so much of it is made up of phrases that have lost any meaning they once had.

OK. I was thinking out loud and reflecting on personal experience. Nevertheless, I agree with what Neely has suggested above. There are far greater works written with language now considered equally arcane and we don't dismiss them as redundant.

What I stated holds true: On The Road was written for a certain time to a certain group of people, and it is full of phrases that were once "hip" and "cool" in the 1950s, but now they mean nothing and are incomprehensible.

I can understand if the 'phrases' etc that Kerouac employs render his work irrelevant in your eyes, or how he might fail to universalize the particulars of his own experience. But surely, for all its idiosyncratic language (and I think you're overstating it), 'On the Road' is not incomprehensible.

[Hank Stamper]

I've only read Big Sur once, was a while ago now - but I seem to remember enjoying it..

But re. On The Road.. (well done for reading it four times even though you hate him so much!).. not all literature needs to have a narrative arc that has a clear beginning, middle and end - my understanding of On The Road is that it is the search for 'it' (ie spiritual fulfillment) and the futility of such a quest because 'it' is not a destination, but the search itself.. obviously with all good literature it is open to interpretation.. and that is just one of many interpretations

I guess some people don't get on with stream of consciousness either (I read Doctor Sax recently which is tough going; in fact I didn't enjoy it at all).. but generally I think Kerouac is a good writer - not because it is 'cool' to like him, but because it is a style that flicks a middle finger to literary convention and captures the sense of alienation from society that is still relevant for most young people today

I'm not sure you can blame Borders for scamming you.. sounds like you've scammed yourself, if you had already established how much you dislike Kerouac, I cannot work out why you would go out and buy another one of his books

[Red-Headed]

"Corporate America" needed a face to slap onto the "Beat Generation" so that it could be repackaged and sold to American teenagers.

Jack Kerouac: Beat Generation.
Kurt Cobain: Grunge.

A tad cynical, but very probably true.

[Indian Boy]

One of you asked why I would have gone out and purchased Big Sur if I've already established that I disliked Mr. Jack Kerouac. My answer is I bought Big Sur for the same reason I'll probably buy Maggie Cassidy some day--because I'm still trying to figure out why Jack Kerouac is considered a good writer. I'm still trying to figure out why some of you continue to say that you enjoy reading his books. Because as far as I can tell he was just some drunk guy with a type writer who typed a bunch of words that became sentences that became pages that became enough pages to call it a book.

I know that a good book doesn't necessarily have to follow a certain structure in terms of beginning, middle, end, plot, climax, etc., but shouldn't a book contain some kind of story to it? On the Road makes very little sense to me. Basically I can sum up the entire book like this:

I toko a bus from New York to Denver and met Dean. He was wild jail kid and said "hot damn" alot. Then we drove to San Francisco. We got jobs and Dean said "Hot Damn!" Then we were roaring across the big desert and I said, "This is fun" and Dean had that wild look in his eye and he hollered, "Hot Damn!" Then we went to New Orleans and then back to San Francisco, then to New York, then did it all again, and Dean yelled "hot damn!"

The End


That pretty much sums up the great literary work of On The Road, doesn't it?

[badtrip]

I enjoyed On The Road because of its vigour, it was... very vigorous, if I can say this about a book at all, but that's the end of my adventure with Kerouac. Although On The Road has no general interesting plot it's written in a style that helps the reader get into the memoirs of somebody just as they happened, as they could have happened to the reader in the place of the narrator.

But then I bought Dharma Bums and I thought that I can't understand this think in my mother-language so I didn't even bother to look up what the hell there's said in english. This book is so full of words from buddhism and so strange plot turns that I just can't comprehend it. Thus I thought: "Bull****" and put it away. The only thing I remember is something about zen-sex but nothing more.

So for me, yeah, Kerouac is damn overrated.

[Dinkleberry2010]

It seems that Indian Boy and I hit a raw nerve with a few who seem to think Kerouac is a good writer and On The Road is a good book, despite the fact that it has no plot, is written in a style that can only be called juvenile, and is filled with phrases that have lost any meaning they once had and are incomprehensible. All that doesn't matter, does it. All that matters is that Kerouac was so hip and cool, and On The Road is such a hip cool book. Personally, I believe that Mary Had A Little Lamb is a hip cool nursery rhyme.

It strikes me as funny that a few are racking their brains trying to come up with reasons why they like Kerouac and think he was a good writer and that On The Road is a minor masterpiece. When all is said, it won't change the fact that Kerouac was a bad writer and On The Road was a badly written book.

[Hank Stamper]

One of you asked why I would have gone out and purchased Big Sur if I've already established that I disliked Mr. Jack Kerouac. My answer is I bought Big Sur for the same reason I'll probably buy Maggie Cassidy some day--because I'm still trying to figure out why Jack Kerouac is considered a good writer.

well that's good, i admire your perseverance!

but re. on the road and its lack of a story.. define 'story'... perhaps you have a very clear (and maybe formulaic) idea of what a story should be..

perhaps you just need to dig a little deeper... and maybe forget everything you were taught at school about plot and structure

but i think kerouac speaks to a specific type of person (somebody who is unwilling to conform/who is dissatisfied with the mundane and wants to seek out new experiences and discover spiritual fulfillment etc) and maybe you are not one of these people.. nothing wrong with that.. the world would be very boring if we all liked the same old guff, eh?

It seems that Indian Boy and I hit a raw nerve with a few who seem to think Kerouac is a good writer

it's called debate..

[LitNetIsGreat]

He’s not a great writer and a case could certainly be made that he is overrated or appeals predominately to certain groups, but he is not a bad writer, neither are his works "incomprehensible" not by a long way. He is a writer that seems to really split opinion and often people hate his work, you only have to do a search on this forum to see the number of posts dedicated to Kerouac haters or those who are just generally bemused. Other people really dig him.

Me, I read about 7 or 8 of his novels/collections of shorts, a few years ago one summer mostly with a deal of pleasure. For me his best and most complete work is Dharma Bums by quite a stretch, followed by On the Road and then a lot of his other works are patchy with a few highs only.

Overall though, I like Kerouac.