In this quintessential piece of travel literature, Kerouac touches on a variety of topics surrounding travel, but perhaps more significantly on the idea of what motivates us to travel. Within his piece, On the Road, there is an earnest yearning that drives the piece. Something is always missing, something just a little further away, something just out of reach…and in many ways Kerouac posits this as the endless goal of travel—to find what is missing in our lives through experiences that take us out of our element.
One of the repetitive examples of this desire for the “other” or the beyond is through the romanticization of the West. This comes across in Sal’s excitement over this trip in exclaiming that it will be “the greatest ride in [his] life”. He also makes references to the mystique of the West and describes specific suits or ideas as particularly “Western”. Upon reaching Denver, even the ants (that probably would have annoyed him in New York) simply remind him of his great fortune to be where he has hoped to be for so long; "the only discomfort being an occasional Colorado ant. And here I am in Colorado! I kept thinking gleefully. Damn! damn! damn! I'm making it!" (Kerouac 36). Toward the middle of the novel, he even refers to himself and his two friends as the “Western threesome” and therefore even uses this other in a way that he hopes to define himself and what connects him and his friends—the dream of adventures in the beyond (Kerouac 123).
Another more sophisticated representation of this desire is through the discussions on the grape farm with Terry and her family (Kerouac 24). It is on this farm that discussions reveal that simply holding on and extending life a little bit further to “manana” is what motivates people from remaining stagnant (Kerouac 94). Terry asks Sal if he thinks “everything’ll be all right tomorrow, don’t you think, Sal-honey, man?” (Kerouac 94). This striving for the beyond and for something just a little further also extends to an almost religious or transcendental phase when in the same scene Sal reflects on this word; “It was always manana. For the next week that was all I heard—manana, a lovely word and one that probably means heaven” (Kerouac 94). Kerouac imposes this spirit and hope and harnesses it to drive the story, of a seemingly endless journey, as something that remains constant and yet representing a climax that is always just out of reach.
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Get Your Own Rebellion
Earlier in the semester, I wrote a blog about a trip I took to Greece with my family and the lesson I learned is that you have to step out of your comfort zone to gain any valuable experience. Throw out the guidebooks and preconceptions and just go – this will be my new motto for future trips. I was reminded of my lesson while reading Jack Kerouac’s "On the Road" in the theme of rebellion and in connection to rebellion, what it means to be human.
Sal and the band of misfits he runs around with all want to shed the idea of what is normal, or what dream society believes they should be chasing. Sal, Dean, Chad, Carlo, and Old Bull distance themselves from the ordinary American Dream and choose to follow their own paths and dreams all over the country. We are able to experience Sal’s experience hitchhiking across America and meet the crazy travelers he encounters along the way who have “nowhere to go but everywhere” (26). Sal was a great viewpoint for me to experience this through because he was so naïve and good-natured so everything that was new to me was also new to him. You see him befriend the most unlikely characters, get drunk, spend all his money on other people, and try to leave behind some of his past.
One of the most striking comments Sal makes is, “I was halfway across America, at the dividing line between the East of my youth and the West of my Future” (15) and this was the reason he suddenly woke up one morning during his travels not knowing who he was or what he was doing. I believe that because Sal was so busy following Dean and Chad to Denver, to get to their destination because that’s where the whole gang was having the time of their lives, he lost sight for a little while of why he wanted to travel across America in the first place. This shows human nature – to want to be a part of something bigger and also the realization of doing something your own way. You can rebel all you want but if you follow someone else’s rebellious dream, you’ll quickly loose sight of what you really want.
In Greece, it was my family’s instinct to follow the beaten path the guidebooks laid out but figuring out the best way for US to see Greece was so much more rewarding and Sal ends up making friends and gaining his own experience when he stops paying complete attention to the straight path to Denver.
Sal and the band of misfits he runs around with all want to shed the idea of what is normal, or what dream society believes they should be chasing. Sal, Dean, Chad, Carlo, and Old Bull distance themselves from the ordinary American Dream and choose to follow their own paths and dreams all over the country. We are able to experience Sal’s experience hitchhiking across America and meet the crazy travelers he encounters along the way who have “nowhere to go but everywhere” (26). Sal was a great viewpoint for me to experience this through because he was so naïve and good-natured so everything that was new to me was also new to him. You see him befriend the most unlikely characters, get drunk, spend all his money on other people, and try to leave behind some of his past.
One of the most striking comments Sal makes is, “I was halfway across America, at the dividing line between the East of my youth and the West of my Future” (15) and this was the reason he suddenly woke up one morning during his travels not knowing who he was or what he was doing. I believe that because Sal was so busy following Dean and Chad to Denver, to get to their destination because that’s where the whole gang was having the time of their lives, he lost sight for a little while of why he wanted to travel across America in the first place. This shows human nature – to want to be a part of something bigger and also the realization of doing something your own way. You can rebel all you want but if you follow someone else’s rebellious dream, you’ll quickly loose sight of what you really want.
In Greece, it was my family’s instinct to follow the beaten path the guidebooks laid out but figuring out the best way for US to see Greece was so much more rewarding and Sal ends up making friends and gaining his own experience when he stops paying complete attention to the straight path to Denver.
The pursuit of dreams is a theme that seems to be prevalent throughout Kerouac’s On the Road, as Sal Paradise longs to escape and experience the unknown. Traveling, as we know, is a way of broadening our own horizons, and as a writer, Paradise wants the experiences that only travel would be able to give him. Even minor characters like the girl Sal meets at the bus station in Cheyenne longs to go to New York because “Ain’t no place to go but Cheyenne and ain’t nothin in Cheyenne” (33). Everyone seems to want something out of life but the difficulties arise in actually achieving these dreams. Although Sal is eager to travel to the West, at times he is consumed with a profound sense of loneliness and questions his decisions: “What was I doing three thousand miles from home? Why had I come here?” (75) Because of the nature of being “on the road”, where nothing is permanent or familiar, Paradise is constantly lonesome. Despite his uncertainty though, Paradise continues to search for his promised land.
Community also seems to play a large part within this story. Hitchhikers are constantly picked up, people lend money to others, and there exists an overall sense of camaraderie because everyone is attempting the same journey. ‘“We’re all in this together!’ yelled Ponzo. I saw that was so—everywhere I went, everybody was in it together” (92). While travel can be an isolating experience, it also has the power to connect and unite people on the road. Many characters in the book lend money, lodging, and even food to their comrades because these people represent a collective group of individuals, all traveling in different directions but all understanding what it is like to struggle. Being on the road itself is a struggle because unlike travel that is mapped out and planned, Sal leaves everything up to fate; “all the golden land’s ahead of you and all kinds of unforeseen events wait lurking to surprise you and make you glad you’re alive” (135). Although Dean and Sal struggle on the road, ultimately their experiences are meaningful because they give these men something to live for, and a feeling of pure exhilaration. They travel to the West because it allows them to experience different kinds of people, places, and things, which is essentially what travel itself is all about. It is a journey of self discovery and questioning how far one will go and what they will endure to reach their dreams.
Community also seems to play a large part within this story. Hitchhikers are constantly picked up, people lend money to others, and there exists an overall sense of camaraderie because everyone is attempting the same journey. ‘“We’re all in this together!’ yelled Ponzo. I saw that was so—everywhere I went, everybody was in it together” (92). While travel can be an isolating experience, it also has the power to connect and unite people on the road. Many characters in the book lend money, lodging, and even food to their comrades because these people represent a collective group of individuals, all traveling in different directions but all understanding what it is like to struggle. Being on the road itself is a struggle because unlike travel that is mapped out and planned, Sal leaves everything up to fate; “all the golden land’s ahead of you and all kinds of unforeseen events wait lurking to surprise you and make you glad you’re alive” (135). Although Dean and Sal struggle on the road, ultimately their experiences are meaningful because they give these men something to live for, and a feeling of pure exhilaration. They travel to the West because it allows them to experience different kinds of people, places, and things, which is essentially what travel itself is all about. It is a journey of self discovery and questioning how far one will go and what they will endure to reach their dreams.
The Fat Businessmen
Kerouac, throughout his journey, is infatuated with the West and what it represents. The mountain ranges and desolate prairies call to his soul. But for all the times he is excited with the West, there are times on his trip where his expectations are not realized. One such example comes when he and Montana Slim visit Cheyenne for the first time. He writes of the town, “Big crowds of business men, fat businessmen in boots and ten-gallon hats, with their hefty wives in cowgirl attire … Blank guns went off … I was amazed, and at the same time I felt it was ridiculous: in my first shot at the West I was seeing to what absurd devices it had fallen to keep its proud tradition” (33).
This, Paradise muses, is an absurd sight. The charade lacks any real meaning or to use onomatopoeia, any ‘oomph.’ Just as the ‘blank guns’ are weak and pointless, so too is the performance itself. It is fake, pure and simple; a pathetic attempt to hold on to a past that the participants never really had. They have idealized the historical past into something romantic. Sal, for all his travel, might have had a more authentic ‘Wild West’ experience if he had stayed in New York.
But Paradise does not fail in his search for the authentic West. Kerouac writes, “Here came this Nebraska farmer with a bunch of other boys into the diner … I said to myself, Wham, listen to that man laugh. That’s the West, here I am in the West” (21). The contrast between the farmer and his friends and the ugly veneer of the Western reenactment is stunning. The essence of the West, and perhaps ultimately of America, is not in staged performances, but everyday people and the struggles and joys of their lives.
This is also represented in the character of Montana Slim. By outsiders, he might be called, at best a vagabond, at worst a degenerate. His unkempt appearance and penchant for booze are unsettling, to say the least. But Paradise does not view him as such. Rather, Montana Slim is a true American, a man who has rode the rails for as long as he can remember, truly experiencing the Wild West. He is the real cowboy, a concept that would be entirely foreign to the “fat businessmen” who can only play at being cowboys.
This, Paradise muses, is an absurd sight. The charade lacks any real meaning or to use onomatopoeia, any ‘oomph.’ Just as the ‘blank guns’ are weak and pointless, so too is the performance itself. It is fake, pure and simple; a pathetic attempt to hold on to a past that the participants never really had. They have idealized the historical past into something romantic. Sal, for all his travel, might have had a more authentic ‘Wild West’ experience if he had stayed in New York.
But Paradise does not fail in his search for the authentic West. Kerouac writes, “Here came this Nebraska farmer with a bunch of other boys into the diner … I said to myself, Wham, listen to that man laugh. That’s the West, here I am in the West” (21). The contrast between the farmer and his friends and the ugly veneer of the Western reenactment is stunning. The essence of the West, and perhaps ultimately of America, is not in staged performances, but everyday people and the struggles and joys of their lives.
This is also represented in the character of Montana Slim. By outsiders, he might be called, at best a vagabond, at worst a degenerate. His unkempt appearance and penchant for booze are unsettling, to say the least. But Paradise does not view him as such. Rather, Montana Slim is a true American, a man who has rode the rails for as long as he can remember, truly experiencing the Wild West. He is the real cowboy, a concept that would be entirely foreign to the “fat businessmen” who can only play at being cowboys.
Final Tattoo Reflection
The art of tattoo has the power to change and mark, more than superficially, the individual who wears it. It may be a reference to a personal journey, an accomplishment, or a tribute to a loved one, but regardless of motivation, the tattoo stands as a permanent reminder of a pinnacle moment for the wearer. The traditional tatau helped to create this notion, but even more so, it helped contextualize the one who wore the tattoo as a member of a specific community. This cultural motif may seem foreign to the Western eye, yet it is this communal rite of passage that helped the initial art to flourish.
“The Pacific patterns convey that the individual is a member of a particular family, tribe, or community, and may depict everything from a person’s birthplace to authority inherited and achieved,” (11). It is in this way that tattooing is a physical representation of something greater than self, something not only more powerful but insightful, full of rich history and encompassing a notion of longevity. The wearing of a tattoo bears almost a theological power, it serves as a noticeable and sometimes recognizable demonstration of community. “The practice also conveys an ethic—of responsibility to one’s family and community—and is thus related to concepts of the sacred and profane,” (12). This idea functions specifically in the moko face designs which distinguish a person’s particular “affiliations and ancestry, the lines of descent and ascent that make the individual part of a community and give her or him a standing place in the world,” (22). It is in this way that the process, as dictated by the greater community, welcomes and praises its members. This sense of cultural kinship, however, displays each member as having negated personal identification for the sake of that of the community; this communal ideology only functions when the individual is present within the group. “Once the bearer leaves the Pacific the tattoo requires explanation, inspires new narratives. This is how the art of tattoo simultaneously notes a person for his or her individuality.
The notion of culture clashing appears in the anecdote surrounding James F. O’Connell. For him, the act of leaving the traditional Pacific region, which bestowed him with the traditional tattoo, means that he must now explicate for all who see him. The tattoos, taken out of their intended context, take on new connotation, “the lightly patterned lines that adorn his hands, arms, legs, and thighs. But the tattoos still speak, even in North America. They mean what O’Connell says they mean,” (3). This demonstrates the strong individualistic ties associated with tattoo. “The marks that made O’Connell ordinary in the Pacific made him extraordinary in the United States; he carried the material signs of his subjectivity with him,” (49). As noted through intellectual discourse on this matter, there is no “official” regulation as to what age a person should be in order to receive the tattoo, or more contemporarily, whether or not someone should receive the tattoo at all. In that way, the practice of receiving the tattoo is still a personal choice. Especially in the more modern, western tradition, tattoos are seen as a private matter, with deep associated meaning for the wearer. The example of Mike Tyson and his moko-like tattoo, exemplifies this model as he simply goes on to say, “‘a tattoo is personal,’” (197). Additionally, Dr. Ellis points to other scholarly investigation which says, “that in the United States the meaning of the tattoo design is symbolic, readable only by the few or the one,” (197). And so, the art of tattoo places itself in a precarious position between self and society, which straddle two very different expressions of personality.
Moreover, tattoo can be neither simply a demonstration of community, nor merely a representation of self. It is always a personal choice, regardless of community pressure, while in the act of choosing one becomes a member of a Pacific culture, sometimes unknowingly. Tattoo’s ownership sits at the crux of our humanity, it tugs at our desire to both express our individuality yet feel welcomed and appreciated. Glancing at someone’s seemingly pointless tattoo one might wonder how this art form could ever correlate to a deeper understanding of our human nature. Through study it becomes clearer that tattoo moves beyond the traditional bounds of cultural diffusion into a new and complex genre of self-actualization through cultural motifs.
“The Pacific patterns convey that the individual is a member of a particular family, tribe, or community, and may depict everything from a person’s birthplace to authority inherited and achieved,” (11). It is in this way that tattooing is a physical representation of something greater than self, something not only more powerful but insightful, full of rich history and encompassing a notion of longevity. The wearing of a tattoo bears almost a theological power, it serves as a noticeable and sometimes recognizable demonstration of community. “The practice also conveys an ethic—of responsibility to one’s family and community—and is thus related to concepts of the sacred and profane,” (12). This idea functions specifically in the moko face designs which distinguish a person’s particular “affiliations and ancestry, the lines of descent and ascent that make the individual part of a community and give her or him a standing place in the world,” (22). It is in this way that the process, as dictated by the greater community, welcomes and praises its members. This sense of cultural kinship, however, displays each member as having negated personal identification for the sake of that of the community; this communal ideology only functions when the individual is present within the group. “Once the bearer leaves the Pacific the tattoo requires explanation, inspires new narratives. This is how the art of tattoo simultaneously notes a person for his or her individuality.
The notion of culture clashing appears in the anecdote surrounding James F. O’Connell. For him, the act of leaving the traditional Pacific region, which bestowed him with the traditional tattoo, means that he must now explicate for all who see him. The tattoos, taken out of their intended context, take on new connotation, “the lightly patterned lines that adorn his hands, arms, legs, and thighs. But the tattoos still speak, even in North America. They mean what O’Connell says they mean,” (3). This demonstrates the strong individualistic ties associated with tattoo. “The marks that made O’Connell ordinary in the Pacific made him extraordinary in the United States; he carried the material signs of his subjectivity with him,” (49). As noted through intellectual discourse on this matter, there is no “official” regulation as to what age a person should be in order to receive the tattoo, or more contemporarily, whether or not someone should receive the tattoo at all. In that way, the practice of receiving the tattoo is still a personal choice. Especially in the more modern, western tradition, tattoos are seen as a private matter, with deep associated meaning for the wearer. The example of Mike Tyson and his moko-like tattoo, exemplifies this model as he simply goes on to say, “‘a tattoo is personal,’” (197). Additionally, Dr. Ellis points to other scholarly investigation which says, “that in the United States the meaning of the tattoo design is symbolic, readable only by the few or the one,” (197). And so, the art of tattoo places itself in a precarious position between self and society, which straddle two very different expressions of personality.
Moreover, tattoo can be neither simply a demonstration of community, nor merely a representation of self. It is always a personal choice, regardless of community pressure, while in the act of choosing one becomes a member of a Pacific culture, sometimes unknowingly. Tattoo’s ownership sits at the crux of our humanity, it tugs at our desire to both express our individuality yet feel welcomed and appreciated. Glancing at someone’s seemingly pointless tattoo one might wonder how this art form could ever correlate to a deeper understanding of our human nature. Through study it becomes clearer that tattoo moves beyond the traditional bounds of cultural diffusion into a new and complex genre of self-actualization through cultural motifs.
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Escape
Many class discussions have been centered around the idea of the relationship between travel and experience. I myself have discussed it in one of my earlier blog posts and I have noticed it popping up in a few of the other students as well. In accordance with that idea another theme that has made its way throughout literature and discussion is the the notion that one does not have to physically move very far to both travel and experience.
Those drastic changes are one of the ways in which people can have this experience in travel. Those differences are also what afford the students of Loyola the opportunities to provide services to the city and the people of the city. I have worked at the Choice Program for just about a year now. One of the things that is particularly difficult about working there is that I am not guaranteed to encounter the same kids week after week. I have to try to make a connection with them, earn their trust so that I can have an impact and then leave a thought in their head in three hours.
What I have noticed about the kids is that they are very skeptical about listening to a (for lack of better words) white college kid. Who am I to tell them what to do? Who am I to teach them something? What do I know about their lives or how they ended up where they are in life? When I realized that a few of them do come back, time after time, or at least once in a while is that this is not only a learning experience for them it is an escape. An escape from a neighborhood that may only be a few blocks away. So while I need to do my job, and try to leave them with something to think about their future, I also have to acknowledge that this is their travel, their escape. They get to leave their lives behind for a few hours a week and live, in some respect, like I do.
To the east of our campus is
Also, as a sort of a side note for those people that did have the time to participate in the service learning approach to this class it is interesting to be a part of someone else’s experience. We think of our service as a journey, as those we serve endeavor on their own.
Looking Past the Surface
On the last day of elementary school my librarian read Dr.Seuss’s “Oh, the Places You’ll Go!”, at the time being a cool fifth grader, I thought we out grew Dr. Seuss and his childish stories, so I just sat back and listened to my librarian treat us as if we were first graders.
Years went by, and I hadn’t heard one story by Dr.Seuss, until my senior year of high school. My English teacher read us “Oh, the Places You’ll Go!”, and now I understood why my elementary school librarian wanted to end our education with some inspiration. The story touches on the topics of exploring the world, and as a child I thought the book was referring to the many vacations I would take with my parents. Now looking back on my shallow understanding of Dr. Seuss’s writing I am inspired by the intricate writing found within.
“Oh, the Places You’ll Go!” may be a child’s book, but the lessons within the text are addressed to anyone, as a child you may only understand the literal meaning of the words, but with education and time the deeper understanding is revealed. Just like in Dr. Ellis’s Tattooing the World, “the tattoo designs, like print characters, appear to be the stuff on which meaning is made” (3).
Tattoo’s signify more then the actual symbol or pattern on the skin, but a statement and expression of the soul. The symbol of getting a tattoo represents importance a person holds on the pattern or image that they place on their body. Just like “Oh, the Places You’ll Go!” now that I understand the deeper meaning within the book, I can pass on the experience and lessons found hidden within the text. Now the person with the tattoo can share their story and hidden meaning (if they want to) to the viewer.
As Dr. Seuss states: “You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose. You're on your own, and you know what you know. And you are the one who'll decide where you'll go. Oh the places you'll go.” The text may describe an actual ‘vacation’ or trip, but the true meaning is behind the surface.
Just like tattoo literature or any form of art supplies the viewer with inspiration, forcing them into a new world of imagination. As Dr. Ellis states, tattoo “involves both surface and depth [that] makes visible the simultaneous intensification and joining of the interior and the exterior” (18). Tattoo is an instrument to understanding a person, by representing their story with art on their skin.
Also this concept can be related back to C.S. Lewis’s “Voyage of the Dawn Treader”, where the picture on the wall pulled the children into their own world. Art serves as a window for imagination and inspiration. Also Lewis’s writing like Dr. Seuss’s writing demonstrates the important role that age and education has on understanding. The two authors writing appeals to children, but a deeper meaning can be made by the same individual as they age. Dr. Ellis discusses how tattoo embodies the same characteristics, and stresses the importance of perspective on interpretation of art.
Years went by, and I hadn’t heard one story by Dr.Seuss, until my senior year of high school. My English teacher read us “Oh, the Places You’ll Go!”, and now I understood why my elementary school librarian wanted to end our education with some inspiration. The story touches on the topics of exploring the world, and as a child I thought the book was referring to the many vacations I would take with my parents. Now looking back on my shallow understanding of Dr. Seuss’s writing I am inspired by the intricate writing found within.
“Oh, the Places You’ll Go!” may be a child’s book, but the lessons within the text are addressed to anyone, as a child you may only understand the literal meaning of the words, but with education and time the deeper understanding is revealed. Just like in Dr. Ellis’s Tattooing the World, “the tattoo designs, like print characters, appear to be the stuff on which meaning is made” (3).
Tattoo’s signify more then the actual symbol or pattern on the skin, but a statement and expression of the soul. The symbol of getting a tattoo represents importance a person holds on the pattern or image that they place on their body. Just like “Oh, the Places You’ll Go!” now that I understand the deeper meaning within the book, I can pass on the experience and lessons found hidden within the text. Now the person with the tattoo can share their story and hidden meaning (if they want to) to the viewer.
As Dr. Seuss states: “You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose. You're on your own, and you know what you know. And you are the one who'll decide where you'll go. Oh the places you'll go.” The text may describe an actual ‘vacation’ or trip, but the true meaning is behind the surface.
Just like tattoo literature or any form of art supplies the viewer with inspiration, forcing them into a new world of imagination. As Dr. Ellis states, tattoo “involves both surface and depth [that] makes visible the simultaneous intensification and joining of the interior and the exterior” (18). Tattoo is an instrument to understanding a person, by representing their story with art on their skin.
Also this concept can be related back to C.S. Lewis’s “Voyage of the Dawn Treader”, where the picture on the wall pulled the children into their own world. Art serves as a window for imagination and inspiration. Also Lewis’s writing like Dr. Seuss’s writing demonstrates the important role that age and education has on understanding. The two authors writing appeals to children, but a deeper meaning can be made by the same individual as they age. Dr. Ellis discusses how tattoo embodies the same characteristics, and stresses the importance of perspective on interpretation of art.
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