Featured Writers—3: BEAT Poets
Oh, our current times....how much we should remember and learn from those before us. A favorite generation of writers for me—the Beat Generation!
Aaah….to not just see the footprints of those who once trod the very ground under our own feet, but to step within them and transport ourselves to their time and experiences…that’s what reading can do; it is what it does for me.
~W-Gray, 2024
Well! Hello all and sundry!
Come on in! I have been excited about our visit here today and sure hope you enjoy the little nuggets of yummy I have found to share with you! Get your favorite beverage, maybe some sweet and salty munchies, and let’s talk!
Here we are at July’s Featured Writers post! The end of the month! Where did that time go?!?!!! Are you as stunned as I am?! Sheesh! Well, let's get to it!! This post is a special one for me as I have a strong affinity for the Beat generation poets!
In preparation for and in writing this post, I have felt all kinds of Quantum Leap and Back to the Future vibes! It has been~ past revisited, present felt, and future hoped! I pray you will see what I mean by the end of this post! I can’t tell you what the going back has done to reignite, to thrill, to satiate my soul! Literally, I can give you some inkling, but the all encompassing height and depth of it—there are not enough words or pages or time to cover it ALL! Now, that is actually a great feeling and a good thing! It leaves some parts sacred for me, and keeps some of what I would like to share as deliciousness to be served to you another time.
This group of writers, from a time that pre-dates me—1950s, has held a light on my being since I was first introduced to them and their writing in the early 90s. How I wanted to write like they did! The 90s, for my life, was college time , though non-traditionally. A tad bit of living was under my belt when I went back to finish my bachelors; I was mid-twenties and divorced. Learning hit me differently then; different than it did when 18 or 19. Maturity of mind was in better swing, though still in anticipation of my own homerun(s)! A curiosity of all things beyond our state’s borders was present and pulsing. It turns out that it was the ideal time to meet and appreciate these writers unveiled to me.
Not only was the timing perfect, but the person to enlighten, a professor, was quintessential! With ponytailed hair, casual in jeans and sneakers, he’d sit upon a formal desk in front of us and gift a poetic present I have forever cherished! My life, having been enclosed in a rural Montana, monochrome bubble, became a birthday balloon burst in celebratory fashion. Every class produced a rainbow of word confetti and because of that, I couldn’t get enough! It was intriguing, electrifying, and completely FABULOUS! Quite honestly, I would still be taking his classes if the universe allowed! (Much love and gratitude to you, Dr. Gary Lundy!)
Through him (and a few others if I am being fair) the door was swung open to life and what it meant to know it and live it. Now prior, I had read writers from all over the globe. You know the ones! Those cemented in the curriculums of high school; the ones that, for a teenager, tasted like a meal devoid even of salt. In that sense, the “world” was not unknown to me, BUT I was naively unaware of the ingenious wordsmiths I would encounter collegiately in the courses he taught. They were life enriching and FULL of flavor!!! And the Beat poets, WELL, they were an excellently prepared multi-course meal!
Now, some of you are likely quite familiar with the Beats and I am anticipating a future of wonderful conversation! For any readers who have never heard of this group of brilliance, I am excited that you are here and getting your own introduction! I see lots of reading in your future and good talks with you as well! So, let’s serve this up, shall we!!
BEAT POETS
The Poetry Foundation gives a great, quick introduction: who these poets were, when they came on life’s writing scene, and what they offered this world in way of poetry and ideas. A wonderful thing about the Poetry Foundation is that they provide some introductory poems for most of these Beat poets! You can sample the offering there and then decide on a supper of their works from other sources: have a Google or purchase any of their books!
Many of these authors have taken their exit from the here and now, but their words stay immortal. Or, they SHOULD! God forbid we live out Fahrenheit 451! (May we extinguish the fear-filled ideas which promote such banning of or burning of books in the streets!) Well, don’t get me riled!!!
The likely most familiar of the Beat poets are: Allen Ginsberg, Herbert Huncke, William S. Burroughs, Gregory Corso, Jack Kerouac, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Diane di Prima, Neal Cassady, and not as known for their connection to the Beat poets, yet influential, contributing presences were Bob Kaufman and LeRoi Jones (Amiri Baraka). Well, there are 50 plus definite poets of their time and ilk, each considered contributors to this fantastic generation of personal freedom seekers and societal change makers. For those I mentioned, I’ve linked their obits…well, not morbidly, of course, but because people say much about us when we’re no longer here. Anyway, to tingle your reading palate, you have a lot of poet/writers from whom to choose!
My personal favorites, and those I will share more about here, are Kerouac, Corso, Ferlinghetti, Bob Kaufman, and di Prima (these links provide a taste of each poet reading their early work, other than Kaufman’s—hard to find). ENJOY!!! I know I was lifted among the clouds in finding these! JUST SO AWESOME hearing their poems read by themselves at a time when they wrote them! Gives me goosebumps and shivers!
What makes these poets so special to me? Good question! I don’t think it’s any one thing, but a tossed salad of personal taste, topics, form, style, and shared experience, emotions, attitude, beliefs, struggles, passions. In one bite, it’s really a genuine appreciation for not only what they wrote, but who they were as human beings. I DO love humans and the human experience! (Okay, if I am completely honest…I have a love of most. There are a few…who I really don’t like at all, but bless their hearts anyway!)
I’ll acknowledge, before you ask, ‘How can you like these folks….MOST of these guys, and women, were absorbed in drugs, sex, drinking heavily, breaking the law, raising hell, have been in jail or prison, and all of that? As a Christian wouldn’t you steer clear of these types, such sinners?!”
My response: NO! Yes, the crazy, turbulent, poor choices (sometimes), and whatever else are certainly an aspect of their lives. Did they experience things that I would not likely do myself, well, yes—no intentions of cloning (at least not most of it…HaHa…who hasn’t dabbled in the dark?!). Admittedly, I am a sinner myself (we ALL are) and I choose not to cast stones. It’s quite okay to not live similarly, good or bad, to someone and still care about who they are, what they have to share, and acknowledge that they lived.
Yes, I am a sinner following the teachings of Jesus more than I am a “Christian”; these days and times have certainly established there are multiple definitions of Christian and sects of Christianity, many of which contradict my following. Jesus did hang out with sinners, so….
Anyway, as far as this crew, what I did not find in them was a promoted hate for other people. They disagreed, oft strongly, with many, but a loathful malice to hate and harm, no. So, no, not worried about reading or learning about them. With that, I do love these poets/writers for the humans they are(were), for the craft they loved (as do I), and for many of their messages and actions to promote freedom and change in the world.
They challenged, in the most genuine way, those who would and WERE manipulating our freedoms and the Bill of Rights, which was supposed to guarantee them, particularly the 1st Amendment. Shoot, they often went to jail because their writing was ‘illegal’ or their voices needed ‘silenced’ or their ideas stoked the fears of those with a certain societal expectation. (My heart gets quite sad for those whose faith is fear and their hate defends it.) For this time in history all of this was undeniably the status quo. Truly, these writers were doing what humans have always done, question and challenge life and what it means to be here; shouldn’t we all be students of the human condition? They were. I am.
That’s my perspective in summary. Now, let’s share some special treats and learn something about them and their place in our American history. Not unlike we do now, they had something to say about the state of our United States and what life was like living in their day. Not unlike we are now, they took part in the making of history.
Here is a sampling of goodies I found for each of my favorites. In the probable future, I will write about each separately and delve into specifics as to why I appreciate them:
Diane di Prima
She was quite a woman and a very accomplished poet and writer. Her bio is one to be respected and celebrated!
The Poetry Deal: a film with Diane di Prima |Aired and released in 2011 through PBS
Diane di Prima |At San Francisco Public Library for her inauguration as SF Poet Laureate, 2009.
Lawrence Ferlinghetti
He was a poet, playwright, painter, publisher and co-founder of the famous City Lights Bookstore in San Francisco. He has an impressive bio himself!
Pity the Nation |Here he reads his poetry.
Ferlinghetti: A Rebirth of Wonder |A 2009 documentary
Ferlinghetti: The world is a beautiful place |Here he reads his poetry from City Lights Bookstore.
Gregory Corso
He was a poet…I found him to be a real interesting character! He said it like he felt it and seemed quite the spitfire! His humor is also uniquely fun! As for his life, WOW! His bio is a read unto itself!
Corso: The Last Beat |A documentary that still has not ‘seen the light of day’…no distribution of a completed, full version has been aired that I can find. BUMMER! Still, the trailer is a good watch!
Vintage Corso -Corber- NYU 1991 |Great reading and commentary from Corso!
Bob Kaufman
He was an oral poet and those spoken poems, WOW, they came from genuine depth of spirit! What a beautiful, complex human being! Bob’s bio is….well, what a LIFE!
And When I Die, I Won’t Stay Dead |2016 Documentary
Tate Swindell and Parker Kaufman, for Bob Kaufman's Collected Poems, A Celebration—The Poetry Center |2020 From DocFilm Institute
Jack Kerouac
Oh, Jack…he wrote in ways that enwrapped me, inspired me, made me understand the wanderer in myself. His bio hints of the baggage his words were carrying.
Jack Kerouac documentary |1997 documentary
Jack Kerouac Reads from “The Subterraneans” (1958) |Have a listen!
Jack Kerouac’s Rules for Good Writing |A YouTube video created by
to highlight Kerouac and his ideas on writing.
For these YouTube links, please give the creators a thumbs up and subscribe to support their work!
I read everything I can. Not everything I read do I like, do I endorse, do I take so to heart that I emulate its words in my own life. But, I DO read to know, to understand, to feel, to find connection, to see another person’s thoughts and experiences—to honor another’s path and right to be human. It is important to attempt a walk in another person’s shoes or words. It is a most loving and compassionate thing to do; to not judge the writer. Though, one may judge the ideas—whether or not they are appropriate for themselves—we are not to be so self-righteous. The truth is—the only harm that could come, originates from within our own hearts. Most importantly, one must have confidence in their own foundation to understand that what one reads will not derail them from their own track, but will be as the scenery which one views from their seat inside the train as it passes. Have a look. Consider the other life. If there is something there that interests you, get off the train and meet the author! ~W-Gray, 2024
This post has only opened the door to getting to know who these poets were and what they had to say about life—the tell-it-like-it-is accounting of their experiences is raw and real; certainly, they each offer a lot to gnaw on! Gnaw away, my friends!
Oh! Did you feel it…just a little…past revisited, present felt, and future hoped??!!! If you did, YAY!!!! You’re NOT dead!!!!
I’ll see all y’all in AUGUST!!!
Many blessings and MUCH LOVE,
W-Gray
Amazing! Awesome post and appreciate the inclusion of my video on Jack!