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Handout Howl

Allen Ginsberg was a leading figure of the Beat Generation in the 1950s. His poem Howl is considered one of the best examples of Beat literature. It uses graphic language to lament the horrors of modern civilization and critique materialism, with sections describing atrocities, madness, and personal experiences. The poem has three parts - Part I describes remarkable youths in America, Part II names the social illness symbolized by "Moloch", and Part III offers a litany of affirmation for those preyed upon in the previous sections. Ginsberg employed an open, ecstatic style of expression in free verse form without meter but sometimes accidental dactylic rhythm.

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Anni Herz
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151 views

Handout Howl

Allen Ginsberg was a leading figure of the Beat Generation in the 1950s. His poem Howl is considered one of the best examples of Beat literature. It uses graphic language to lament the horrors of modern civilization and critique materialism, with sections describing atrocities, madness, and personal experiences. The poem has three parts - Part I describes remarkable youths in America, Part II names the social illness symbolized by "Moloch", and Part III offers a litany of affirmation for those preyed upon in the previous sections. Ginsberg employed an open, ecstatic style of expression in free verse form without meter but sometimes accidental dactylic rhythm.

Uploaded by

Anni Herz
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOC, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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SE American Literary History II Dozentin: Dr.

Renate Ulbrich Studentin: Anni Herz Allen Ginsberg Howl Allen Ginsberg & Beat Generation Part I -

SS 2011

Irwin Allen Ginsberg: June 3, 1926 April 5, 1997 one of the most influential poets of the 20th Century a leading figure of the Beat Generation Beat Generation: 1950s experimentation with drugs and alternative forms of sexuality, an interest in Eastern religion, a rejection of materialism Howl: among the best known examples of Beat literature list of atrocities desperate critique of civilization, outcry madness scenes, characters, and situations from Ginsberg's personal experience

Part II - accusation of guilt - antagonist Moloch the symbol of social illness Part III - about Carl Solomon the supreme martyr -> symbol - turning point away from the grim tone of Part II Footnote to Howl - an extra variation of the form of Part II - offers a cure for the social illness Part I, a lament for the Lamb in America with instances of remarkable lamblike youths; Part II names the monster of mental consciousness that preys on the Lamb; Part III a litany of affirmation of the Lamb in its glory: O starry-spangled shock of Mercy! The structure of Part II, pyramidal, with a graduated longer response to the fixed base. A. Ginsberg Style and technique: individual style an open, ecstatic expression of thoughts and feelings that were naturally poetic Part I = only 1 sentence poems density: juxtapositions derived from Czannes optic trick Ginsbergs line breaks were often determined by breath no meter (accidentally dactylic) -> free verse fixed base (who, Moloch, holy) -> Walt Whitman inverted pyramid, with larger sections leading to smaller sections

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