Wednesday, January 9, 2019

Jack Kerouac's The Dharma Bums Chapter 16 in one sentence



Your assignment for today was to read Chapter 16 of The Dharma Bums and summarize it in one sentence. Below is my one-sentence summary -- post yours as a comment. I'd also love to see general comments about the chapter, or questions.

The Dharma Bums Chapter 16 in one sentence:
Before Japhy leaves, Ray and Japhy eat in Chinatown, see a street preacher, discuss Christianity v. Buddhism, see a new Buddhist temple being built, Ray tells Japhy goodbye, then spends a few days with Cody's family, helps Cody pray Rosie into purgatory, Ray hops a train to L.A. and hangs out there waiting to catch the 7:30 PM Zipper to Yuma, Arizona, meets an ex-marine bum carrying a slip of paper with a quote by the Buddha, the bum teaches Ray about standing on his head three minutes a day to cure thrombophlebitis (it cured the bum's arthritis and cures Ray in three months), Ray hops on an "eighteen-car sealed sonofabitch" by mistake and barely gets off before it is going too fast, spends the rest of the night miserable in the industrial jungle of L.A., then walks to the bus station and catches a 25-mile ride to Riverside, noting that "everything was far away from the easy purity of being with Japhy Ryder in that high rock camp under peaceful singing stars." 

Your next assignment is to read The Dharma Bums Chapter 17 and post a one-sentence summary.

And we'll be half way to the 34th (last) chapter!

1 comment:

Rick Dale, author of The Beat Handbook said...

It's hard to shoot you an e-mail when you don't provide one. A name would be helpful as well....