tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3259386991508935093.post6464090726201384684..comments2024-03-24T12:14:08.296-04:00Comments on THE DAILY BEAT: Ayn Rand - Jack Kerouac connectionRick Dale, author of The Beat Handbookhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17721559977431022390noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3259386991508935093.post-67439960848193775322024-01-24T08:54:39.968-05:002024-01-24T08:54:39.968-05:00In his article “Drive, Jack Kerouac Wrote,” Louis ...In his article “Drive, Jack Kerouac Wrote,” Louis Menand makes one of the most interesting remarks I’ve seen about Kerouac’s writing method and the famous scroll – a remark that complicates and subverts the opposition between Kerouacian spontaneity and Randian discipline. Menand writes that Cassady’s famous “Joan Anderson letter” (discussed in my previous Beatdown post on THE LAST TIME I COMMITTED SUICIDE, The Beats Are My Beat 2) “had the vernacular directness and narrative propulsion [Kerouac] was looking for, and it gave him the impulse he needed to tape his scroll together and get a complete draft on paper. He saw that this-happened-and-then-that-happened had literary possibilities, and the scroll was a way of forcing himself to stick to this vision. ... The scroll was therefore a restriction: it was a way of defining form, not a way of avoiding form. In religious terms (and Kerouac was always, deep down, a Catholic and a sufferer), it was a collar, a self-mortification. He did, after he finished the scroll, go back and make changes. But first he had to submit to his discipline.”Roderick Longhttps://aaeblog.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3259386991508935093.post-25680538977013781432015-07-15T22:32:17.253-04:002015-07-15T22:32:17.253-04:00Funny, the logic here, but none the less could app...Funny, the logic here, but none the less could apply as BOTH were self-absorbed, highly creative, yet very aware of the social mores of their times.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00107729911028387827noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3259386991508935093.post-72689048898641388472013-10-18T14:21:49.782-04:002013-10-18T14:21:49.782-04:00This is all speculation of course, but in Kerouac’...This is all speculation of course, but in Kerouac’s Old Angel Midnight there is a line that goes;"I saw lines drop like lint off kittyfur nightbed brain thought & never heaved to Atlas Shrug". After reading that I started this search to see if there was a connection between them both as they are two of my favorite authors and philosophers, so I would be delighted if there is one, but there is little evidence outside of circumstantial to prove said theory. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15158271437048609396noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3259386991508935093.post-40297208142552963462012-03-15T22:09:21.784-04:002012-03-15T22:09:21.784-04:00On the subject of "certain subconscious influ...On the subject of "certain subconscious influences," Rand, like Jack, frequently resorted to benzedrine.Theobaldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01873114371772000542noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3259386991508935093.post-44207430212710807472012-03-15T22:08:13.373-04:002012-03-15T22:08:13.373-04:00On the subject of "certain subconscious influ...On the subject of "certain subconscious influences," Rand, like Jack, liked her benzedrine.Theobaldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01873114371772000542noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3259386991508935093.post-80557198426802504182009-03-01T12:19:00.000-05:002009-03-01T12:19:00.000-05:00TRG, we agree: there's no reason we can't like bot...TRG, we agree: there's no reason we can't like both! I just happen to disagree somewhat with Rand's philosophy, and you captured why. I especially like your description of Kerouac as experiencing something rather than reading and digestion.Rick Dale, author of The Beat Handbookhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17721559977431022390noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3259386991508935093.post-21258273188896543392009-02-28T17:28:00.000-05:002009-02-28T17:28:00.000-05:00If you read Branden's critique of Rand, he felt th...If you read Branden's critique of Rand, he felt that Rand's philosophy did not address the emotional side of human beings. We are not Vulcans like Mr. Spock where only rationality rules and it sets us up as much as many religions do to failure because neither unifies the consciousness of the human mind. We are not completely emotional/spiritual or completely rational. Nathaniel Branden addresses this. As far as Kerouac goes, I have read on the Road a couple times, and reading his work is more like experiencing something than reading and digestion. I like both authors (And Ken Kesey is great too). There's no reason you cannot admire both.The Right Guyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02000916651068780486noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3259386991508935093.post-12692711441824041312009-02-25T23:19:00.001-05:002009-02-25T23:19:00.001-05:00I think part of Kerouac’s genius was that that his...I think part of Kerouac’s genius was that that his writing was decidedly spiritual in nature—that he did feel things so purely. Like you said though, Jack needs no defense. I’m glad he was able to turn the tables by coining a phrase inspired by her harsh criticism. Sweet irony. The Rand-Kerouac connection is a really cool one. Thanks for this post.Rian Murrayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14417949143017894983noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3259386991508935093.post-66711118029917510242009-02-25T23:19:00.000-05:002009-02-25T23:19:00.000-05:00I think part of Kerouac’s genius was that that his...I think part of Kerouac’s genius was that that his writing was decidedly spiritual in nature—that he did feel things so purely. Like you said though, Jack needs no defense. I’m glad he was able to turn the tables by coining a phrase inspired by her harsh criticism. Sweet irony. The Rand-Kerouac connection is a really cool one. Thanks for this post.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3259386991508935093.post-2746430792766094292009-02-25T03:45:00.000-05:002009-02-25T03:45:00.000-05:00It is wonderful feeling to read this piece. Never ...It is wonderful feeling to read this piece. Never knew about Kerouac-Rand connection.<BR/>Thanks Rick!Ronid Aka Akhuhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10365199697227406451noreply@blogger.com