This course will focus on the literary expression of American counterculture during the 1950s and 60s the so-called 'Beat' and 'Hippie' generations. The writers, artists, musicians, and bohemians who gave voice to counterculture during these two decades impacted not only literature and art, but also revolutionized social and political ideologies. Their emphasis on individual freedom, spiritual liberation, and subcultural hipness, called on all Americans to define their "authentic" selves, to seek higher consciousnesses, and to resist the establishment's repressive mandate that we remain passive consumers rather than active creators. With literature as our guide, we'll begin by examining the Beat movement with its emphasis on spontaneity and the search for IT. We'll then look at how Beat aesthetics and ideologies were adopted and politicized during the heyday of the Hippie movement. Finally, we'll look at the influence of these earlier generations on later countercultural movements such as the Punks of the 70s and early 80s. In the course of our reading, we'll consider the impact of cultural contexts and political motivations on the literature: the Cold War; McCarthyism; the rise of mass consumer culture and mass media; the Civil Rights and Anti-War movements; and shifting politics around gender and sexuality. We'll also investigate how members of those groups already on the margins of dominant socio-political discourse-women, racial, ethnic, and sexual minorities relate to the notion of counterculture. Expect readings from Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg, William Burroughs, Amiri Baraka, James Baldwin, Sylvia Plath, Kurt Vonnegut, Ken Kesey, Aaron Cometbus, and Hunter S. Thompson.
Open to Sophomore, Junior, Senior or Graduate Students.
Elective
