Women of the Beat

It has become common knowledge to me that what encapsulated the Beat Generation was this notion of resisting the constraints of society, culture norms and seeking marginalized experiences. It has now come to my attention that perhaps the women of the Beat era were the most “beat” of them all. “Distracted by marriage, children, and a societal need to conform” women may have had the most to reject (Waldman, iX).

When we think about Beat authors the same varsity line-up comes to mind, Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsburg, and William S. Burroughs. However, the JV team , these women who found “beat far more attractive than staying chained to a brand-new kitchen appliance” ,might have been the most present, observant, and sober of the happenings around them (Knight, 3).

Women of the Beat era really must be separated into two categories. “The Muses” and “The Writers” as Brenda Knight puts it. That’s not to say the muses weren’t writers or vice versa. It is merely a significant distinction brought about by relationships or marriage with our Varsity players.

"The Writers"

“Rant”-Diane di Prima

Reading “Rant” after Ginsburg’s “Howl” was a pleasant understanding. I like to compare Diane di Prima to Ginsberg not because of style, but because of content and ambition. Both sought after this kind of antiacademic intellectus, referred to by di Prima. They both didn’t just account what they observed but brought about a kind of awareness and “call to action”. In “Rant” Diane di Prima is defending “art” and the “artist”, spirituality, and intellectual pursuit. She encompasses her sentiment to the whole addressing it to “every man/ every woman”. She also experiments with non-traditional form of poetry like most Beats incorporating experimental style choices like shortening “your” to “yr” (which I admit I’m not sure why she does).