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Beat Poets

The "Beat Movement" in modern literature has
become an important period in the history of
literature and society in America. Incorporating
influences such as jazz, art, literature, philosophy
and religion, the beat writers created a new and
prophetic vision of modern life and changed the way
a generation of people sees the world. That
generation is mow aging and its representative
voices are becoming lost to eternity, but the
message is alive and well. The Beats have forever
altered the nature of American consciousness. The
Beat Generation of writers offered the world a new
attitude. They brought to society a consciousness of
life worth living. They offered a method of escape
from the stultifying, unimaginative world we live in,
through the exploration of one's intellect. Beat has
had many different contemporary implications in
music, poetry and literature. Literature has been
liberated considerably. The poetic form has been
changed to inaugurate a new poetic form, an
American form. "There was less emphasis on
tradition and more emphasis on the individual
talent. (www.rohan.sdsu.edu)" One of the most
important contributions to contemporary verse was
to take poetry out of the classrooms and into
non-academic setting-coffee houses, jazz clubs,
large public auditoriums and even athletic stadiums.
Poetry is more popular and more read than anytime
in history, not only spoken poetry but also sung
poetry of a high order. "The literature, coordinated
by pop music, with a way of dressing, with a way of
life, it something that has influenced the youth of the
world not only in Western countries but Eastern
countries as well. (www.charm.net)" Music has been
influenced greatly by Beat writing. The lyrics of many
great songs have forever been changed by the
writing of the Beat Generation. "Bob Dylan's favorite
poet was Allen Ginsberg. Ginsberg became one of
Dylan's greatest friends. He worked on many
projects with Dylan...The band Rage...