"The Lonesome Death"

In my senior year of high school, I was required to listen to two albums, watch two movies, and read two books that had been from at least 2 decades ago. One of the albums I chose belonged to my father, and was a Bob Dylan cd that he recommended. Much to his dismay, I did not enjoy the cd, but I can definitely respect Dylan's work and the impact that he had on other musicians. The current event that he wrote about in his song "The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll" is important to the time period, and I was shocked to read that her murderer only spent 6 months in jail. It is scary to think about how much of a problem existed between the white and black races in this decade. Although racism still happens, I cannot imagine living in a time where justice would not result from Caroll's murder. Dylan addresses this particular case, and applies it to the race problem as a whole.

Burroughs & Sanders

Both of these readings had very unconventional structures. I wasn't quite sure what a "yippie" was supposed to be referring to. A lot of Burroughs' article seemed to be about resisting authority, as he discusses cops in a violent situation. He also mentioned the Daughters of the American Revolution, which made me curious, because I know my mother and grandmother belong to this organization, and my mother has been talking about my joining as well. The "American dream" is also briefly addressed, which made me think about how at the time the article was written, in 1968, this dream had been turned upside down since its prominence in the 1950s. I wasn't able to make much sense of Sanders' poem, but like Burroughs, he addressed the violence of the police. Resistance to authority remains a theme throughout this section.

Che Guevara

Hoffman's letter which she claimed to have been written by Che Guevara, is certainly representative of his beliefs. I read The Motorcycle Diaries, and also watched the movie, and now that I make a connection between these and this letter, I realize how important he was as a part of counterculture. The way that he lived was almost nomadic--he really appreciated each day on his journey, and took many risks. This reminds me of Easy Rider, and also the hippie lifestyle, which seemed to be so carefree. At the same time, the shared causes that they were fighting for are so meaningful; freedom, health care, equal rights, broader horizons, individuality, more opportunities.

Testament

Boyle's role as a professor in the 60s is documented powerfully in the testament she wrote after going to jail for demonstrating with her radical students. I like that she referenced classical authors and that she is writing particularly about unity. This intrigued me, because she was nearly 70 years old when sent to jail. Even though she was brought up in an entirely different generation, she still related to her students and their beliefs. I think that the most important aspect she is arguing for in this poem is for individuality and freedom from a strict government.

Lydon

I really liked "The Rolling Stones - At Play in the Apocalypse" because it was written from a reporter's perspective. Lydon is especially aware of his surroundings while at this free concert in San Francisco, he is required to be attentive in his career. I liked how he provided specific details about the number of people attending and the mood and conditions of both the crowd and the bands. It was interesting how he explicitly connected the rowdiness of the attendees to their shared generation of the post baby boom. Lydon is thorough in his observations, as he makes classifications and presumably experiences the show without using drugs. I was confused about the role of Hell's Angels in this piece. I thought that they got along well with the hippies because they were both parts of the counterculture. Why were they so aggressive and violent toward random concert goers?

Protesting Rules

I thought it was interesting that the readings in this segment are compiled of a list of rules of how to behave if one happens to be arrested. Authority figures, especially police officers are negatively discussed and portrayed as untrustworthy brutes, which is disconcerting. I can't imagine the amount of riots that took place during those times. California remains the center stage for all of the action in this era. I found it amusing that in the picture of the "hip cop" the man kind of resembles Che Guevara and has long hair. Also, dubbed "peaceman". There is still a lot of creativity despite the violence that overshadows the attempt of radical free speech.

Hey Mr. Newsman

This was my favorite reading assignment for this section. I can relate to Kampf's material and tone in the poem because of the Doctorow novel I'm reading for the next paper assignment. The message in this poem is demonstrative of the counterculture, to me. The artistic contrast between political sides is creative and impressive. While the majority of the poem seems to single out the speaker's possibly Communist and definitely radical political views, the last line of the poem defines the actual message of the poem, which is the fight for "the rights of man." Even though the speaker is in opposition of the traditional and conservative views, he is willing to fight for the freedom of men from all political standpoints. I thought this was a powerful message and a creative way of stating it.