Anglo-American Literature

The Beat Generation was a group of mid-twentieth-century American writers associated with experimentation, rebellion, travel, spirituality, jazz rhythms, and criticism of mainstream values. Their work emerged during the Cold War, a period marked by political anxiety, anti-communist suspicion, consumer culture, and fears about conformity.

Beat writing often rejected polished academic style. Instead, it valued spontaneity, emotional intensity, movement, street language, and personal experience. The Beats wrote about subjects that were controversial in their time, including drug use, sexuality, alienation, spiritual searching, and distrust of conventional success.

Featured Works

Jack Kerouac, On the Road
This novel follows restless movement across the United States and is often read as a defining Beat text. It presents travel as a search for freedom, experience, identity, and escape from social expectations. Its style is associated with “spontaneous prose,” a method that tries to capture thought, rhythm, and experience with speed and energy.

Allen Ginsberg, “America”
This poem addresses the United States directly, mixing personal confession, political criticism, irony, humor, anger, and performance. It reflects Cold War tensions, paranoia, militarism, and the pressure to conform.