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Reviews tagging 'Racial slurs'
On the Road (Penguin Classics) by Kerouac Jack (2002-12-31) Paperback by Jack Kerouac
43 reviews
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I found this book was very much just a step by step by step account of the protagonist’s goings. Parts of it were going places but would quickly be replaced by the next story. I’d somewhat recommend.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racial slurs
Minor: Sexism
adventurous
dark
funny
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The main takeaway for this book for me was something I already knew: straight men are more in love with each other than they could ever love any woman. It was quite obvious to me that Sal and Dean love one another and this is to an extent a love story. Hence why Sal overlooks how bloody annoying Dean is which we as the readers have to suffer through, whilst Sal gushes about how great he is. Cognitive dissonance much? Other readers have commented ( and I agree) that although this book has beautiful prose it is plot deficient and there are precious few actually likeable characters. To me this didn't detract from the book though as it helped develop the sense of loneliness and isolation that an itinerant lifestyle engenders no matter how freeing it might be. People who aspire to this kind of lifestyle should look at the endings of the protagonist and deuteragonist to find the moral of the story: Sal makes his way off the road and finds his happiness. Dean never does and seems unable to do either. We leave him to an uncertain fate, having lost all the friends and lovers of his journey and also Sal, his probable soulmate. A cautionary tale about the dangers of a lifestyle many idealise even if its simultaneously a love story, both to the road itself and between its main characters. Best enjoyed if you yourself are actually on a roadtrip! At times I could practically see and feel the emotioms and scenery described. Beware of the content warnings though.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Medical content, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Cultural appropriation, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism
Moderate: Pedophilia, Sexual violence
adventurous
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Para um livro escrito em três semanas tem seus pontos fortes; as paisagens descritas, o pós guerra, o nascimento da geração beat, algumas boas frases sobre amor e a vida. Eu consigo entender o porquê tanta gente romantiza esse livro.
Agora, os personagens são, na grande maioria, detestáveis. Demandou muito esforço mental tentar compreender o que Sal via em Dean, uma fé e dedicação totalmente cegas e unilaterais. Os comentários de Dean sobre mulheres, e uma criança eram deploráveis; os comentários relacionados a pessoas pretas ou gays não eram melhores. Não importa o tempo em que isso aconteceu - 1950, 1960 - isso NÃO é desculpa para ser uma pessoa ruim/babaca.
Agora, os personagens são, na grande maioria, detestáveis. Demandou muito esforço mental tentar compreender o que Sal via em Dean, uma fé e dedicação totalmente cegas e unilaterais. Os comentários de Dean sobre mulheres, e uma criança eram deploráveis; os comentários relacionados a pessoas pretas ou gays não eram melhores. Não importa o tempo em que isso aconteceu - 1950, 1960 - isso NÃO é desculpa para ser uma pessoa ruim/babaca.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Drug abuse, Gaslighting, Alcohol
Minor: Gun violence, Homophobia, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Police brutality
adventurous
challenging
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
As much as this is a classic, it was actually really hard to read it and there are a few reasons for that:
1) All characters, especially Dean, do not seem like genuinely good people. (cheating, racism, r*pe, and at some point even pe*ophi*ia)
2) Plot is basically non-existent
3) You need to have extremely good knowledge about America in the 1940s and 1950s to understand how some things might have worked or are possible; the same goes for knowledge on certain American cities where they travel a few times (i.e. Denver, San Francisco, New York...), so you can understand which parts of those cities were poor, industrial, fancy, etc.
4) Writing was lazy at some point, so it seems like you can never finish reading one page even tho it says basically nothing
1) All characters, especially Dean, do not seem like genuinely good people. (cheating, racism, r*pe, and at some point even pe*ophi*ia)
2) Plot is basically non-existent
3) You need to have extremely good knowledge about America in the 1940s and 1950s to understand how some things might have worked or are possible; the same goes for knowledge on certain American cities where they travel a few times (i.e. Denver, San Francisco, New York...), so you can understand which parts of those cities were poor, industrial, fancy, etc.
4) Writing was lazy at some point, so it seems like you can never finish reading one page even tho it says basically nothing
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment
adventurous
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Drug use, Misogyny, Sexism, Alcohol
Moderate: Homophobia, Infidelity, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual violence
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
There were parts of this book I enjoyed, in a madcap Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas kind of way, but to be honest this book is less put together than anything Hunter S Thompson would write. There are many places where the book doesn’t flow at all, and you have to slog through, unaided by Kerouac’s unedited slang style of prose.
I understand the significance of the beat movement and this book’s bearing upon it, but as a straight, white man in late 1940s America, the author succeeds only in upturning the status quo for himself and others like him, whilst firmly reinforcing it for literally every other marginalised group he encounters, including gay folks, women, black and indigenous people. What is the value of a movement that seeks to open up new ways of living if it entrenches inequalities in search of something as frivolous as fun?
I think this book is seriously overrated, even as a story it’s in dire need of some additional editing. However, I’m interested to read other books by the beat generation (I’ve read and loved some Patti Smith) and this did give a window into that era.
I understand the significance of the beat movement and this book’s bearing upon it, but as a straight, white man in late 1940s America, the author succeeds only in upturning the status quo for himself and others like him, whilst firmly reinforcing it for literally every other marginalised group he encounters, including gay folks, women, black and indigenous people. What is the value of a movement that seeks to open up new ways of living if it entrenches inequalities in search of something as frivolous as fun?
I think this book is seriously overrated, even as a story it’s in dire need of some additional editing. However, I’m interested to read other books by the beat generation (I’ve read and loved some Patti Smith) and this did give a window into that era.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use, Homophobia, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Did not enjoy this book
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs, Sexism
adventurous
challenging
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Infidelity, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Alcohol
Minor: Homophobia, Racial slurs, Car accident
adventurous
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Sexism, Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment
Moderate: Racism
Minor: Homophobia