American Literature / Unit 17 AML 1629 short lesson, about 20 seconds
The Beat Poem as Performance
Captions available
The idea
The witness says the break from tradition gathered momentum in the nineteen fifty-seven obscenity trial, when critics defended the poem's redeeming literary merit and its triumph propelled the Beats to fame. Their style was improvisatory and spontaneous, like jazz: first thought, best thought.
In practice
A courtroom win, and a jazz aesthetic.
Where people slip
These poems were written to be heard aloud.
Your place on the trail
Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.
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