Desire: From Road to Railroad

            To be perfectly honest, I'm not a big fan of Jack Kerouac's writing, so I hesitated before reading Lonesome Traveler. I felt myself drifting a little in the middle of Kerouac's long-winded sentences, and the detailed descriptions recounting his day didn't always hold my interest. Although I enjoyed listening to Kerouac read selections from "Railroad Earth," I was more transfixed by the beat of his voice and the fluid way he read, rather than the story he was relating. While On the Road seemed to be a story of movement, mystery, and spontaneity, I read "Railroad Earth" as a period of constancy and increased certainty in Kerouac's life. The language Kerouac uses to describe the railroad reminded me of his portrayal of the road--both being symbols of freedom and eternity. However, Kerouac is employed as a consistent railroad worker in this story, so he seems to be dreaming of the potential for adventure that the railroad holds rather than experiencing it for himself.

            Kerouac feels a sense of nostalgia for the type of life he led in On the Road, but he does not explicitly express a sense of dissatisfaction for his current life and job. The passage that I chose to discuss in class was slightly confusing, as it illustrates these competing views. Kerouac's references to the past are not simply concerned with a few years previous, but his thoughts extend back as far as childhood, as in the following passage:

"You see all the lil ranchstyle California homes and in the evening people sipping in livingrooms open to the sweetness, the stars, the hope that the lil children must see when they lay in little beds and bedtime and look up and a star throbs for them above the railroad earth, and the train calls, and they think tonite the stars will be out, they come, they leave, they lave, they angelicize, ah me, I must come from a land where they let the children cry, ah my, I wish I was a child in California..."

            By using language such as "sweetness," Kerouac associates nature with purity and wonder, similar to the characterization of a child. The dreams Kerouac describes are innocent and hopeful, as the children believe that stars emerge for them and that they can rely on this truth. By aligning himself with the railroads and open sky, Kerouac is expressing a desire for renewal, allowing him to return to the uninhibited lifestyle of a previous time. The stars shine and "angelisize" those underneath, reinforcing the idea that everything and everyone can be holy. Although the children cry, Kerouac expresses a desire to join them. It seems like society allows these children to cry when dreams are lost to reality. However, Kerouac also suggests that children can see the "throbbing hope-light shining," providing the promise of a better future. Kerouac also speaks of the ideal farm home with its fence and harmonious family, illustrating the some of the conventional views that appear at odds with Kerouac's love of the open road and lack of accountability. Toward the end of this passage, Kerouac speaks of a train passing by the dream of this farmhouse, ultimately showing how Kerouac's thoughts shift away from these desires in due course.