Sal chases after Dean because he admires him. As a writer he is constantly looking for inspiration, and like Dean, has a zest for understanding the world. However, Sal does not seem to have the courage to be like Dean by himself. He often follows them around, hoping to catch a glimpse of their youth and energy. No matter how many times Dean disappoints and abandons him, Sal comes running back because he cannot let go. I believe Sal will learn through his journeys on the road that he too can be free, and does not need Dean and Carlo to live an adventurous life.
Mary Lou
Sunday, September 8, 2013
You boys going to get somewhere, or just going?
Many of the characters Sal meets on the road seem to be running; either from the law or from boredom itself. Rather than seeking out a specific destination, the hitchhikers are searching for something along the way. Some of the people Sal meets are honest and good-hearted, while others, like Eddie, are self centered and quick to be on their way. Since acquaintances are so fleeting, the nature of being a hitchhiker entails keeping oneself company. Sal mentions an old friend, Big Slim Hazard, who is a hobo by choice. He seems to have a great deal of admiration for people like Big Slim and Mississippi Gene; perhaps because he fundamentally wishes to be a free spirit like Dean. When he finally arrives in Denver, Sal feels like a completely different person. He cannot fathom what it will be like to have beers with the whole gang at night. Like his experiences on the road, however, things do not go according to plan.
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People often get bored of their day to day life and decide to engage on some kind of journey to not only find something more entertaining to do, but to also find another side to themselves. Sal has obviously had enough of his boring old life and the blind journey he partakes on is just the event he needed to gain a different perspective on his life. These kinds of trips are essential for people because they widen our horizons, introduce us to new people and new places, and help us experience things we wouldn't in our regular life.
ReplyDeleteAs Anike said, Sal is somewhat envious of the lifestyles of people such as Big Slim because they have new experiences every day. They don't know where they'll be in a year, or in a month, or even tomorrow, and so every day is a kind of new beginning for them. That's just what Sal needs.He needs to learn that "he too can be free" like Anike said.
Sal also seems to want to become more like the people he admires. He wants to be free like his hobo friends and spontaneous like Dean. He wants to become like them so he can admire himself in a sense, or be proud of what he is and isn't anymore.
I agree with Anike that Sal’s plan to travel west does seem, in part, to come about because of boredom. If his plan was to escape the boredom, which his life in New Jersey held, then he has succeeded. The adventure does seem to reignite this love for life, which he tries to explain to a waitress he meets in Denver. He is so excited by his new life that he even tries to spread the love to other people he meets. The people in the novel are constantly moving in and out of Sal’s life. It is similar to the hitchhiking, as Anike mentioned. In hitchhiking the people that you pick up might open up to you and explain their entire life story, then you may never see them again. Their presences, like Sal’s friends, are fleeting. I also agree with Anike that Sal has to keep himself company a lot. What I do not understand is why he continues to travel alone? He could easily travel with a group of his friends? He continually decides to make the journey on his own. I think its because his friends and their plans are unreliable.
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