Unfair Battle of the Sexes

Sal is still young and maybe not ready for a lifelong commitment yet but he is yearning for a partner to have a long lasting relationship with who will be willing to do the same rebellious and spontaneous things Sal has been doing this whole time. Sal has a way with the girls and has been sleeping around with different women all throughout the book; the problem being is that he hasn’t found someone he can truly connect with on an emotional level (the physical level doesn’t seem to be a problem for any guy or girl in this book). When he was in California I thought for sure he would be bringing Terry along with him back to New York because he really cared about her, but fear of commitment and the want to avoid any complications drew him away. This happened again with Lucille, and once Sal saw that Lucille didn’t connect with the people Sal loved hanging out with and traveling the country with, he realized that he didn’t want to spend any more time with her.

One can also see that although all these people are looking for someone to commit themselves to, the male partner in the relationship puts the woman through a horrible time and completely screws them over. This happened with Sal and Terry when he left her in Cali, Dean and Camille when he left her broke and with a child to go with Marylou, and Ed and Galatea when, out of nowhere, he decided he didn’t enjoy her company anymore and that her nagging over the uncomfortable situations they encountered were too annoying, so he just leaves her with no regard. The problem of course, is that the women is this book are also made to be stupid and ignorant. I don’t understand what crosses Galatea’s mind for her to still want to be with Ed after he has treated her so poorly and even makes love to him the first time they re-encounter. This book can be considered sexist, favoring the males by a long shot, but maybe Kerouac is rather trying to point out the fact that society nowadays values physical pleasures more than emotional support.