On The Road - Post 1

1. On the Road, while classified as fiction, is a loosely autobiographical account of the "Beatnik" writers' travels across America--narrated by Sal Paradise (AKA Kerouac).
What is your impression of Sal as a narrator? Reliable? Unreliable? Explain and cite the text for support.

With his matter-of-fact tone and simple (yet beautiful) way with words, Sal Paradise comes across as a humble narrator. Although it is clear that he has a strong love for language, Sal (Karouac) does not attempt to impress the reader. Rather, his goal is to portray the spirit of the road, and simply recount moments that stand out to him as a traveler. There is no need for Sal to sway the reader's opinion of is travels, and he is clearly not searching for any sort of approval from a greater audience. Therefore, I'm under the impression that this book is a reliable account of Sal's experience on the road.

Sal, in fact, doesn't seem to have any sort of concern for the reader's reaction to his account. I have the impression, in fact, that his experience could have been recorded for his use and reference only. In this text, there are phrases that could only be fully appreciated by Sal himself, in that they are too personal and sentimental to be felt by a reader. It is easy to imagine that these phrases could jolt specific memories or emotions in the author. For example: "valley clouds that made you feel the vastness of old tumbledown holy America from mouth to mouth and tip to tip". Sal does not attempt to put this memory into words understandable or relatable to the reader, so it is obvious that he is not altering his sentiments to be more applicable to any audience.

I appreciate this honest autobiographical account, because it is clear that Sal's ego doesn't interfere in any way with his recounting; he doesn't glorify himself or his life: "I had my own life, my own sad and ragged life forever." Sal honestly (but beautifully) recounts life on the road, without any need for frills or help from his imagination.