The Dharma Bums
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Two friends in 1950s San Francisco Bohemia explore Buddhism Zen - hipster style. On the road to finding Dharma, or truth, the story's narrator, Raymond Smith comes to a spiritual roadblock. Smith, based on Kerouac himself, discovers a role model in his friend Japhy Ryder, modeled after the real poet-Buddhist Gary Snyder. This autobiographical novel is one of Kerouac's most popular, and has served as an inspiration to the beat culture, hippies, and dharma seekers since the 1950s. This program is narrated by legendary poet Allen Ginsberg, a friend of Kerouac's and an early fan of his work.
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In Response to "Wacky and Dull" by LOLDavid, October 30, 2008
Reviewer: Freeze Tag
Your basis for comparison is apparently this: an audio book interpretation of "The Dharma Bums" vs. the hardcopy itself. How unfortunate. To feel qualified to mention that the text is hardly "an enduring classic" because of your opinion of Allen Ginsberg's interpretation of it is naive, to say the least. Is the film version of "The Wizard of Oz" true to the L. Frank Baum story? There's barely a resemblance. "Gone With the Wind"? Try again. How about all of the cutesy versions of "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn"? Sorry. Would you base your opinion of those classics on what Hollywood has churned out? I would hope not.
Wacky and Dull, February 17, 2006
Reviewer: LOLDavid
from Los Angeles, California
I found "The Dharma Bums" to be foolish. Like a hip nostalgia for the Buddhist way without any of its spiritual underpinnings. Allen Ginsberg is a fine narrator at first but his wacky, happy reading becomes tiring. I think this novel is much more a reflection of its time than it is an enduring classic.
- Original Year Of Publication:
1958
- LearnOutLoud.com Product ID:
T001920
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Literature
Contemporary Literature
Religion & Spirituality
Buddhism
Literature
American Classics
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