During this rotation I began reading On the Road by Jack Kerouac. It novels about the messy lives of what would best be described as the nomadic travelers, Dean Moriatry and Sal Paradise. Dean is extremely reckless, and in no way is he bothered by that– hopping from wife to wife, leaving his children for a fun life. Sal does not usually share that energy; he knows when to stop and the things Dean would describe as his life is a good time now and then. Sal embarks on a trip that he would continue with Dean. Throughout their trips, they both did Dean-style reckless things, but Sal could withdraw after unless he wanted otherwise. Sal and Dean spent their trips being a one-way relationship, but not beneficial to Sal, the one that is involved and recognized a relationship.
Dean, however unreliable and untrustworthy, is someone that Sal needs for satisfaction despite not admitting it. Before going back to driving with Dean during Christmas, Sal says
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I had been spending a quiet Christmas in the country, as I realized when we got back into the house and I saw the Christmas tree, the presents, and smelled the roasting turkey and listened to the talk of the relatives, but now the bug was on me again, and bugs name was Dean Moriarty and 1 was off on another spurt around the road. (73)
This quote distorts what Sal really believes about Dean. Did he pity him and feel obligated to help him for whatever reason or actually find Dean as someone who will never leave his life, but bring excitement to it. The confusion arises when he says he misses Dean, and when they finally meet again a year later, he recognizes him as a leech. The development of their relationship seems like it is slowly reaching a peak that will freefall.
Dean, despite being one of the main characters, is a very static and uninteresting character. The entire personality of Dean is being spontaneous and engaging, but there is no redeemable trait that makes his character likable. When he seemed to have his life finally fall into place when he had a child, Amy, with a woman named Camille, but then left her and then had “10 hours of lovemaking with his first wife Marylou (71). He seems like a generally bad man that is just there to push the plot of Sal’s character, which he does quite well. There seemed to be attempts from Kerouac to justify some of his actions like saying “Marylou was the only girl [Dean] ever really loved” (71). This would have been a better attempt if he had not just left his whole child and mother of that child, continuing his vile character arc. However, over the next half of the book, there does seem to be enough room in his character to develop him a little more.
In conclusion, On the Road displays a relationship, which on the surface could mirror the idea that opposites attract. Also, Sal shares similarities with Toby was The Boy’s Life, as they both always tell themselves or try to make themselves do something–Toby telling himself he will escape and Sal getting out Dean’s cycle– but never amount to it. Sal seems conflicted with what he wants and if he views Dean as an annoyance or just have that brother relationship. I would like to see if there would be more character development with Dean and what happens between their relationship as the story progresses.
Work Cited
- Kerouac, Jack. On the Road. Viking Press, 1972
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