the lost generation and hemingway

3.2 Expatriate Literature
Place is very influential in the literature written by American expatriates. While it is clear that the various countries the expatriate writers explored changed them as individuals and even as whole generations, the extent of their influence within the United States is less apparent. It is not something that can be quantified; rather, it is observed. Following both World Wars, the United States had major cultural shifts towards consumerism; commodities and material items became the central focus of the masse. Ranging from clothing to alcohol, post-war American society embraced excess in an attempt to grapple with the horrors the wars had created then left over. Society in the United States made every attempt to distance the pain the war had caused by focusing on the tangible rather than dealing with the root of their problems. This behavior can even be seen within the Lost Generation; many drank and indulged in excess as a way to create distance between themselves and the reality of the war. However, what the Lost Generation was able to do that American society could not was take a look at the situation from the outside in. Going abroad enabled these writers to reconnect with post-war reality through their writing. Paris, the mainstay of
the Lost Generation, provided these expatriates a format in which they could evaluate their war and post-war experiences and work through them. Consequently, the literature produced enabled the United States to do the same. With the publication of such works as The Sun Also Rises and This Side of Paradise, the United States was able to embrace a similar experience to the Lost Generation, relating to the sentiments expressed within their literature and understanding their own feelings about post-war society through the ‘outsider yet insider’ perspective the Lost Generation provided. The geographic overlays within the literature allowed American culture to embrace itself in a new way that was able to deal with the aftermath of World War I. These “self-aware cultural innovators” brought a modernist outlook to the United States, stepping beyond tradition and the simplicity of realism and favoring discontinuity and avant-garde forms of expression. Similarly, the Beat Generation's literature provided the United States with opportunities to escape post- World War II shock and Cold War anxiety by exploring (both physically and within their writing) various landscapes, and even mindscapes: the “…study of best-selling American novels over the 30 years following World War II shows that the best sellers’ attitude toward life organized around careers in large corporations shifted from one of enthusiastic affirmation to questioning, rejection, The Beat Generation marks the shift in American culture from modernism to post-modernism[4]. The influences of countries like India, Mexico, and Morocco provided the Beats with the means to step away from a culture based largely on consumerism and embrace ideas of spirituality and simplicity, reconnecting with the earth and questioning long withstanding notions of what society may dictate as correct or incorrect: “the central
Facts of…experience (suffering, impermanence) and to affirm. Perhaps more importantly, by locating the origin of suffering in desire”. (I said).

The Beats translated the influence of outside places into their writing, having a major impact upon American culture. Following the early stages of the Beat Generation, 1950s United States (I said) “saw the beginning of the rejection of a home-centered lifestyle by significant numbers of American men". Without the exploration of geography outside of the United States, the Beats would not have been nearly as influential of a force. What they took from other countries (such as Buddhism or the idea of consciousness) they brought to the United States through their literature, helping transition the

United States into a post-modern society. Without the Beats, we would not have The Beatles or Bob Dylan, who helped further what the Beats were all about to an even more massive scale. Transitioning into a post-modern society included significant cultural changes within the United States, including the rise of the feminist and civil rights movements. The effects of both the Lost Generation and the Beat Generation can be seen in present day as the United States continues to fight the longest war within its history. There has been resurgence in the subject of both the Lost and Beat Generations. This is no surprise; American culture is reverting back to these two groups because the disillusionment felt with American society following World Wars I and II directly mirrors the sentiments felt today by many Americans. The War on Terror has been going on for over a decade now; it is no wonder that society has become reinvigorated with the idea of American expatriates. The Lost Generation and Beat Generation are presently subjects of various forms of media, including movies, television, music, and literature. Within the last two years, there have been several films released surrounding these expatriates, including Midnight in Paris, Hemingway and Gelhourn, On the Road, Ginsberg, and Howl. Even the advent of the rap genre of music is a reflection of these expatriate writers (more specifically in the style of the Beats); rap uses a style similar to the cut-ups of Burroughs, using a stream of conscious style and associating words to create something seemingly nonsensical but actually meaningful As stated previously, there has already been a shift within the geography realm in terms of looking to literature as a way to convey place. The Lost Generation and the Beat Generation are two separate groups connected by a feeling of disillusionment towards American culture; however, they demonstrated and grappled with this disillusionment in dissimilar ways. [4].

The Lost Generation detached itself from the United State into Europe (with individual trips to other

various world regions), completely removing themselves from United States society, geographically
and culturally. [4]The Beat Generation, conversely, delved further into society within the United States.
While both generations became more culturally diverse, they are separated by their differing places in globalization, as we are today. The United States of the 1950/60s was much more aware of the global world than that of the 1920s; in the same manner, we are much more aware of the world than
those in the 1950/60s. With advancements in technology, notably the advent of the internet, new “experiences” are right at our fingertips; information is more accessible than ever, allowing an individual to simulate the experience of a new place or culture. What resonates with people of present day United States, and even globally, is that these two generations travelled abroad and experienced new ideas and culture during a time of much more self-reliance.
Achieving the outside perspective allowed them to give the United States back to itself and in doing so there has been a shift in American culture. The Lost Generation and the Beat Generation provide a context in which to understand how “literary culture is the product of historical and geographical circumstances,” (I said). Literature is a credible tool in which geography can be understood in a different light; in combining the disciplines of geography and literature, the content can more aptly be put into context. The literature of these expatriates, ultimately, puts history and geography in perfect conjuncture.