1. Bob Kaufman, he is a lesser explored beat poet. I am just interested in his poetry.
2. Can be identified as a beat writer along with Kerouac and Ginsberg. Howl, Dharma Bums, Ferlinghetti's poems and Tripmaster Monkey are all relevant to Kaufman's writing.
3. Kaufman's "Solitudes Crowded With Loneliness". Maybe more to come.
4. Something to the effect showing that Kaufman is the quintessential beat, or the embodiment of the idea of "beat".
5. Kaufman is definitely studied to a lesser extent than his beat peers. I do not know how much information I can gather about him at this point.
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1 comment:
Derek,
Kaufman's an important Beat figure; studying him opens up all kinds of other questions, including issues of race, jazz/music...
A few thoughts:
Focusing on a poem or few poems would be a good way to start. You might see if you can locate his sensibility as a poet, and a poet affiliated with the Beats. Any thematic or stylistic connections to draw between him and, say, Ginsberg? Kerouac? What are they?
How can we connect Kaufman with some of the other themes of the course? Beat/beatitude, contado, the spectral city...
In the interest of time, it might be useful to look at Beat anthologies which include Kaufman. You can see there how he is viewed as a Beat (though a less frequently studied Beat) and understand something about his role in Sf at the time, perhaps.
Good direction - keep working toward a tight, specific thesis. Let me know if you have questions down the road. Looking forward to your paper.
sc
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