LITERARY SPHERE

Allen Ginsberg for UGC NET English Allen Ginsberg for UGC NET English 🔷 About Allen Ginsberg Full Name: Irwin Allen Ginsberg (1926–1997) Movement: Beat Generation Key Themes: Anti-establishment, sexuality, mysticism, politics, Eastern philosophy, drugs Influences: Walt Whitman, William Blake, Eastern religions, political activism 🔑 Major Works to Focus On 1. Howl (1956) Free verse poem inspired by Walt Whitman Opening: “I saw the best minds of my generation destroyed by madness...” Themes: madness, sexuality, drug use, capitalism Led to a major U.S. obscenity trial in 1957 2. Kaddish (1961) Elegy for his mother Naomi Ginsberg Themes: mental illness, grief, Jewish identity 3. America (1956) Political satire in poetic form Opening line: “America I’ve given you all and now I’m nothing” 4. A Supermarket in California Imagina...