Kevin

Great arguments presented. As much as the Beats were documenting life around them and influencing it in turn in their era, today’s alternative lifestyle is still influenced by their work and observations.

I completely agree with your thesis: “In the 21st Century, however, a reader does not need to know an iota about the sociological influences of the Beats to engage with their literature. Readers merely need to feel alienated and questioning, cynical yet romantic, searching but grounded.”

Great arguments and structure for your article! I think you brought some great perspectives and analysis that can be applicable across many more films than just the ones you chose here, but the ones you chose really made your point well!

She was great at Mad Decent and I think the globalization of EDM (on the Western side) is opening up more opportunities for international stars from all nations!

This is an interesting application of Zen philosophy to the problem of writing! Are there any exercises or practical examples of application you can share?

Great article! I think something interesting to further speculate on is how these games simulate political and cultural consequences for space travel and colonization, both on the human-human level and the human-alien level.

I felt like ME had a great representation of possible alien encounters/politics, and it felt great to be the representative of the human race as the first human SPECTRE.

I loved the Mass Effect series because of their blend of Action-Adventure. I spent as much time battling aliens as I did working on my alliances in the series. The story lines got so complex I wondered if my computer was going to explode from all the churning and calculating of different possible timelines as I progressed through the story.

I think much of the investment in the game comes directly from being able to influence fate, as the gamer must live with their choices in the virtual world. The game is a fantastic illustration of choice; there are a limited number of available variables to affect (i.e. plot points, character relationships, morality dilemmas), but a seemingly unlimited number of plot experiences due to the different combinations of choices.

One of my favorite elements of Bojack Horseman is the show’s use of animal characters as subtle metaphors… or not. Sometimes a character is a lemur for no other reason than that they are a lemur. But sometimes a character as a manatee is a subtle jab at the character being too fat, or in the case of Mr. Peanut Butter, his optimism is symbolized in his being a dog.

This was a great read! On the Road is one of my favorite books.

One thing I would have liked to have seen addressed is how and why the Beats became so successful as a movement and how the counterculture movement shifted from “Beatniks” to “hippies.” I would also be interested in the mechanisms of spreading their counterculture movement as a small group of artists and the role of publishers and other administrative entities in spreading the word.