beatniks
Bongo-playing coffee drinkers
Beatniks were members of the Beat Generation of the 1950s and early 1960s—young people who rejected mainstream American values in favor of poetry, jazz, Eastern philosophy, and nonconformity.
The term carries a mildly dismissive tone, coined by a newspaper columnist who fused "beat" with the Soviet satellite Sputnik to suggest something alien or subversive.
The beatniks gathered in coffeehouses to read poetry.
Establishment serving brewed beverages
- beretFlat wool cap
- goateeChin-only beard style
- bongoSmall paired hand drums
- turtleneckHigh-collared pullover
sandals · espresso · cigarette · Greenwich Village · Venice Beach · loft · commune · poverty
Beat Generation novelist
- Ginsberg"Howl" writer, beatnik
- CorsoItalian main street
- On the RoadBeat Generation travelogue
- HowlGinsberg's iconic 1956 poem
Burroughs · Naked Lunch · City Lights · stream-of-consciousness · free verse · confessional poetry · poetry readings · mimeograph
Defiance of established power
- nonconformityRejection of prevailing norms
- anti-establishmentOpposing dominant institutions
- squareRhombus with right angles
- McCarthyismPolitically-motivated accusation without evidence
dropping out · alternative lifestyle · underground · subversive · protest · disaffection · generational divide
Fast, complex jazz style
- cool jazzRelaxed 1950s improvisational music
- improvisationSpontaneous, unplanned creation
- saxophoneReed instrument, brass body
- bongo drumsPaired handheld percussion instruments
Charlie Parker · Dizzy Gillespie · Thelonious Monk · Miles Davis · nightclub · jam session · riff · syncopation
Philosophy stressing self-created meaning
- Zen BuddhismMeditation-focused Eastern spiritual path
- nihilismRejection of objective meaning
- anti-materialismOpposition to prioritizing possessions
- spiritual seekingPursuit of transcendent meaning
dharma · satori · meditation · spontaneity · authenticity · alienation · disillusionment · individualism
coffeehouse
Establishment serving brewed beverages
turtleneck · sandals · espresso · cigarette · Greenwich Village · Venice Beach · loft · commune · poverty · hitchhiking
Kerouac
Beat Generation novelist
- Ginsberg"Howl" writer, beatnik
- CorsoItalian main street
- On the RoadBeat Generation travelogue
Burroughs · Howl · Naked Lunch · City Lights · stream-of-consciousness · free verse · confessional poetry · poetry readings · mimeograph · Big Sur
rebellion
Defiance of established power
- nonconformityRejection of prevailing norms
- anti-establishmentOpposing dominant institutions
- squareRhombus with right angles
McCarthyism · dropping out · alternative lifestyle · underground · subversive · protest · disaffection · generational divide
bebop
Fast, complex jazz style
- cool jazzRelaxed 1950s improvisational music
- improvisationSpontaneous, unplanned creation
- saxophoneReed instrument, brass body
bongo drums · Charlie Parker · Dizzy Gillespie · Thelonious Monk · Miles Davis · nightclub · jam session · riff · syncopation · jive talk
existentialism
Philosophy stressing self-created meaning
- Zen BuddhismMeditation-focused Eastern spiritual path
- nihilismRejection of objective meaning
- anti-materialismOpposition to prioritizing possessions
spiritual seeking · dharma · satori · meditation · spontaneity · authenticity · alienation · disillusionment · individualism · Sartre
- 1950s nostalgiapoodle skirts, hula hoops, drive-in theaters, sock hops, jukeboxes
- 20th century cultureRoaring Twenties, Jazz Age, Great Depression, baby boom, counterculture
- Nonconformistsnonconformist, rebels, rebel, misfits, misfit
- BoomersAARP, AARP member, empty nester, empty nesters, grandparent
- countercultureflower power, flower children, free love, hippie communes, Summer of Love
- Greenwich VillageWashington Square Park, Christopher Street, West Village, Washington Square, Stonewall Inn
beatniksconformists
Those obeying social norms
squares · suburbanites · bourgeoisie · company men · straights
beatnikscorporate executives
Senior company leadership
politicians · country club members · captains of industry · power brokers · pillars of society