Women Writers of the Beat Generation

A crew of literary bandits that came of age in the 1950s, the Beat Generation abandoned traditional American values and cultural norms. These writers of the 1950s practiced sexual liberation, experimented with drug use, dug into jazz musicians like Billie Holiday and Thelonious Monk and objected mainstream materialism. Although most literary fans immediately recognize names like Jack Kerouac and Allen Ginsburg, Edinboro University professor Dr. Mary Paniccia Carden believes we need to focus more on names like Diane di Prima, Ruth Weiss and Hettie Jones. In her new book, “Women Writers of the Beat Era: Autobiography and Intertextuality,” In this inaugural episode of Tartan Talks, Dr. Carden explores how these women play a significant role in this literary movement and how their text and lifestyles are often overlooked by the literary elite – and the American public.