ABSTRACT:The Beat Generation emerged in the 1940s and early 1950s. Jack Kerouac is regarded as the lead and spokesman of the Beat Generation, while his novel On the Road is honored as the bible of the Beat Generation.
Since the publication of On the Road, critical responses to the novel have polarized, from high praise to fierce denunciation, for the protagonists lead a wandering, unconstrained life, disobeying authority and denying the traditional middle-class moral standards of conduct and materialistic aspirations.
However, as times goes by, the novel has been approached more comprehensively and objectively, especially the large number of constructive studies on its themes, which greatly helped readers comprehend the novel and its writer. As to the coming out of the book, an event, it is necessary for us to broaden our research into both its social background and following influences, even historical impact.
The thesis is divided into three parts: Chapter One is a brief introduction of the Beat Generation and their so-called free lifestyle, like rebellion against authority and morals, which is also key backgrounds of the book. Chapter Two is the analysis of some social impacts. Chapter Three is about the impact in China, and thinking about the society. Based on the above-mentioned analysis, the thesis draws my own conclusion that the lifestyle of the protagonists was labeled with freedom or individuality, much influential on the following times and instructive to even today’s young people. Though the change of society is so powerful and rapid that no one can resist, young people should have enough mental preparation and still the right choice of values, on the other hand, society and individual also need to adapt to each other.
Key words: On the Road, Freedom, impact，belief
中文摘要:“垮掉派”是二十世纪四五十年代美国出现的一个特殊的文学流派。杰克·凯鲁亚克是其最无可争议的领袖和代言人，他的自传式小说 《在路上》被誉为“垮掉派”的圣经。由于小说中人物居无定所，放荡不羁，反叛权威，背弃传统的中产阶级道德行为标准和物质观，本书及作者曾一度饱受争议。但没有谁可以忽略他们这个群体给日后的美国甚至今天的我们带来的影响。
随着时间的推移，文学界对该小说的评判和研究更加的客观全面。尤其是大量关于其主题富思想方面有建树的研究，极大地促进了读者对作品及作者的理解，但对于这部小说出版这样“一个历史事件”，我们有必要更广泛探究其前因后果，即作者生活的时代背景，以及历史影响及当今的社会思考。
本论文分三个部分。第一部分对“垮掉一代”追求的所谓自由生活进行介绍，比如反抗主流权威，家庭伦理束缚等等，这同时也是小说产生的重要社会背景。第二部分紧接着阐述其社会方面诸多的影响。第三部分是其影响在中国的表现。以及带给我们当代年青人应有的思考。基于上述研究分析，本文力图得出的结论是：小说中描写的人物生活标榜个性自由，产生了强大社会影响，对今日青年有启示意义。虽时代变化力量巨大而迅速，无法抗拒，年青人在时代变迁面前要有足够的心理准备和正确价值选择，社会与个人也应当相互适应。
关键词：《在路上》，自由，影响，信仰
