America is a poem written by Allen Ginsberg, in the year 1956, during a time of extreme anti-communist sentiment. In the poem, we see a clear sense of hatred and resentment towards the United States, and also the political climate of Western society in the 50s. This was also a time period of great economic boom, yet based on the poet’s words, it seems as if he is left out of the party. Therefore, due to the distaste the poet displays towards America’s power status, and his complaints about his financial status and class, using the Marxist lens proves to be the best way to interpret the purpose of the poem.
The first thing that is noticed when reading this poem is the way America is portrayed as the big bully, and how the poet shows a clear …show more content…
He questions why certain figures have a significantly higher status and how that puts them at a severe advantage over the ones that are not considered as important. This is evident when he states, “It’s always telling me about responsibility. Businessmen are serious. Movie producers are serious. Everybody’s serious but me.” (Line 44/45). In our society, business figures, along with others who make a significant amount of money also acquire the most power and status. They are considered “serious” people, but the author questions why this seriousness is only attributed to those who make money. Another way in which the author belittles his social status, is by putting a literal monetary value on himself. In the second line, he says “America two dollars and twenty-seven cents January 17th, 1956” (Line 2). This may refer to the amount of money he had at the time he presented this poem, and it is clear that is connection made to his own financial status, as he later on refers to himself as “America” (Line 47).
To conclude, one can draw clear connections to the Marxist lens whilst analyzing this particular poem. It is based on the author’s words, which makes it clear that he believes America is responsible for creating a society, which has spawned a great amount of social and economic inequality. He wants America to stop focusing on the production of arms and instead tend to its citizens in
The first thing that is noticed when reading this poem is the way America is portrayed as the big bully, and how the poet shows a clear …show more content…
He questions why certain figures have a significantly higher status and how that puts them at a severe advantage over the ones that are not considered as important. This is evident when he states, “It’s always telling me about responsibility. Businessmen are serious. Movie producers are serious. Everybody’s serious but me.” (Line 44/45). In our society, business figures, along with others who make a significant amount of money also acquire the most power and status. They are considered “serious” people, but the author questions why this seriousness is only attributed to those who make money. Another way in which the author belittles his social status, is by putting a literal monetary value on himself. In the second line, he says “America two dollars and twenty-seven cents January 17th, 1956” (Line 2). This may refer to the amount of money he had at the time he presented this poem, and it is clear that is connection made to his own financial status, as he later on refers to himself as “America” (Line 47).
To conclude, one can draw clear connections to the Marxist lens whilst analyzing this particular poem. It is based on the author’s words, which makes it clear that he believes America is responsible for creating a society, which has spawned a great amount of social and economic inequality. He wants America to stop focusing on the production of arms and instead tend to its citizens in