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A Supermarket in California
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About the author
Allen Ginsberg
490 books4,108 followersAllen Ginsberg was a groundbreaking American poet and activist best known for his central role in the Beat Generation and for writing the landmark poem Howl. Born in 1926 in Newark, New Jersey, to Jewish parents, Ginsberg grew up in a household shaped by both intellectualism and psychological struggle. His father, Louis Ginsberg, was a published poet and a schoolteacher, while his mother, Naomi, suffered from severe mental illness, which deeply affected Ginsberg and later influenced his writing—most notably in his poem Kaddish.
As a young man, Ginsberg attended Columbia University, where he befriended other future Beat luminaries such as Jack Kerouac, William S. Burroughs, and Neal Cassady. These relationships formed the core of what became known as the Beat Generation—a loose-knit group of writers and artists who rejected mainstream American values in favor of personal liberation, spontaneity, spiritual exploration, and radical politics.
Ginsberg rose to national prominence in 1956 with the publication of Howl and Other Poems, released by City Lights Books in San Francisco. Howl, an emotionally charged and stylistically experimental poem, offered an unfiltered vision of America’s underbelly. It included candid references to homosexuality, drug use, and mental illness—subjects considered taboo at the time. The poem led to an obscenity trial, which ultimately concluded in Ginsberg’s favor, setting a precedent for freedom of speech in literature.
His work consistently challenged social norms and addressed themes of personal freedom, sexual identity, spirituality, and political dissent. Ginsberg was openly gay at a time when homosexuality was still criminalized in much of the United States, and he became a vocal advocate for LGBTQ+ rights throughout his life. His poetry often intertwined the personal with the political, blending confessional intimacy with a broader critique of American society.
Beyond his literary achievements, Ginsberg was also a dedicated activist. He protested against the Vietnam War, nuclear proliferation, and later, U.S. foreign policy in Latin America. He was present at many pivotal cultural and political moments of the 1960s and 1970s, including the 1968 Democratic National Convention and various countercultural gatherings. His spiritual journey led him to Buddhism, which deeply influenced his writing and worldview. He studied under Tibetan teacher Chögyam Trungpa and helped establish the Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics at Naropa University in Boulder, Colorado.
Ginsberg’s later years were marked by continued literary output and collaborations with musicians such as Bob Dylan and The Clash. His poetry collections, including Reality Sandwiches, Planet News, and The Fall of America, were widely read and respected. He received numerous honors for his work, including the National Book Award for Poetry in 1974.
He died of liver cancer in 1997 at the age of 70. Today, Allen Ginsberg is remembered not only as a pioneering poet, but also as a courageous voice for free expression, social justice, and spiritual inquiry. His influence on American literature and culture remains profound and enduring.
As a young man, Ginsberg attended Columbia University, where he befriended other future Beat luminaries such as Jack Kerouac, William S. Burroughs, and Neal Cassady. These relationships formed the core of what became known as the Beat Generation—a loose-knit group of writers and artists who rejected mainstream American values in favor of personal liberation, spontaneity, spiritual exploration, and radical politics.
Ginsberg rose to national prominence in 1956 with the publication of Howl and Other Poems, released by City Lights Books in San Francisco. Howl, an emotionally charged and stylistically experimental poem, offered an unfiltered vision of America’s underbelly. It included candid references to homosexuality, drug use, and mental illness—subjects considered taboo at the time. The poem led to an obscenity trial, which ultimately concluded in Ginsberg’s favor, setting a precedent for freedom of speech in literature.
His work consistently challenged social norms and addressed themes of personal freedom, sexual identity, spirituality, and political dissent. Ginsberg was openly gay at a time when homosexuality was still criminalized in much of the United States, and he became a vocal advocate for LGBTQ+ rights throughout his life. His poetry often intertwined the personal with the political, blending confessional intimacy with a broader critique of American society.
Beyond his literary achievements, Ginsberg was also a dedicated activist. He protested against the Vietnam War, nuclear proliferation, and later, U.S. foreign policy in Latin America. He was present at many pivotal cultural and political moments of the 1960s and 1970s, including the 1968 Democratic National Convention and various countercultural gatherings. His spiritual journey led him to Buddhism, which deeply influenced his writing and worldview. He studied under Tibetan teacher Chögyam Trungpa and helped establish the Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics at Naropa University in Boulder, Colorado.
Ginsberg’s later years were marked by continued literary output and collaborations with musicians such as Bob Dylan and The Clash. His poetry collections, including Reality Sandwiches, Planet News, and The Fall of America, were widely read and respected. He received numerous honors for his work, including the National Book Award for Poetry in 1974.
He died of liver cancer in 1997 at the age of 70. Today, Allen Ginsberg is remembered not only as a pioneering poet, but also as a courageous voice for free expression, social justice, and spiritual inquiry. His influence on American literature and culture remains profound and enduring.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
October 20, 2015
This is a wonderful poem.
So simple on the surface, but to me it speaks of inspiration. Of finding it even in the most mundane and unexpected places - like a supermarket. It portrays the power behind poetry; how words on a page can become so much more when consumed by the right reader. How sometimes collections of letters on a page can etch themselves into our lives completely unintentionally, and unbeknown to the poet. Ginsberg finds a connection between himself and Whitman, even referring to him as "dear father, graybeard, lonely old courage-teacher". In the same way, I find myself connected to so many authors and poets who have offered me comfort and guidance when they have been lacking. Those who have made me see the world differently, and caused me to question everything. To stop and think, even when everything seems to be going too quickly.
I just really adore this poem.
So simple on the surface, but to me it speaks of inspiration. Of finding it even in the most mundane and unexpected places - like a supermarket. It portrays the power behind poetry; how words on a page can become so much more when consumed by the right reader. How sometimes collections of letters on a page can etch themselves into our lives completely unintentionally, and unbeknown to the poet. Ginsberg finds a connection between himself and Whitman, even referring to him as "dear father, graybeard, lonely old courage-teacher". In the same way, I find myself connected to so many authors and poets who have offered me comfort and guidance when they have been lacking. Those who have made me see the world differently, and caused me to question everything. To stop and think, even when everything seems to be going too quickly.
I just really adore this poem.
September 17, 2019
Melancholic and nostalgic, "A Supermarket in California" feels like an enormous nod to Walt Whitman. Not just the Whitmanian long line is there, but at times Ginsberg is almost quoting Walt: when he's talking about the courage-teacher, your mind goes straight to the canto 47 of "Song of Myself" where the "teacher of athletes" admires "wicked rather than virtuous out of conformity or fear".
And Ginsberg acknowledges that he has learned all his lessons right. You can tell it from the line "poking among the meats in the refrigerator and eyeing the grocery boys". It can be seen as both a playful reference to Whitman's homoerotic passages and as a sign of recognition, i.e. Whitman got to the meat, the others are amateurs.
"A Supermarket in California" is also a response going back in time to Whitman's "look for me under your boot-soles". There and then, in that supermarket in the 50's, amidst the reality which differed from Walt's America in every possible way, there was someone looking for traces of Whitman: "Missing me one place search another, I stop somewhere waiting for you."
And Ginsberg acknowledges that he has learned all his lessons right. You can tell it from the line "poking among the meats in the refrigerator and eyeing the grocery boys". It can be seen as both a playful reference to Whitman's homoerotic passages and as a sign of recognition, i.e. Whitman got to the meat, the others are amateurs.
"A Supermarket in California" is also a response going back in time to Whitman's "look for me under your boot-soles". There and then, in that supermarket in the 50's, amidst the reality which differed from Walt's America in every possible way, there was someone looking for traces of Whitman: "Missing me one place search another, I stop somewhere waiting for you."
April 30, 2024
FULL REVIEW ON MY WEBSITE
https://thebookcornerchronicles.com/2...
Finally I’ve read a poem which is about something else that death, and about the depressing aspects of life which happens to annoy me in poems now on days because there are so many of them.
The pilot itself is kind of unique but I felt like it didn’t use its full potential which it had.
The writing style was okay for the most part. I feel like it could have been better if the author gave the writing style more time.
https://thebookcornerchronicles.com/2...
Finally I’ve read a poem which is about something else that death, and about the depressing aspects of life which happens to annoy me in poems now on days because there are so many of them.
The pilot itself is kind of unique but I felt like it didn’t use its full potential which it had.
The writing style was okay for the most part. I feel like it could have been better if the author gave the writing style more time.
Read
September 18, 2023Personification which makes it more relatable and connected to the reader.
“Cultured hell,” the writer uses that the confusion of what America’s culture truly is.
Really depicts on the time it was written.
“Not a shred,” shows the commitment of the writer to his country.
“Cultured hell,” the writer uses that the confusion of what America’s culture truly is.
Really depicts on the time it was written.
“Not a shred,” shows the commitment of the writer to his country.
December 17, 2018
A Supermarket in California: “Where are we going, Walt Whitman?”
May 11, 2021
my new favorite poem!!
November 14, 2022
3.5
read in lit
read in lit
February 8, 2017
Read for English
February 24, 2017
The first part was okay, but i totally did not understand the rest, even as i read it more than once.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews