William C. Nesbitt Beacon College [email protected]

"Publishing Obscene Odes": Howl, Allen Ginsberg, and Poetry on Trial

On October 7, 1955 Allen Ginsberg read the first part of Howl at the 6 Gallery in San Francisco. In The Birth of the Beat Generation Steven Watson reports that the response was overwhelming enthusiastic with audience members such as Kenneth Rexroth brought to tears (187). Ginsberg’s reading concluded with a “roaring ovation” (187). Howl and Other Poems was published in August 1956 by City Lights and on May 21, 1957 Lawrence Ferlinghetti, the publisher, and Shigeyoshi Murao, the bookstore manager, of City Lights were arrested on charges of obscenity (252). On October 3, 1957 Judge Horn declared them “not guilty” (253). As we know, the real defendant of the poem was Howl. However, Judge Horn cleared Howl as well and said in his decision that “I do not believe that Howl is without redeeming social importance” (Howl on Trial 197).

Exploring and explaining how the poem went from a well-received work at an intimate venue, to banned, to cleared of charges in a nationally publicized trial—all in under two years—is a compelling and informative study in how scandalous texts both break with and adhere to canonical texts, challenge societal norms, and offer alternate readings of experience. In American Scream, Jonah Raskin point outs that “during the trial itself, there was considerable testimony about great literature, the classics, and literary tradition” (223).

Howl elevated a virtually unknown author onto the national and world stages, and it was a key event in the formation of the Beat Generation. Erik Mortenson in “Allen Ginsberg and Beat Poetry” observes that “Howl was not just a literary breakthrough for Ginsberg. It also catapulted him to fame as a spokesperson for the Beats, their writing, and indeed for the underground lifestyle that the poem chronicles”(82). Raskin believes that “Ever since the trial of Howl, Ginsberg’s poem has grown in stature” (223). What is it about this text that was and remains so special? Why was it and why is it so influential, loved, and hated? What does its compositional process tell us about other scandalous materials? In what ways does it continue to be a disruptive text, challenging both readers and the status quo?