THE TRAMP, THE FAN, AND THE WORKING MAN: BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN, "THE ROAD", AND AMERICAN PUBLICS A Thesis Submitted to the Committee on Graduate Studies in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in the Faculty of Humanities TRENT UNIVERSITY Peterborough, Ontario, Canada © Copyright by Brent Bellamy 2009 MA English Literature (Public Texts) September 2009 Library and Archives Bibliotheque et 1*1 Canada Archives Canada Published Heritage Direction du Branch Patrimoine de I'edition 395 Wellington Street 395, rue Wellington OttawaONK1A0N4 OttawaONK1A0N4 Canada Canada Your file Votre reference ISBN: 978-0-494-53247-8 Our file Notre reference ISBN: 978-0-494-53247-8 NOTICE: AVIS: The author has granted a non­ L'auteur a accorde une licence non exclusive exclusive license allowing Library and permettant a la Bibliotheque et Archives Archives Canada to reproduce, Canada de reproduire, publier, archiver, publish, archive, preserve, conserve, sauvegarder, conserver, transmettre au public communicate to the public by par telecommunication ou par I'lnternet, prefer, telecommunication or on the Internet, distribuer et vendre des theses partout dans le loan, distribute and sell theses monde, a des fins commerciales ou autres, sur worldwide, for commercial or non­ support microforme, papier, electronique et/ou commercial purposes, in microform, autres formats. paper, electronic and/or any other formats. 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While these forms may be included Bien que ces formulaires aient inclus dans in the document page count, their la pagination, il n'y aura aucun contenu removal does not represent any loss manquant. of content from the thesis. 1*1 Canada ABSTRACT The Tramp, the Fan, and the Working Man: Bruce Springsteen, "the Road", and American Publics Brent Bellamy This thesis focuses on reading the music and lyrics of Bruce Springsteen for their affective cathartic potential while keeping in mind that this potential can be publicly formative. Reading Springsteen through Michael Warner's framework of publics allows this project to parse publics theory and apply it beyond Springsteen to the literary tradition of "the road". This project summarizes a trend in American literature to utilize the road as a symbol of progression. However, this trend is inverted by analyzing homosocial relationships in road narratives to show that during the early 20th century masculine displays of affect are stifled and ridiculed. I argue, in my thesis, that Springsteen revitalizes masculine expressions of homosocial and homosexual affect through performance and songwriting. Keywords: American fiction; the road; Bruce Springsteen; Michael Warner; Public Sphere; affect; catharsis; homosocial. 11 Preface At the outset of this project I would like to say what it will not do or be. It will not be a survey of Springsteen's career, offer an analysis of his image, or do the work of Springsteen glorification (he does this very much on his own). Much of the literature about Springsteen falls into fan-literature or quasi-academic studies. However, there are many studies that are worthy of praise and attention. I simply wish to distance myself, as an emerging thinker in this interdisciplinary pursuit, from a gushingly positive analysis of Springsteen's canon. In positioning myself I must confess that I began this project in love with Springsteen's music. But, importantly, through my academic work, I hope that I have moved from the position of fan to that of critic. This statement raises two distracting questions: who is to say that one cannot be a fan and a critic, and why is it that we feel that to love and to be critical are mutually exclusive?1 This project strives to be more than fan-literature by arguing that not only is Springsteen's work embedded within the American public sphere, but that it has positively contributed to a transformation and revitalization of specifically American publics and the public sphere. Jefferson Cowie makes this argument succinctly in "The Intellectual as Fan", which is a review of Robert Coles' Bruce Springsteen's America: The People Listening, A Poet Singing, and Mark Marqusee's Chimes of Freedom: The Politics of Bob Dylan's Art (both 2003): "Together, these two studies suggest that when it comes to pop, intellectuals ought to do what they do best: display their appreciation for their subjects by thinking critically about them, not simply celebrating them" (280). ill Acknowledgements I would like to humbly acknowledge the guiding hand and tutelage of my supervisor Michael Epp. What I recall most from the early days was his unending enthusiasm and his response to my question "Can I really write about Springsteen?"—"OF COURSE YOU CAN!". Without him this project would not be in the shape it is today. Thank you to Charmaine Eddy, who pushed this project hard in the right direction, and to Hugh Hodges, whose casual, yet firm, approach brought the best out in me. Thanks to Lewis MacLeod for the help during the writing stage, and for being the external reader during his sabbatical. Special thanks to my peers for their support and input, you know who you are, without you this project would be remarkably different. Many thanks to Barbara Bell, Eric Bell, and Ian Arthur my wonderful attentive readers. Finally thank you to the members of the Public Texts program, your tireless assistance and guidance is invaluable to your students and your peers. Keep up the fantastic work. IV TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Abstract ii Preface iii Acknowledgements iv Table of Contents v List of Short-forms vi Introduction 1 Part I: The Poetics of the Boss 1 Listening, Feeling, Dancing, Singing 15 Part II: Springsteen and "the Road" 2 Five Ways of Looking at "the Road" 74 3 Queering "the Road" 103 Conclusion 129 Bibliography 134 v List of Short Forms Springsteen Albums: The Early Phase: Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J Greetings 1973 The Wild, the Innocent, and the E Street Shuffle Wild 1973 Born to Run Born to Run 1975 Darkness on the Edge of Town Darkness 1978 The Stadium Phase: The River The River 1980 Nebraska Nebraska 1982 Born in the U.S.A. BITU 1984 Tunnel of Love Tunnel 1987 The Era of the Fake Band: Human Touch Human Touch 1993 Lucky Town Lucky Town 1993 The Ghost of Tom Joad Ghost 1995 Renaissance: The Rising The Rising 2002 Devils and Dust Devils 2005 We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions WSO 2006 Magic Magic 2007 Working on a Dream WOAD 2009 VI 1 Introduction The youth lies awake in the dark. He can hear the ceiling fan doing lazy circles above his head. His thoughts need to rest. He slips his feet over the edge of the bed as he reaches for his turntable. The dim red glow of the power light illuminates his reach for the stylus. The speakers crackle as the first notes reach into the boy's room, the perfect match of strained harmonica and melodic piano. The tentative melody is soothing to his ears; Springsteen sings: "The screen door slams Mary's, dress waves/ Like a vision she dances across the porch as the radio plays" (1975). Today, I sit on a Greyhound bus heading to Toronto. I am going see to see Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band. Right now I'm listening to their latest album Magic with the insert in my hand so that I can read the lyrics. The album is really moving, and I'm pleased that after the mediocre Devils and Dust Springsteen has released a raw rock and roll record. I can barely contain my excitement to see him tonight. What is the difference between these two listening acts? Am I different from the youth listening to Springsteen in 75? Even though these two experiences are distinct I am compelled to view them as expressions of the same phenomenon. This paper could ground itself in his biography, and read Springsteen's lyrics through the lens of his life. It could perform a cultural analysis of the impact of his music. It could argue, along the lines of Horkheimer and Adorno, that Springsteen's music is a part of the machinations of a "Culture Industry" bent on pacifying the American working class. Along these lines, it could situate Springsteen's music historically within the discourse of working class America. It could situate Springsteen's work musically in the tradition of the 2 See Dialectic of Enlightenment "The Culture Industry: Enlightenment as Mass Deception". 2 troubadour and American star performer3, or situate his lyrics within the American literary tradition4. These approaches are legitimate and canonized, but I chose to study the relationship of Springsteen's music to the American public sphere. This project proposes that Springsteen's writing, music, and performance are part of a constantly re-emerging and changing American public sphere. Since 1973 Springsteen has written and released sixteen studio albums and countless live recordings and B-sides.5 Musically, he creates a pastiche of rock and roll, rhythm and blues, country, and folk. These factors make Springsteen's live shows legendary—typically filling an entire three hours with non-stop music.