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Personification
Definition of Setting
Setting is where and when a story or scene takes place. The where can be a real place like the city of New York, or it can be an imagined... read full definition
Setting is where and when a story or scene takes place. The where can be a real place like the city of New York, or... read full definition
Setting is where and when a story or scene takes place. The where can be a real place like the... read full definition
Part 2, Chapter 8
Explanation and Analysis:
On the Road takes place just after World War II, and it is set all over North America: New York City, New Orleans, California, Denver, Mexico City, and hundreds of little towns, rural locales, and roads in between. Kerouac's descriptions of the places he travels to are stylistically varied. Sometimes he emphasizes the appearance of the landscape, such as in this passage about Arizona:
We were in the mountains: there was a heaven of sunrise, cool purple airs, red mountainsides, emerald pastures in valleys, dew, and transmuting clouds of gold; on the ground gopher holes, cactus, mesquite.
But other times it is the people he encounters, or the shenanigans he and his friends get up to, that characterize and distinguish the various settings of the novel. Sal forms opinions about the places he visits: for instance, he doesn't like Los Angeles, which he describes as "a jungle," but he adores Mexico City.
Sal and his friends spend time hitchhiking in trucks, drinking heavily in run-down bars, exploring cities, and running from the police. These common activities thread together the vastly different cities and towns that Sal travels to. Sal never hesitates in one place for long. His whirlwind of travel sometimes has an aim, as when he joins Dean to find Bull Lee in New Orleans. But in general, Sal travels seemingly for the sake of it. He and Dean have a network of friends, lovers, and relatives all over the continent, and these connections provides eclectic lodgings for the travelers.
The book is mostly, but not entirely, set in the United States. Sal's extensive travels allow him to see much of the massive country, which is diverse in all senses of the term. As a result, On the Road feels like a novel written in appreciation of the United States's geography and people, even though Sal is far from supportive of the country's institutions and authorities.
Related Themes:
