Summary of Howl

 Popularity of the Poem, “Howl”: Allen Ginsberg, a renowned poet,

philosopher and writer wrote ‘Howl’. It is a narrative poem famous for
postmodern reality, destruction of social norms and traditions and social
fabric. It was first published in 1956. The speaker’ expresses sympathy
for his friend, Carl Solomon whom he met in a mental hospital. It also
illustrates his woes and worries about the never-ending social, political
and psychological problems of his society. The poem deals with the
phenomenon of social evils prevalent in the society. Though the poem
was written nearly five decades before, it is still applicable to the current
circumstances. The poet has also used profanity to express his pain
and frustration. However, the message of the poem is to highlight the
pain caused by violence, inequality between social class, and struggle
for survival.
 “Howl” As a Representative of Sorrow: This poem is an expression
of sorrow. The speaker narrates the sad condition of his generation who
are plagued with social evils. In the first section, the speaker presents a
graphic picture of the best minds of his generation, struggling through
their daily existence, suffering from mental illness. They walk across the
Negro Street with anger to show hatred against American culture. They
also curse the society that has failed to nurture them. They have
become insane: they talk about sex, drugs social taboos, homosexuality
and killing. He also documents the constant and purposeless travels of
his best minds. He claims that the best minds are using their art as a
tool to present the life truths.
In part two, the speaker documents the financial hardships of those who
cannot afford the luxuries of life. He uses Moloch as an
extended metaphor to show the injustices, maltreatment and dominance
of American government and industry. Moloch has stolen their desires,
visions and has pushed them into the world of narcotics. He claims the
values of industrialization and capitalism are adding more to their grief.
In the final part of the poem, the speaker shows his unity and solidarity
with his friend, Carl Solomon. He compares Solomon’s suffering with his
mother’s challenges. Carl Solomon was also a best writer, but now his
soul is trapped into the four walls of mental asylum. He is fighting the
battle of his life.
 Major Themes in “Howl”: Destruction, violation and literacy are the
major themes of this poem, throughout the poem, the speaker laments
on the destruction of the best minds of his generation. He discusses
their deprivations, vision and desires in detail. Also, explains how they
 revolted against society. Moreover, he talks about the dominance and
impact of American culture on his best minds. It is due to this culture;
the best minds have turned into savages. Instead of focusing on their
goals, they ruin their lives. They are ready to get involved in all kinds of
social evils. He also talks about his friend and his miserable plight. He
was also the best mind of his time, but now he is imprisoned in a mental
hospital. He feels sorry for his present state and promises to stand by
him during hard times.

 Analysis of Literary Devices Used in “Howl”

Literary devices are tools used by writers and poets to convey their emotions,
feelings and ideas to the readers. Allen Ginsberg has used various literary
devices to express his ideas of modern-day challenges. Some of the major
literary devices have been analyzed below.

1. Symbolism: Symbolism is a use of symbols to signify ideas and

qualities, by giving them symbolic meanings different from their literal
meanings. “Drug” symbolizes the pain and horror and “River”
symbolizes the passing time.
2. Metaphor: It is a figure of speech used to compare two different objects
or person with another object. For example, in section two the poet has
used an extended metaphor compare Moloch with destruction.
3. Consonance: Consonance is the repetition of consonant sounds in the
same lines. For example, the sound of /c/ in “in my dreams you walk
dripping from a sea-journey on the highway across America in tears”
and the sound of /l/ in “where you will split the heavens of Long Island
and resurrect your living human Jesus from.”
4. Imagery: Imagery is used to make the readers perceive things with their
five senses. For example, “I saw the best minds of my generation
destroyed by madness, starving hysterical naked”, “What Sphinx of
cement and aluminium bashed open their skulls and ate up their brains
and imagination” and “where you drink the tea of the breasts of the
spinsters of Utica.”
5. Alliteration: Alliteration is the repetition of consonant sounds in the
same line in quick succession such as the sound of /b/ in “battered
bleak of brain all drained of brilliance in the drear light of Zoo” and the
sound of /w/ in “where we wake up electrified out of the coma by our
own souls’ airplanes roaring over the roof”.
6. Enjambment: It is defined as a thought in verse that does not come to
an end at a line break; instead, it rolls over to the next line. For example,
“I’m with you in Rockland
in my dreams you walk dripping from a sea-journey on the highway across
America in tears to the door of my cottage in the Western night.”

7. Anaphora: It refers to the repetition of a word or expression in the first

part of some verses. For example, “I’m with you” in the last section of
the poem to emphasize the point of his presence,

“I’m with you in Rockland

1where you must feel very strange
I’m with you in Rockland
where you imitate the shade of my mother
I’m with you in Rockland
where you’ve murdered your twelve secretaries
I’m with you in Rockland.”

Analysis of Poetic Devices Used in “Howl”

Poetic and literary devices are the same, but a few are used only in poetry.
Here is the analysis of some of the poetic devices used in this poem.

1. Stanza: A stanza is a poetic form of some lines. “Howl” is a long poem

having three sections in it.
2. Free Verse: Free verse is a type of poetry that does not contain
patterns of rhyme or meter. This is a free-verse poem with no strict
rhyme or meter.