Howl
I
Isawthebestminds ofmygenerationdestroyedbymadne ss,starvinghyste
ricalnaked,dragg ingthemselvesthroughthenegrost reetsatdawnlooki
ngforanangryfix, angelheadedhipstersburningfort heancientheavenl
yconnectiontothe starrydynamointhemachineryofni ght,whopovertyan
dtattersandhollo w-eyedandhighsatupsmokinginthe supernaturaldark
nessofcold-water flatsfloatingacrossthetopsofci tiescontemplatin
gjazz,whobaredth eirbrainstoHeavenundertheEland sawMohammedanang
elsstaggeringont enementroofsilluminated,whopas sedthroughuniver
sitieswithradian teyeshallucinatingArkansasandB lake-lighttraged
yamongthescholar sofwar,whowereexpelledfromthea cademiesforcrazy
&publishingobsce neodesonthewindowsoftheskull,w hocoweredinunsha
venroomsinunderw ear,burningtheirmoneyinwasteba sketsandlistenin
gtotheTerrorthro ughthewall,whogotbustedintheir pubicbeardsretur
ningthroughLared owithabeltofmarijuanaforNewYor k,whoatefireinpa
inthotelsordrank turpentineinParadiseAlley,deat h,orpurgatoriedt
heirtorsosnighta fternightwithdreams,withdrugs, withwakingnightm
ares,alcoholandc ockandendlessballs,incomparabl eblindstreetsofs
hudderingcloudan dlightninginthemindleapingtowa rdspolesofCanada
&Paterson,illumi natingallthemotionlessworldofT imebetween,Peyot
esoliditiesofhal ls,backyardgreentreecemeteryda wns,winedrunkenn
essovertheroofto ps,storefrontboroughsofteahead joyrideneonblink
ingtrafficlight, sunandmoonandtreevibrationsint heroaringwinterd
usksofBrooklyn,a shcanrantingsandkindkinglighto fmind,whochained
themselvestosubw aysfortheendlessridefromBatter ytoholyBronxonbe
nzedrineuntilthe noiseofwheelsandchildrenbrough tthemdownshudder
ingmouth-wracked andbatteredbleakofbrainalldrai nedofbrilliancei
nthedrearlightof Zoo,whosankallnightinsubmarine lightofBickford'
sfloatedoutandsa tthroughthestalebeerafternooni ndesolateFugazzi
's,listeningtoth ecrackofdoomonthehydrogenjukeb ox,whotalkedcont
inuouslyseventyh oursfromparktopadtobartoBellev uetomuseumtotheB
rooklynBridge,al ostbatallionofplatonicconversa tionalistsjumpin
gdownthestoopsof ffireescapesoffwindowsillsoffE mpireStateoutoft
hemookingscreami ngvomitingwhisperingfactsandme moriesandanecdot
esandsandshockso fhospitalsandjailsandwars,whos eintellectsdisgo
rgedintotalrecal lforsevendaysandnightswithbril lianteyes,meatfo
rtheSynagoguecas tonthepavement,whovanishedinto nowhereZenNewJer
seyleavingatrail ofambiguouspicturepostcardsofA tlanticCityHall,
sufferingEastern sweatsandTangerianbone-grindin gsandmigrainesof
Chinaithdrawalin Newark'sbleakfurnishedroom,who wanderedaroundan
daroundatmidnigh tintherailwayyardwonderingwher etogo,andwent,le
avingnobrokenhea rts,wholitcigarettesinboxcarsb oxcarsboxcarsrac
ketingthroughsno wtowardlonesomefarmsingrandfat hernight,whostud
iedPlotinusPoeSt JohnoftheCrosstelepathyandbopk abbalahbecauseth
eunivtivelyvibra tedattheirfeetinKansas,wholone ditthroughthestr
eetsofIdahoseeki ngvisionaryindianangelswhowere visionaryindiana
ngels,whothought theywereonlymadwhenBaltimoregl eamedinsupernatu
ralecstasy,whoju mpedinlimousineswiththeChinama nofOklahomaonthe
impulseofwinterm idnightstreetlightsmalltownrai n,wholoungedhung
ryandoughHouston seekingjazzorsexorsoup,andfoll owedthebrilliant
Spaniardtoconver seaboutAmericaandEternity,ahop elesstask,andsot
ookshiptoAfrica, whodisappearedintothevolcanoes ofMexicoleavingn
othingbehindbutt heshadowofdungareesandthelarva andashofpoetrysc
atteredinfirepla ceChicago,whoreappearedontheWe stCoastinvestiga
tingtdsandshorts withbigpacifisteyessexyintheir darkskinpassingo
utincomprehensib leleaflets,whoburnedcigaretteh olesintheirarmsp
rotestingthenarc otictobaccohazeofCapitalism,wh odistributedSupe
rcommunistpamphl etsinUnionSquareweepingandundr essingwhilethesi
rensofLosAlamosw ailedthemdown,andwaileddownWal l,andtheStatenIs
landfled,whobrok edowncryinginwhitegymnasiumsna kedandtremblingb
eforethemachiner yofotherskeletons,whobitdetect ivesintheneckand
shriekedwithdeli ghtinpolicecarsforcommittingno crimebuttheirown
wildcookingpeder astyandintoxication,whohowledo ntheirkneesinthe
subwayandweredra ggedofftheroofwavinggenitalsan dmanuscripts,who
letthuckedinthea ssbysaintlymotorcyclists,andsc reamedwithjoy,wh
oblewandwereblow nbythosehumanseraphim,thesailo rs,caressesofAtl
anticandCaribbea nlove,whoballedinthemorningint heeveningsinrose
gardensandthegra ssofpublicparksandcemeteriessc atteringtheirsem
enfreelytowhomev ercomewhomay,whohiccupedendles slytryingtogiggl
ebutwsobbehindap artitioninaTurkishBathwhentheb lond&nakedangelc
ametoithasword,w holosttheirloveboystothethreeo ldshrewsoffateth
eoneeyedshrewoft heheterosexualdollartheoneeyed shrewthatwinksou
tofthewombandthe oneeyedshrewthatdoesnothingbut sitonherassandsn
iptheintellectua lgoldenthreadsofthecraftsman's loom,whocopulate
decstaticandinsa tiateandfelloffthebed,andconti nuedalongthefloo
randdndendedfain tingonthewallwithavisionofulti matecuntandcomee
ludingthelastgyz ymofconsciousness,whosweetened thesnatchesofami
lliongirlstrembl inginthesunset,andwereredeyedi nthemorningbutwe
repreparedtoswee tenthesnatchofthesunrise,flash ingbuttocksunder
barnsandnakedint helake,whowentoutwhoringthroug hColoradoinmyria
dstols,N.C.,secr etheroofthesepoems,cocksmanand AdonisofDenver-j
oytothememoryofh isinnumerablelaysofgirlsinempt ylots&dinerbacky
ards,moviehouses 'ricketyrows,onmountaintopsinc avesorwithgauntw
aitressesinfamil iarroadsidelonelypetticoatupli ftings&especiall
ysecretgas-stati onsolipsismsofjohns,&hometowna lleystoo,whofade
doutimovies,were shiftedindreams,wokeonasuddenM anhattan,andpick
edthemselvesupou tofbasementshungoverwithheartl essTokayandhorro
rsofThirdAvenuei rondreams&stumbledtounemployme ntoffices,whowal
kedallnightwitht heirshoesfullofbloodonthesnowb ankdockswaitingf
oradoorintheEast Rivertoopenfullofsteamheatando pium,whocreatedg
reatsasontheappa rtmentcliff-banksoftheHudsonun derthewartimeblu
efloodlightofthe moon&theirheadsshallbecrownedw ithlaurelinobliv
ion,whoatethelam bstewoftheimaginationordigeste dthecrabatthemud
dybottomoftheriv ersoftheBowery,whoweptattherom anceofthestreets
withtheirpushcar tsfullofonionsandbadmusic,whos atinboxesbreathi
ngintnderthebrid ge,androseuptobuildharpsichord sintheirlofts,wh
ocoughedonthesix thfloorofHarlemcrownedwithflam eunderthetubercu
larskysurrounded byorangecratesoftheology,whosc ribbledallnightr
ockingandrolling overloftyincantationswhichinth eyellowmorningwe
restanzasofgibbe rish,whocookedrottenanimalslun gheartfeettailbo
rsht&eamingofthe purevegetablekingdom,whoplunge dthemselvesunder
meattruckslookin gforanegg,whothrewtheirwatches offtherooftocast
theirballotforan EternityoutsideofTime,&alarmcl ocksfellontheirh
eadseverydayfort henextdecade,whocuttheirwrists threetimessucces
sfullyunsuccessf ully,gaveupandwereforcedtoopen antiquestoreswhe
retheyweregrowin goldandcried,whowereburnedaliv eintheirinnocent
flanndisonAvenue amidblastsofleadenverse&thetan ked-upclatteroft
heironregimentso ffashion&thenitroglycerineshri eksofthefairieso
fadvertising&the mustardgasofsinisterintelligen teditors,orwerer
undownbythedrunk entaxicabsofAbsoluteReality,wh ojumpedofftheBro
oklynBridgethisa ctuallyhappenedandwalkedawayun knownandforgotte
nintoazeofChinat ownsoupalleyways&firetrucks,no tevenonefreebeer
,whosangoutofthe irwindowsindespair,felloutofth esubwaywindow,ju
mpedinthefilthyP assaic,leapedonnegroes,criedal loverthestreet,d
ancedonbrokenwin eglassesbarefootsmashedphonogr aphrecordsofnost
algicEuropean193 0sGermanjazzfinishedthewhiskey andthrewupgroani
ngintoilet,moans intheirearsandtheblastofcoloss alsteamwhistles,
whobarreleddownt hehighwaysofthepastjourneyingt oeachother'shotr
od-Golgothajail- solitudewatchBirminghamjazzinc arnation,whodrov
ecrosscountrysev entytwohourstofindoutifIhadavi sionoryouhadavis
ionorhehadavisio ntofindoutEternity,whojourneye dtoDenver,whodie
dinDeebacktoDenv er&waitedinvain,whowatchedover Denver&brooded&l
onedinDenverandf inallywentawaytofindouttheTime ,&nowDenverislon
esomeforherheroe s,whofellontheirkneesinhopeles scathedralsprayi
ngforeachother's salvationandlightandbreasts,un tilthesoulillumi
nateditshairfora second,whocrashedthroughtheirm indsinjailwaitin
gforiiminalswith goldenheadsandthecharmofrealit yintheirheartswh
osangsweetbluest oAlcatraz,whoretiredtoMexicoto cultivateahabit,
orRockyMounttote nderBuddhaorTangierstoboysorSo uthernPacifictot
heblacklocomotiv eorHarvardtoNarcissustoWoodlaw ntothedaisychain
orgrave,whodeman dedsanitytrialsaccusingtheradi oofhypnotism&wer
eleftsanity&thei rhands&ahungjury,whothrewpotat osaladatCCNYlect
urersonDadaisman dsubsequentlypresentedthemselv esonthegranitest
epsofthemadhouse withtheshavenheadsandharlequin speechofsuicide,
demandinginstant aneouslobotomy,andwhoweregiven insteadtheconcre
tevoidofinsulinM etrazolelectricityhydrotherapy psychotherapyocc
upatipingpong&am nesia,whoinhumorlessprotestove rturnedonlyonesy
mbolicpingpongta ble,restingbrieflyincatatonia, returningyearsla
tertrulybaldexce ptforawigofblood,andtearsandfi ngers,tothevisib
lemadmandoomofth ewardsofthemadtownsoftheEast,P ilgrimState'sRoc
kland'sandGreyst one'sfoetidhalls,bickeringwith theechoesoftheso
ul,rolinginthemi dnightsolitude-benchdolmen-rea lmsoflove,dreamo
flifebodiesturne dtostoneasheavyasthemoon,withm otherfinally****
*,andthelastfant asticbookflungoutofthetenement window,andthelas
tdoorclosedat4A. M.andthelasttelephoneslammedat thewallinreplyan
dthelastfurnishe droomemptieddowntothelastpiece ofmentalfurnitur
e,ayellowpaperro setwistedonawirehangerontheclo set,andeventhati
maginbutahopeful littlebitofhallucination-ah,Ca rl,whileyouareno
tsafeIamnotsafe, andnowyou'rereallyinthetotalan imalsoupoftime-a
ndwhothereforera nthroughtheicystreetsobsessedw ithasuddenflasho
fthealchemyofthe useoftheellipsethecatalogtheme ter&thevibrating
plane,whodreamta ndmadeincarnategapsinTime&Spac ethroughimagesju
xtapopedthearcha ngelofthesoulbetween2visualima gesandjoinedthee
lementalverbsand setthenounanddashofconsciousne sstogetherjumpin
gwithsensationof PaterOmnipotensAeternaDeustore createthesyntaxa
ndmeasureofpoorh umanproseandstandbeforeyouspee chlessandintelli
gentandshakingwi thshame,rejectedyetconfessingo utthesoultoconfo
rmtothoughtinhis nakedandendlesshead,themadmanb umandangelbeatin
Time,unknown,yet puttingdownherewhatmightbeleft tosayintimecomea
fterdeath,andros eincarnateintheghostlyclotheso fjazzinthegoldho
rnshadowoftheban dandblewthesufferingofAmerica' snakedmindforlov
eintoanelielilam malammasabacthanisaxophonecryt hatshiveredtheci
tiesdtradiowitht heabsoluteheartofthepoembutche redoutoftheirown
bodiesgoodtoea tathousandyears.
II
Whatsphinxofceme ntandaluminiumbashedopentheirs kullsandateupthe
irbrainsandimagi nation?Moloch!Solitude!Filth!U gliness!Ashcansa
ndunobtainabledo llars!Childrenscreamingunderth estairways!Boyss
obbinginarmies!O ldmenweepingintheparks!Moloch! Moloch!Nightmare
ofMoloch!Molocht heloveless!MentalMoloch!Moloch theheavyjudgerof
men!Molochtheinc omprehensibleprison!Molochthec rossbonesoulless
jailhouseandCong ressos!Molochwhosebuildingsare judgement!Moloch
thevaststoneofwa r!Molochthestunedgovernments!M olochwhosemindis
puremachinery!Mo lochwhosebloodisrunningmoney!M olochwhosefinger
saretenarmies!Mo lochwhosebreastisacannibaldyna mo!Molochwhoseea
risasmokingtomb! Molochwhoseeyesareathousandbli ndwindows!Moloch
whoseskyscrapers standinthelongstreetslikeendle ssJehovas!Moloch
whosefactoriesdr eamandchokeinthefog!Molochwhos esmokestacksanda
ntennaecrownthec ities!Molochwhoseloveisendless oilandstone!Molo
chwhosesoulisele ctricityandbanks!Molochwhosepo vertyisthespecte
rofgewhosefateis acloudofsexlesshydrogen!Moloch whosenameistheMi
nd!MolochinwhomI sitlonely!MolochinwhomIdreaman gels!CrazyinMolo
ch!CocksuckerinM oloch!LackloveandmanlessinMolo ch!Molochwhoente
redmysoulearly!M olochinwhomIamaconsciousnesswi thoutabody!Moloc
hwhofrightenedme outofmynaturalecstasy!Molochwh omIabandon!Wakeu
pinMotreamingout ofthesky!Moloch!Moloch!Robotap artments!invisab
lesuburbs!skelet ontreasuries!blindcapitals!dem onicindustries!s
pectralnations!i nvinciblemadhouses!granitecock s!monstrousbombs
!Theybroketheirb acksliftingMolochtoHeaven!Pave ments,trees,radi
os,tons!liftingt hecitytoHeavenwhichexistsandis everywhereaboutu
s!Vishallucinati ons!miracles!ecstacies!gonedow ntheAmericanrive
r!Dreams!adorati ons!illuminations!religions!th ewholeboatloadof
sensitivebullshi t!Breakthroughs!overtheriver!f lipsandcrucifixi
ons!gonedownthef lood!Highs!Epiphanies!Despairs !Tenyears'animal
screamsandsuicid es!Minds!Newloves!Madgeneratio n!downontherocks
ofTimaughterinth eriver!Theysawitall!thewildeye s!theholyyells!T
heybadefarewell! Theyjumpedofftheroof!tosolitud e!waving!carryin
gflowers!Downtotherive r!intothestreet!
III
CarlSolomon!I'mw ithyouinRocklandwhereyou'remad derthanIamI'mwit
hyouinRocklandwh ereyoumustfeelstrangeI'mwithyo uinRocklandwhere
youimitatethesha deofmymotherI'mwithyouinRockla ndwhereyou'vemur
deredyourtwelves ecretariesI'mwithyouinRockland whereyoulaughatt
hisinvisiblehumo urI'mwithyouinRocklandwherewea regreatwriterson
thesamedreadfult ypewriterI'mwithyouinRocklandw hereyourconditio
nhasbecomeseriou sandisreportedontheradioI'mwit hyouinRocklandwh
erethefacultieso ftheskullnolongeradmittheworms ofthesensesI'mwi
thyouinRocklandw hereyoudrinktheteaofthebreasts ofthespinstersof
UticaI'mwithyoui nRocklandwhereyoupunonthebodie sofyournursesthe
harpiesoftheBron xI'mwithyouinRocklandwhereyous creaminastraight
jacketthatyou're losingthegameofactualpingpongo ftheabyssI'mwith
youinRocklandwhe reyoubangonthecatatonicpianoth esoulisinnocenta
ndimmortalitshou ldneverdieungodlyinanarmedmadh ouseI'mwithyouin
Rocklandwherefif tymoreshockswillneverreturnyou rsoultoitsbodyag
ainfromitspilgri magetoacrossinthevoidI'mwithyo uinRocklandwhere
youaccuseyourdoc torsofinsanityandplottheHebrew socialistrevolut
ionagainstthefas cistnationalGolgothaI'mwithyou inRocklandwherey
ouwillsplitthehe avensofLongIslandandresurrecty ourlivinghumanJe
susfromthesuperh umantombI'mwithyouinRocklandwh eretherearetwent
yfivethousandmad comradesalltogethersingingthef inalstanzasofthe
InternationaleI' mwithyouinRocklandwherewehugan dkisstheUnitedSt
atesunderourbeds heetstheUnitedStatesthatcoughs allnightandwon't
letussleepI'mwit hyouinRocklandwherewewakeupele ctrifiedoutofthe
comabyourownsoul s'airplanesroaringovertherooft hey'vecometodrop
angelicbombstheh ospitalilluminatesitselfimagin arywallscollapse
Oskinnylegionsru noutsideOstarry-spangledshocko fmercytheeternal
warishereOvictor yforgetyourunderwearwe'refreeI 'mwithyouinRockl
andinmydreamsyou walkdrippingfromasea-journeyon thehighwayacross
Ameri caintearstothedoorofmycottagei ntheWesternnight
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