In 1955, while in Berkley, California, Allen Ginsberg wrote his famous poem “A Supermarket in California”. Ginsberg was a student/admirer of Whitman’s work and he was fascinated with both Whitman’s stylistic form and theme. This explains why Ginsberg has the speaker of the poem directly addressing/looking to one of his poetic heroes: Walt Whitman. The poem follows the journey of the speaker in a common/ubiquitous routine location that is a supermarket. Like Whitman, Ginsberg romanticizes/zeroes in on imagery that relates to the “everyday” and common or routine. In this case he embodies the poetic nature that Whitman highly regards by the Neon Supermarket the speaker enters and the interactions he has with Whitman, the products, people and employees within it.
The poem begins with the aura of wandering, stress and loneliness. Ginsberg begins in the first two lines writing, “What thoughts I have of you tonight Walt Whitman, for I walked down the sidestreets under the trees with a headache self-conscious looking at the full moon”. This immediately creates a relatable feeling for the reader; the journey we all make at the end of our days (whether leaving school, extra-curricular activities, work, and more). That point of the day where we make our way home and day-dream to alleviate the stresses of the day; where we try to wind down, relax, and prepare for tomorrow. Neon is utilized for its harsh visibility in darkness, only the commercial is so bright at the hour of the poem. Hungry and fatigued the speaker enters the supermarket “dreaming of your enumerations!” (your as in Whitman ) to find the embedded poetic nature of the colloquial everyday human consumer. “What peaches and what penumbras! Whole families shopping at night! Aisles full of husbands! Wives in the avocados, babies in the tomatoes!—“. In line eight, we hear of the speaker seeing Whitman, “I saw you, Walt Whitman, childless, lonely old grubber, poking among the meats in the refrigerator and eyeing the grocery boys” This line serves to humanize and humble Whitman as an individual. Rather than admire his hero for his writing, he admires Whitman in his pursuit to find the beauty in the everyday as well as his sexual desires for men and particularly younger men. Sexual desire, regardless of its direction, is humanizing because it is a ubiquitous sensation across gender and culture. The imagery continues when Ginsberg writes “Who killed the pork chops? What price are you my angel?” (Line 8,9). This illustrates the norm of the time (which has reemerged in our health culture) which was to ask where/how meat was killed and prepared. In this case however, there is an implication that the inquiry into price is not over angelic meat, but rather a butcher who picks his sexual fancy. This sexualization of a such a colloquial/ubquitous setting showcases the natural beauty of the environment, capturing collateral beauty in the transactions that result within routine.
The poem deviates from sexual imagery to one of wanderlust. It makes me think of the J.R.R Tolkien adage “Not all those who wander are lost”. Ginsberg writes “We strode down the open corridors together in our solitary fancy tasting artichokes, possessing every frozen delicacy, and never passing the cashier.” (Line 13,14) Regardless if Whitman is literally in the store with him, or an augmented reality of his imagination, these two lines convey the sense of exploration and journey we can find in everyday tasks (assuming the right mindset). The idea that he, and at the very least the spirit of Whitman, did not attempt to pass the cashier
Ginsberg’s current morale and outlook of his self, his environment, and the world around him is embodied by the journey through the Neon Supermarket. The rhetoric he utilizes to separate each interactions he has with Whitman, the products, people and employees within it creates a play by play feeling ultimately slowing time and creating a more epic sense of wander and journey.
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