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Beat Generation

or beat gen·er·a·tion

[ beet jen-uh-rey-shuhn ]

noun

  1. members of the generation that came of age after World War II who, supposedly as a result of disillusionment stemming from the Cold War, embraced forms of mysticism and the relaxation of social and sexual inhibitions.


Beat Generation

noun

  1. members of the generation that came to maturity in the 1950s, whose rejection of the social and political systems of the West was expressed through contempt for regular work, possessions, traditional dress, etc, and espousal of anarchism, communal living, drugs, etc
  2. a group of US writers, notably Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg, and William Burroughs, who emerged in the 1950s
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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Word History and Origins

Origin of Beat Generation1

First recorded in 1950–55; apparently from beat ( def ), though the sense intended by earliest users of the phrase is not clear; the association with beatitude ( def ) later made by Jack Kerouac is probably fanciful
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Example Sentences

"Steeped in a neo-Romantic sensibility that owed as much to John Keats as to the Beat Generation and Bob Dylan, Mr. Kristofferson’s work explored themes of freedom and commitment, alienation and desire, darkness and light," Bill Friskics-Warren of The New York Times wrote in an obituary published Monday.

From Salon

Neeli Cherkovski, a prolific poet and denizen of beatnik cafes who chronicled the literary ethos of bohemian culture in biographies of Beat Generation writers, including his friends Charles Bukowski and Lawrence Ferlinghetti, died on March 19 in San Francisco.

He was friendly with Bateson, and he and Mead made a radio show about the Beat Generation.

Some visit San Francisco’s North Beach because it tastes like Italy, and some visit because it howls like the Beat Generation.

In the film Radcliffe, portrayed Beat Generation poet Allen Ginsberg and Darke played one of his love interests.

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