Asked by christian
Which line from “The Railroad Earth” best illustrates the influence of jazz music on Jack Kerouac’s style?
old faces looking up over rimless spectacles bought in some West Virginia or Florida or Liverpool England pawnshop long before I was born
the reading rooms tick tock bigclock with creak chair and slantboards
I hear far off in the sense of coming night that engine calling our mountains
anyway I'll be learning eventually to like the railroad and Sherman will like me some day
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"I hear far off in the sense of coming night that engine calling our mountains"
Why: this line uses musical metaphor ("engine calling") and a long, flowing cadence that mimics a jazz solo — a distant, plaintive horn cutting through night. Kerouac’s spontaneous-prose rhythm, breath-like phrasing, and imagery of sound-as-music here most directly reflect the influence of jazz improvisation.
Why: this line uses musical metaphor ("engine calling") and a long, flowing cadence that mimics a jazz solo — a distant, plaintive horn cutting through night. Kerouac’s spontaneous-prose rhythm, breath-like phrasing, and imagery of sound-as-music here most directly reflect the influence of jazz improvisation.
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