I first heard about Jack Kerouac and On The Road while watching a documentary on The Grateful Dead (Long Strange Trip). It was hard to ignore just how much Jerry Garcia admired and was influenced by Jack Kerouac throughout his life. Although I was new to the fascinating world of being a deadhead, when I saw how much Jerry Garcia talked about Kerouac I decided to go straight to the source and read one of his most renowned works, On The Road. From what I read online there were two versions of On The Road, an edited shorter one with different character names and considered to be more “censored,” and a version called the Original Scroll. Which is the unedited version that Kerouac himself initially wrote to include all the real, raunchy details of his adventures. Although it was described to be longer, I knew I had to go with the Original Scroll, and was looking forward to the unrestrained genuineness of what was to come. 

I soon realized that the reason this version was described to be longer, is because this was actually what Kerouac sat down and wrote as his first draft. Meaning that it wasn’t just unedited in terms of content, it was unedited in terms of structure as well. The Original Scroll is quite literally a scroll of pages after pages of writing, with zero paragraph or chapter breaks. But once I got used to this style, I learned to appreciate it because it felt like I was looking straight into Kerouac’s mind and seeing which moments he prioritized and chose to keep, versus others that he moves on from so quickly in the book you can almost completely miss it.

Jack starts his first journey from New York City to the West and as a reader you instantly begin to empathize with him, understanding his feelings overflowing with excitement and hope towards the trip he’s about to make. He’s filled with eagerness to reach Denver and join his friends for the first time, but this certainly doesn’t stop him from completely giving himself in to every experience (good or bad) he faces along the way there. Which you soon come to learn as a reader that this is how he approaches everything in life.

When I first began this book, I initially thought it would be a tale of his one grand journey from the East to the West, but eventually I found out that Kerouac describes the collection of adventures he had on the road throughout the 1940’s. Mose of the time going back and forth, or up and down, throughout the American country with his friend Neal Cassady by his side. Obviously besides Jack himself, Neal is the most prominent figure in most of his stories. This is a man that hooks you with his overactive, overindulgent, senseless and wild way of living. As a reader, I respected how Jack rarely judged Neal for his choice in lifestyle, and instead joined in and defended him more times than not. On the other hand, as a reader in 2023, you can’t help but face the truth that Neal Cassady was in reality a shameless, predatory predatory man facing no consequences to his behavior since this was far too common in the men living through their times. On The Road clearly confirms all the negative qualities we expected from the men in this era, especially in how they acted towards women, but it does so in such a painfully shocking and open way that its almost fascinating to compare whether these things are not too far from what we still see today.

Ultimately, On The Road (The Original Scroll) took me a good amount of time to read through and it’s filled to the brim with the type of crazy, unforgettable stories that only happen when you wholeheartedly commit to any situation you find yourself in. If you’re searching for the true essence of living in the moment, being unburdened by the “what if’s,” Jack Kerouac’s tales are definitely worth your time. They not only provide a firsthand account of the wild, unhinged lives of men and women across 1940’s America, but they also offer inspiration to anyone struggling to make a big decision or change in their life. Kerouac’s stories will motivate you to fully commit and embrace everything that comes your way with the best intentions.