Department of English

Jack Kerouac, French Novelist?

A conversation with Hassan Melehy about Kerouac's French manuscripts, his bilingual poetics, and his status as an "American" writer

Tuesday, March 12, 2024 - 5:30pm to 7:00pm

English Faculty Lounge, Fisher Bennett Hall 135

Come celebrate Jack Kerouac's birthday with guest speaker Professor Hassan Melehy, author of Kerouac: Language, Poetics, and Territory (2016), the first full-length study of Kerouac’s French-language heritage and its immense role in his poetics. He will be joined in conversation by Penn English's own Jean-Christophe Cloutier, who recently released a stand-alone edition of Kerouac's longest French novel, Sur le chemin (2023), with the French publisher Gallimard. Reception will follow

Excerpts from Kerouac's wild French novel will also be read live!

All are welcome!

Featuring Jean-Christophe Cloutier