Page 2- The Sea is My Brother – Jack Kerouac
While the novel does not directly deal with religious themes, the battle between those who think they know best because of their education versus those who feel they understand the world because of life experience is one that the Church knows. Easily the reader could imagine an eager seminarian, filled with all the conversations and debates of a New Testament seminar, feeling restless to enter into the pulpit and to educate those around him. Inversely, those around him smile at his theories and obviously lack of relating to the common man. Denominations that call and send out the newly ordained into areas that they are not acquainted with experience this problem. One ends up with congregations and parishes containing those that have been workers and farmers for generations with ministers who have belonged to more suburban, maybe even urban, educated families. Occasionally there are those who directly challenge whether or not the idealist believes in the things he says, or even understands what he’s saying. Those who question the delicate balance between formal education and the lessons of life will have places to underline and mull over.
Kerouac wrote the manuscript as a very young man, and it shows through in his writing. This is not to say the story is terrible, however, the writing is subpar. A budding form of personal self-expression is beginning, but if the novel was not written by Kerouac, it would not be published. Compared to On the Road or Big Sur one could understand why he was not pleased with the finished product. His famous spontaneous prose is formed most evidently in the monologues and internal dialogues of Everhart. His thoughts can become tedious to the reader who desires Everhart to make up his mind and grow up out of the world of “all words and no action,” especially in comparison to Martin’s attitude of getting up and doing what needs to be done. For those who love reading Kerouac’s work, The Sea is My Brother is insight into the adolescent mind of a young author, and gives cause to think about what it means to judge others based off of their life choices and expressions of those choices. In the church, in life, one cannot dismiss a person for being less formally educated, nor can naivety be cause for scorn. For those reasons, the novel would be a decent read for those who want to think about and be challenged about the roles of theoretical education and practical application in the church. However, The Sea is My Brother would not be a good introduction to Jack Kerouac and his writing style.
C. Christopher Smith is the founding editor of The Englewood Review of Books. He is also author of a number of books, including most recently How the Body of Christ Talks: Recovering the Practice of Conversation in the Church (Brazos Press, 2019). Connect with him online at: C-Christopher-Smith.com
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