Annotated Bibliography

Jerri Benson

Professor Scott Weaver

English 201

14 March 2011

Essay #2:The Shape “Hip” Takes:

Annotated Bibliography

Carlin, George. When Will Jesus Bring the Pork Chops. New York: Hyperion, 2004. Print.

Carlin is a philosopher and nonconformist humorist that once was charged with legal action by the FCC and was determined by the Supreme Court as being “indecent but not obscene.” This book highlights his use of euphemistic language and how it relates to social and political issues. He enlightens the reader about the human condition, and passes his own knowledge and wisdom through humor. Carlin is controversial, contradictory, and is the very essences of what hip is.

Ellison, Ralph. Change the Joke and Slip the Yoke. The World Publishing Co., Spring 1958.

Partisian Review. Class handout.

Ellison’s essay unmasks the identity of the trickster. He does this through the use of enlightenment and self knowledge and how the joke lies between the cracks of societies traditions.  I will tie Ellison’s essay on the trickster to Leland’s definition, how it relates to the other texts in this bibliography, and ultimately how the trickster defines hip.

Ginsberg, Allen. Howl. Ed. Julia Reidhead. Vol. E. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2007.

Print. 7 vols.

Howl is a poem that defines the nonconformity of the beat generation. The ambiguous language shows the chaos of the world around them, and then points its finger back at the truth, enlightening societies of its flaws. Ginsberg exploits his own sexual identity and challenges the orthodoxy of the times. Howl defines the hipster, who is a rebel and owns his imperfections unforgivingly.

Leland, John. Hip: The History. New York: HarperCollins, 2004. Print.

I will be using Leland‘s book on the history of hip as a bridge between my definition of hip and how it relates to the other texts in this bibliography. I will be using his ideas on how language, identity, knowledge, enlightenment, nonconformity, and unorthodoxy help shape what is considered hip. I will be tying this text and the others back to Leland’s idea of the trickster, and how this character plays into my definition of hip.

South Park Bigger, Longer and Uncut. Dir. Trey Parker. Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros.

present in Association with Comedy Central. 1999. DVD.

I will be using South Park the movie to help define my interpretation of hip. South Park pushes the viewer to question their knowledge about pop culture and morality, and breaks down the truth by challenging, and at times changing ideas. South Park’s unapologetic use of language examines the power of words and how culture defines the meanings of those words. This movie uses unorthodox and unconventional messages to enlighten the viewer of our flawed society. All of this is being done through the identity of fourth grade children.