“I saw the best minds of my generations destroyed by madness,”
When Ginsberg mentions the “best minds” in line 1 of “Howl,” he is referring to people who have been rejected by society because of their unwillingness to follow the norm and conform to the traditional ideas in society. Ginsberg idolizes these people because they don’t conform to society, but he realizes that they consequently pay a price for this. People will sacrifice their mental sanity for social freedom because they feel they are making themselves outcasts. Ginsberg laments on the fact that most nonconformists can’t handle being looked upon as “weird” or not “normal.” To Ginsberg, the point of not conforming is proving that one can function just as well, if not better, outside of the confines of society. Ginsberg doesn’t want nonconformists to go crazy by not following the norm; that would defeat the entire purpose of being an individual. He prefers that they embrace their nonconformity, happily break away from society, and encourage others to do the same, rather than becoming useless vegetables that get lost in the society they had broken free from.
-Courtney
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