Is the American road a myth?

Question

I'm currently writing my master's thesis on the road in the US. I want to explore its mythical status with roots back to the first settlers and the 'frontier thesis' (how the American was moulded on the frontier). I also plan on looking at Route 66 and explain how it has added to the myth of the road. Finally, I intend to look at road movies and explain how they keep the myth of the road alive.
I'm not from the US myself, and therefore I'm interested in getting in touch with 'real' Americans who would like to share their thoughts on the road with me. Is the road still mythical? Why/why not? Have you ever been on a road trip - or do you intend to go? What does the road symbolize to you (both the road in general and Route 66)? Do you think the road is part of the American national identity? Or only the whites' identity? Is it possible to find personal identity on the road as portrayed in many road movies? Please explain to me what the road means to you as a person and a people. Thanks

Answer 1

I think the American road myth is still alive. Although the height of this sentiment was probably in the 1950s and '60s, many people still take road trips. I think a lot of people taking road trips today are usually very young adults taking trips with their friends. Families still take road trips, but not as much as they used to. Judging from the experiences of myself and the people I know, road trips tend to be a lot shorter these days. Many people limit their travel to driving across only a few states instead of across the country. Sometimes the trips are limited to just travel within a single state. I think the reasons for this tend to be economical (rising cost of gas) as well as temporal (people don't take as much vacation time from work as they used to). Also, since the development of the interstate highways, there are far less "roadside attractions" than there used to be. Most of the interesting and unique diners, inns, and other colorful local tourist stops have been replaced with fast food chains and hideous mini-malls that look the same no matter where you go. There really is no reason to make stops along the way anymore. People are also more interested in getting to their destination than seeing the sights along the way. I think that airline travel may also have impacted the decline of car travel over the last 40-50 years, though I have no proof of this.
Although Route 66 no longer has the status that it once held, I think that the open road still symbolizes much of the American attitude and psyche. Many Americans still think of driving as one of life's great joys. To take your car out on the highway symbolizes the ultimate freedom and independence. It is a very important rite of passage for the teenager to get his or her license and, if possible, their first car. To go on a college road trip embodies freedom from the ties of home and parents. The road trip is also a great adventure to embark on. Anything can happen on your way to your destination or on your way back. The ideas of freedom, Independence and adventure are as much a part of the American identity today as they were in the pioneer era. Even if the road trips have been scaled down, the myth and feelings that surround them are still very much alive. I think that movies and books keep a lot of this spirit alive especially within the last 20 years or so.
In my experience, these ideas are not just a part of white society. I see them in other races as well, although it may be more important to whites than to other groups. I suspect that this may have more to do with socio-economic factors than cultural ones, but the only basis I have for this is personal experience, so I may not be reflective on America as a whole.
Once again, everything that I have written has pretty much been how I feel or interpret things myself, and should not be taken to generalize American thoughts on the subject. You said you wanted personal thoughts on this, and that is what I hope I have provided. I hope it helps. Good Luck!

Answer 2

The American road as myth has only become a myth in the last few decades. During the 'golden era' of the Automobile, and during the "GAS WARS" the American Road was an adventure just beyond the city limits. Americans could drive to other cities, other places in this vast country and enjoy the trip along the way. Roadside diners, fruit stands, attractions and the ever abundant Gas Station were the icing on the cake.

Then came the Interstates. Route 66 was the last of the long highways to succumb to the wide ribbons of Interstate that tied the country end to end and in between. With the interstate, you drive quickly from place to place, missing all the joy of the country, the road side stands, the fruit and vegetables and yes, the road side gas stations. Now, these places are clustered in groups around the exits on the Interstates and drivers are forced to all partake at the same places.

My family was always taking drives into the Rockies and I remember driving to and from College in the 70's, crossing the wide expanse of Nebraska and later Kansas. The car trip was a way to spend a weekend or just a day out in the beauty which is America.

Cars and the road shall ever be part of the American Identity, but the price of gas is quickly abating the ability of the average Joe to get in the car on the weekend and 'go for a drive'. Cars have always symbolized and will always symbolize 'freedom' to the American. Our lives are built around getting our driver's license, buying that first car, and getting to and from work in them.

Movies and TV once had this symbolism deeply ingrained and some movies will stand as part of the AMerican Psyche. "Easy Rider", "Thelma and Louise" and such mind candy as "Road Trip" all call to this inner freedom. TV Shows such as "American Chopper", "My mother the Car" and of course "Route 66" only enhanced this call of the road.

I hope this quick dissertation helps.....

Answer 3

Read "On the road", by Jack Kerouac.... It's a road story about the "beat generation" I would love to travel route 66 one day, unfortunately, alot of it has been destroyed, there are some portions of it that are still maintained as historical sites, but there are stretches of it that you can't drive on any more, and much of the cool roadside businesses that inhabited route 66 died because of superhighways by passing the area *sigh*..... there's just something about a ribbon of highway before you, and not knowing what you might find along the way....I guess the main things Americans think about road trips are freedom and adventure..... we generally go on a couple each year, sometimes to explore new territory, other times with a known destination in mind....
There is some info on route 66 out on the net, if you do a search for it....

Answer 4

Okay, before this gets into name calling, I am not a Republican, nor a Dem. I am an Independent, but all that aside. While there are some scientists who cry out global warming and that we are causing it, there are other scientists who say nope. Wrong answer. Start over. Lets look at the recent history of the Earth as we know it for a minute and use some common sense here okay. The Earth just got finished with a mini Ice Age. So naturally the Earth is warming up. Right? The Earth cycles through these warming and cooling periods. Oh, by the way, there is a test on Friday. lol With, or without man on this planet, these cycles are going to happen. At least once in this planets history there were no ice caps, and we weren't even here then. Who's fault was it back then? God's? These scientists that are doom and gloom criers fail to tell you about the effect that volcanoes have on the climate. When they are confronted by other scientists that debunk them, they are left looking like idiots with an agenda of falsehoods.. Forget Al Gore and his cohorts. He is a nut job to start with. If it wasn't for his corrupt dad, he would have never gotten into politics. But I digress. No one knows how warm the Earth will get and there isn't really anything you can do about it. Unless of course you are God and can stop volcanoes all over the world. To give you a small example, there are over 1500 known volcanic eruptions every year. That is on land and underwater combined. Do our factories contribute? Yes. No doubt. But it would happen anyway, so what does it matter? Besides, eventually the cooling cycle will happen again and then people will wish the global warming would come back. The major Ice age of about 13,000 years ago was extremely cold and happened apparently real quick. But that is another story. If you want to take better care of the enviroment, I say, okay, good. But to go about crying the sky is falling is very irresponsible for a scientist to do knowing he is not telling the whole truth. Which to me is the same as telling a lie.

Answer 5

Route 66 for the flower power children of the 60's was a television show. The Rolling Stones sang about it, see first link below.

I don't know about today but back then it stood for freedom and adventure, I never took a road trip but if I did route 66 would definitely be on my list, just call me nostalgic.

The idea of a road trip is to go where ever you end up, no rules, throw caution to the wind, never knowing what tomorrow will bring. Bring the car around I'm ready to go!

Answer 6

my family used to make the trek from st louis to california evry five years the first trips was when i was very young and we traveled route 66 the latter ones we traveled interstate 44 . as american history goes we moved west after we settled the eastern states so yes in that way it is american identity . later 66 highway connected all the towns and was quite the experience there was always a sight to see on 66 a soveneer to be found a trek to remember . 44 bypasses most of it today leaving to go to dust many of the sights no longer visited by the tourists of old . there is no substitude for having traveled route 66 just once in your life nothing eles could give one the crosssection of people nor entertain you as much . no matter what race one is they could find a most interesting trip by taking route 66

Answer 7

American Road Myth 01
Jerry Seeger



The sun is rising but already the desert floor shimmers with the heat. Stretching out longer than time itself is the road, disappearing over the horizon. Along the edge of the road walks a man, his features indistinct in the dancing air. His worn boots leave shallow prints in the soft earth of the shoulder. He has been listening to a car approach for some time now, and when it gets close he turns and holds out his thumb. The car crunches to a stop and the man jogs to the car, the passenger door already open and waiting for him. "Where you headin', partner?" the driver asks.

The hitchhiker shrugs. "West," he says. West is as good as any other direction.

The road is one of the most powerful symbols in the American identity. While other cultures have borrowed and adapted the road myth, it remains uniquely American at heart. Americans built the myth and turned the road into a symbol of the hopes, aspirations, and longing of a nation.

There was a time, not that long ago, when America was unexplored. Our culture was fostered with a feeling of vastness, of adventures waiting out there. Even as late as the 1950's driving from one side of the continent to the other was a significant undertaking, filled with unknown risks and never-before-seen marvels. Images of long asphalt ribbons stretching over endless plains and winding among mystical desert formations filled us with the desire to get our kicks.

The Road Myth started long before that; the song of the road was sung by cowboys and settlers as they looked west with visions of land and gold. They sang of a new life and carried with them the dreams of a young nation. Life on the road was dangerous, even deadly, and always hard, but the reward was great. There was promise of freedom out there under the big sky. The myth told of a life of self-sufficiency and virtue where a man just needed hard work, daring, and a little bit of luck to make it big.

As the nation matured and the journey west became easier, the song of the road changed with it. The road still carried the echo of the old pioneer days, of the restless souls that had tamed a land, but there was no longer a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. No new life awaited the traveler at the end of the journey. The idea of a destination faded from the myth, leaving the road and freedom.

In the myth the road itself became a place. An in-between that touches everywhere but is itself nowhere. Unknown and unknowable, it is a place where time is measured in miles and progress by the wear on the soles of shoes. There are no relationships on the road; the bonds that form between travelers last until the next town, where they will part ways again, simple anecdotes in the narrative of each other's lives. The road life is a collection of short stories -- brief, tantalizing, and inconclusive. Each one ends the same way.

Somewhere between the diners and motels, in a freight car or on the face of a driver illuminated by the glow of the instrument panel, lies the Truth. The pattern of the fat raindrops on the pavement while a hitchhiker waits for a ride could hold the secret, or it might be at the bottom of a beer in a run-down tavern. That the Truth exists is not in doubt, yet it is equally certain that the traveler will never find it. Still he must search, and add to the measure of his life one vignette at a time.

On the road one can only rest while in motion. The moment the traveler stops he is somewhere again, and somewhere casts a web around the soul, gradually tying it down with associations and obligations. The almost-glimpsed Truth flies on around the next curve, leaving a feeling of yearning in its wake. It is a yearning all Americans feel.

The Truth has other names. Freedom, peace, fulfillment. America. The mythical America where we have not lost our way, where our lives have a grander purpose, where nobility and virtue are rewarded. Most of us still believe in that America in some unconscious way. We know it's out there somewhere. We read the accounts and listen to the songs of those who are on the road as they report back what they have found. They give us tantalizing glimpses of a life that is not like ours, but they do not give us answers.

Some time in the 1960's the nature of the road changed again. Cars became more reliable. Interstate highways connected distant points with such efficiency that there was no in between any more. By achieving their purpose so well, the freeways made the destination the only thing. Distance is measured in hours, and the journey is a thing to be endured.

The Road of the myth is harder to find now. The wide-open spaces have lost their mystery, and the towns that used to dot the back highways to serve the needs of travelers have died, leaving empty shells of buildings, tumbleweeds piled up against the crumbling walls, the faded sign out front still legible: Gas, Burgers, Ice Cold Beer.

The Road lives on in America's heart, however, a wistful middle-aged memory of the glorious days of youth. It permeates our culture. Our heroes are enigmatic drifters. The word "freedom" is ubiquitous in automobile ads. The road trip is a required rite of passage among college students.

We Americans have created a new religion, an introspective and wistful belief system that few practice but all pay homage to. We worship freedom, solitude, and independence. We praise resourcefulness and contemplation. We dream of hoppin' a freight, sleeping under the stars, and hitchhiking. Disconnecting. Escaping. For all our collective brashness and bravado, we yearn for the peace of the road and a glimpse of what's over the rainbow.

If America has a heaven, it's an all-night diner at a truck stop, with Mac in back flipping burgers and passing them up to Sal (you know by the embroidered patch), who sets it in front of you, fries steaming and glistening, saying "Here ya go, Hon." You haven't eaten in 400 miles and the burger is perfect. There's a trucker two stools down, and he's flirting with Sal while the jukebox plays an old Hank Williams song you've never heard before. Unlike any other heaven, though, this heaven is perfect because you are just passing through. You have a slice of pie, leave your money on the counter, and saddle up to move on to the next town. Sal says goodbye and tells you to come back in next time you're passing through.

You just might do that.