Reflections on Hipsterism

Once upon a time there was a myth named le proletariat. Though obviously a male, the myth was believed to be pregnant with child— a well conformed socialistic baby true to the Scriptures. Baby being long overdue, the congregation of the faithful first became skeptical, then frankly disgusted. Feeling cheated, never allowing that they may have misread the Book, they repudiated le proletariat, sued for divorce, and being an idealistically inclined flock, started to shop around for a better, less sterile myth. Great schisms followed, yet few of the flock turned cynical. Quite the contrary. Prompted by their thirst for eternal values, many made dangerous inroads into heretofore uncharted lands. There, as in a secret Eden happily rediscovered, amazingly new and refreshing reasons to live awaited the bold myth hunter: Liberalism, Democracy, Free World, Peace, Stop-the-AH-Experiments, etc., and —honor to whom honor is due—the long neglected bastard-brother of le proletariat: marijuana soaked Hip.

That Hip found in Norman Mailer its most outstanding and original theologist (I don’t say apologist), seems quite clear in the light of his essay [DISSENT, Summer 19571. He may be correct in stating that Hip and psychopatho...