Who or what is Moloch and what does it represent in the poem?

For Ginsberg, Moloch is associated with war, government, capitalism, and mainstream culture, all of which might be summed up by one of the poem’s most important concepts: the “machine” or “machinery.” Moloch is an inhuman monster that kills youth and love.

What does Moloch represent to Ginsberg?

Ginsberg establishes Moloch as the destroyer, the one who devours the present. He constantly calls out “Moloch!” as if naming him arrantly will expose his evildoings (Breslin). Moloch represents authority, those who tell us how we can and cannot live.

What is Moloch in the poem Howl?

Moloch was an ancient idol of the Middle East, consisting of a large mouth of fire into which parents threw their young daughters. This both was said to please Moloch and those wanting a strong male society, as opposed to what they saw as a “weak, female one.

What is Rockland howl?

The speaker declares his solidarity with Carl Solomon, who resides the mental hospital called “Rockland.” In real life, Ginsberg met Solomon at the Columbia Presbyterian Psychiatric Institute, where Solomon was treated for depression with shock therapy (Source).

Why did Allen Ginsberg write America?

“America” was composed by poet Allen Ginsberg, who wrote the poem during his time in Berkeley. This poem was included into ‘Howl and Other Poems’ and was written in the year 1956. In the time of great political unrest and a post-World War II scenario, this poem represents the spirit of America in such hard times.

What is the sphinx of cement and aluminum bashed?

Moloch
What sphinx of cement and aluminum bashed open their skulls and ate up their brains and imagination? Moloch! Solitude!

Where did Ginsberg write Howl?

Allen Ginsberg’s Howl was written in the summer of 1955 in an apartment at 1010 Montgomery Street. His first public reading of Howl was in October, 1955 at the Six Gallery in North Beach.

Who is Howl addressed to?

for Carl Solomon
“Howl”, also known as “Howl for Carl Solomon”, is a poem written by Allen Ginsberg in 1954–1955 and published in his 1956 collection Howl and Other Poems. The poem is dedicated to Carl Solomon. Howl and Other Poems was published in the fall of 1956 as number four in the Pocket Poets Series from City Lights Books.

What is the significance of Moloch?

In letters of the Munich Cosmic Circle the name Moloch was used to symbolize a Jewish God, hostile to life. He had called from the depths of defeat the dark and savage furies latent in the most numerous, most serviceable, ruthless, contradictory and ill-starred race in Europe.

What does Moloch mean in the poem Howl?

1 In Allen Ginsberg ‘s poem ” Howl ” (1955), Moloch is used as a metaphor for industrial civilization and for America more… 2 Gary Wills ‘ article “Our Moloch” (2012) in The New York Review of Books used Moloch as a metaphor for guns, to which… More

Was Moloch a child sacrifice God?

Condemned by biblical prophets and Roman senators alike, few pagan deities were as reviled as Moloch, a god whose bronze body was a furnace used for sacrificing children. Child sacrifice is non-existent today — hopefully — but that hasn’t always been the case.

What is the biblical meaning of the name Molech?

Moloch (Phoenician:, Masoretic מֹלֶךְ mōlek, Greek Μολόχ) is the Biblical name relating to a Canaanite god associated with child sacrifice. The name of this deity is also sometimes spelled Molech, Milcom, or Malcam.