Comparison

“An American Poem” by Eileen Myles describes the narrator’s personal journey from youth into adulthood.  This may sound very different than Allen Ginsberg’s “Howl,” which makes one political statement after another.  However, the poems share striking similarities.  For one, Myles’ narrator is homosexual, just like Ginsberg, who narrates “Howl.”  The narrator of “An American Poem” also sheds light on the struggles of homosexuals in the United States, just as Ginsberg does.  In both poems, American society as a whole is blamed for some of the struggles of gays and lesbians.  Furthermore, both poems feature graphic sexuality.  In “An American Poem,” Myles portrays actual sexual experiences.  In “Howl,” Ginsberg uses sexual language, such as “cock and endless balls.”  The fact that both poems go so far out on a limb by eliciting sexual thoughts gives them a bond unlike any other.