This category is for articles relating to the
beatniks and their depictions. They were members of a
social movement in the mid-20th century, who subscribed to an anti-
materialistic lifestyle. They rejected the
conformity and
consumerism of mainstream
American culture and expressed themselves through various forms of art, such as
literature,
poetry,
music, and
painting. They also experimented with
spirituality,
drugs,
sexuality, and
travel. The term "beatnik" was coined by the
San Francisco Chronicle columnist
Herb Caen in 1958, as a derogatory label for the followers of the
Beat Generation, a group of influential writers and artists who emerged during the era of the
Silent Generation's maturing, from as early as 1946, to as late as 1963, but the
subculture was at its most prevalent in the 1950s.