Blowing It In Easy Rider
"It is as though the oppressive conventions of stable society are ultimately inescapable, contaminating their easy riding on a variety of levels. The sense that stability, and all if its pitfalls clings to their wanderlust is most pronounced during the film's first climax" (Laderman 76).
Wyatt's lingering line, "we blew it," in "Easy Rider" can refer to many aspects of the film, but above all, I believe this line refers to the duos inability to carry out the rugged individualism and wandering ambition that they had tried hard to uphold throughout the film. From the early scenes of the film, Wyatt and Billy sit in stark contrast to stability and a roadless life. When they have dinner with a farmer and his family, the contrast in the appearance of the characters alone illustrates this point. Later, when Billy and Wyatt reach the commune, they find a sanctuary for wanderers, basically a safe haven: "Thank you for a place to make a stand" (Easy Rider). Even here, where wanderers are content to stay, Wyatt and Billy grow ever restless to leave again. The duo are individuals and live their lives by the road, a contrast to everything and everyone around them.
Their greatest success, and consequently their greatest failure, comes when they meet George Hansen. Here, I find, is where the meaning of Wyatt's "we blew it" line originates. George is a lawyer who finds himself bored with life and consequently is a drunkard. He embodies American culture, standing still in a place that has outgrown him, being free without freedom. Billy and Wyatt represent the American counterculture of true freedom and wanderlust. As the three of them take off on the road, we see the culture and counterculture mesh in the childlike flying motions Billy and George make on the road. We see how this combination affects American culture in the diner scene. As the trio sit and wait for service, groups of people sit around and talk about them. A group of men discuss the inhumaneness of the trio, comparing them to gorillas, an officer and his friend discuss ways to "deal" with them
We see how this combination affects American culture in the diner scene. As the trio sit and wait for service, groups of people sit around and talk about them. A group of men discuss the inhumaneness of the trio, comparing them to gorillas, an officer and his friend discuss ways to "deal" with them, and a group of girls is enamored with their long hair and ruggedness. Here we see how American culture is simultaneously frightened and intruiged by counterculture.
George's death is the first way in which "we" (aka American counterculture and escapism) blow it. With the death of their new partner, Wyatt and Billy have failed to successfully introduce their way of life into American culture, stability having caught up with them. By taking George's money and spending it in New Orleans, they have accepted American culture, have fed into it, and have abandoned their own counterculture. Their failure is further illustrated in the acid trip. The trip, filled with freak outs, religious references (the ultimate symbol of stability), and complete incoherence, solidifies both wanderlust and the counterculture that Billy and Wyatt embody as a dream, not a reality. Ultimately, they have failed in their journey to escape stability, have failed in upholding their counterculture, and have blown it in terms of staying faithful to themselves and the road.