"I got treated very badly in Texas. They don't treat beatniks too good in Texas. Port Arthur people thought I was a beatnik, though they'd never seen one and neither had I"

In this quote, Janis Joplin is reflecting on her experience in Texas and how she was dealt with improperly because of her look and lifestyle. She discusses being identified as a "beatnik," a term used to explain individuals who turned down mainstream society and accepted countercultural movements. Joplin describes that the people of Port Arthur, Texas, where she grew up, had never ever actually seen a beatnik in the past, but still evaluated her based on their presumptions. This highlights the close-mindedness and absence of approval she faced in her home town. Joplin's words likewise recommend that her time in Texas was hard and perhaps contributed in her choice to leave and pursue a profession in music.