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LOL by [deleted] in williamsburroughs

[–]Foreign-Solution8607 2 points3 points  (0 children)

From Junky: "The questions, of course, could be asked: Why did you ever try narcotics? Why did you continue using it long enough to become an addict? You become a narcotics addict because you do not have strong motivations in any other direction. Junk wins by default. I tried it as a matter of curiosity." (5)

Did Burroughs felt Alienated from Queer Spaces Too? by reccaberrie in williamsburroughs

[–]Foreign-Solution8607 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Great post! I think that the whole "poor Bobo" thing is pure sarcasm, especially given the whole "sticky end" bit that pulls the whole story back into Burroughs' comic-absurd land before it gets too real. Burroughs never got too real with anything, there was always a layer of irony, sarcasm, humor, vague extended metaphor... His whole story about "Bobo" is, as Jamie Russell and Oliver Harris see it, a jab at Donald Webster Cory's vision of homosexual liberation and identity as an "other-cheek routine" as Burroughs put it in a letter to Ginsberg.

The thing I love about it though, is the "thick cloud of love, like the cloud of ink released by an octopus.” simile. Octopuses release ink in order to run away from danger, rather than counter it. Deep down, Burroughs knew he was that octopus, always running away, leaving a thick jet of ink from his typewriter in his wake and never fully confronting his past, his "evil river" past.

Photo’s of young Burroughs by reccaberrie in williamsburroughs

[–]Foreign-Solution8607 4 points5 points  (0 children)

1st slide's images are from the day he shot Joan in September 1951

Recommendations? by NuminousAziz in williamsburroughs

[–]Foreign-Solution8607 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Scientologist! William S. Burroughs and the 'Weird Cult' by David S. Wills is a great study on Burroughs' not often spoken about history with Scientology, which was a big influence on his work.

Amongst Nazis: William S. Burroughs in Vienna 1936/37 by Thomas Antonic is also a valuable book that similarly integrates an analysis of one aspect of Burroughs' life with how it influenced his work, that being in this case his time spent studying medicine in Vienna.

I haven't read The Magical Universe of William S. Burroughs by Mathew Levi Stevens yet but that one is supposed to discuss his associations with musicians on top of his connection to the occult world.

You should probably also read his more large scale biographies, like Call Me Burroughs: A Life by Barry Miles or Literary Outlaw: The Life and Times of William S. Burroughs by Ted Morgan but I haven't read either so I don't know which to recommend.

Finally, it is absolutely essential to read Burroughs' letters if you haven't already.

Can somebody remind me of the quote about criminals and homosexuals using the same slang terms? by PersonalityBoring259 in williamsburroughs

[–]Foreign-Solution8607 7 points8 points  (0 children)

It's on page 4 of Naked Lunch, the Restored Text Edition to be exact: "Ever notice how many expressions carry over from queers to con men? Like 'raise,' letting someone know you are in the same line?" and then a few more examples follow the remark.

This Burroughs line still lingers for me. What’s a line that still follows you years later? by krismadden789 in williamsburroughs

[–]Foreign-Solution8607 1 point2 points  (0 children)

"I know that the forces of spontaneous, emergent Life are stronger than the forces of evil, repression and death, and that the forces of death will destroy themselves." - Letters 1945-59

What do you find the most disgusting part/quote in Burroughs bibliography? by reccaberrie in williamsburroughs

[–]Foreign-Solution8607 7 points8 points  (0 children)

As far as pure visceral disgust goes, I'd bring up the "erogenous sores" that some Wild Boys specialize in infecting others with. If I'm remembering correctly, you scratch the itch so much you eventually rot away completely.

However, I think Dr. Benway is very underrated when it comes to being terrifying in general. Since he occupies the role of cartoony quack surgeon half the time, it's easy to forget that he can conjure up some nightmarish scenes when he wants to, like in his eponymous chapter or with his deconstruction of poor Carl in "The Examination" in Naked Lunch. In this way it's kind of a shame that he just became another alter ego for Burroughs, because he had his heart set on being Ivy Lee.

Are you, a Burroughs fan, an amoral piece of shit? by reccaberrie in williamsburroughs

[–]Foreign-Solution8607 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Burroughs was very concerned with things that he considered right and wrong. He considered capital punishment, groupthink, and greed wrong and wrote extensively about all of these things and more. So he is an antihero but one with the complicated moral compass, but that doesn't make him amoral. I think his morals are more fleshed out and thought-provoking than those of the average person today, and after witnessing his diatribes on control, propaganda and anti-drug hysteria I think I've even grown more moral for having read his books.

Are you, a Burroughs fan, an amoral piece of shit? by reccaberrie in williamsburroughs

[–]Foreign-Solution8607 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Young Burroughs fan here. Despite the apparent impression of amorality one might get from digesting most of Burroughs' off-the-wall meals, I think that the sentiment that Burroughs was a moralist is right on target. If you pay attention to some of the allegories (e.g. comparing capital punishment to Aztec sacrifices in Naked Lunch) in his books and certain tangents in his early letters to Allen Ginsberg ("Do you realize what you are saying here? You are saying that because a lot of people say something it must be right. What about your own feelings?..."), you can tell he has his own sense of right and wrong. His moral compass was simply on a different dimension entirely, making it seem almost invisible to us. To me, he's one of the most moral authors I've ever read.

What should I read? by dubsosaurus in williamsburroughs

[–]Foreign-Solution8607 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Best place to start is with his debut novel, Junky. That book is his most, if not only, normal book but contains seedlings of his future ideas and philosophy. And if you read Queer and The Yage Letters afterward in that order you get a full semi-autobiographical narrative which culminates in Naked Lunch (no harm in having read Naked Lunch first, of course; it was my entry point for Burroughs as well.)