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Amazing Quote by William S. Burroughs

“Did I ever tell you about the man who taught his asshole to talk? His whole abdomen would move up and down, you dig, farting out the words. It was unlike anything I ever heard. Bubbly, thick, stagnant sound. A sound you could smell. This man worked for the carnival,you dig? And to start with it…” quote by William S. Burroughs
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““Did I ever tell you about the man who taught his asshole to talk? His whole abdomen would move up and down, you dig, farting out the words. It was unlike anything I ever heard. Bubbly, thick, stagnant sound. A sound you could smell. This man worked for the carnival,you dig? And to start with it was like a novelty ventriloquist act. After a while, the ass started talking on its own. He would go in without anything prepared... and his ass would ad-lib and toss the gags back at him every time. Then it developed sort of teethlike... little raspy incurving hooks and started eating. He thought this was cute at first and built an act around it... but the asshole would eat its way through his pants and start talking on the street... shouting out it wanted equal rights. It would get drunk, too, and have crying jags. Nobody loved it. And it wanted to be kissed, same as any other mouth. Finally, it talked all the time, day and night. You could hear him for blocks, screaming at it to shut up... beating at it with his fists... and sticking candles up it, but... nothing did any good, and the asshole said to him... "It is you who will shut up in the end, not me... "because we don't need you around here anymore. I can talk and eat and shit." After that, he began waking up in the morning with transparentjelly... like a tadpole's tail all over his mouth. He would tear it off his mouth and the pieces would stick to his hands... like burning gasoline jelly and grow there. So, finally, his mouth sealed over... and the whole head... would have amputated spontaneously except for the eyes, you dig? That's the one thing that the asshole couldn't do was see. It needed the eyes. Nerve connections were blocked... and infiltrated and atrophied. So, the brain couldn't give orders anymore. It was trapped inside the skull... sealed off. For a while, you could see... the silent, helpless suffering of the brain behind the eyes. And then finally the brain must have died... because the eyes went out... and there was no more feeling in them than a crab's eye at the end of a stalk.””

William S. Burroughs

About This Quote

A grotesque allegory about a man whose bodily organ gains autonomy, symbolizing how uncontrolled impulses can dominate and destroy the self.

In simple terms: Loss of control to a rogue inner voice.

Key Takeaway

Unchecked inner forces can annihilate identity.

Themes

Powerlessness Body autonomy Absurdism Self-destruction Identity erosion

Mood

dark grotesque absurd

Type

satire parable dark humor

When to use this quote

  • Performing an odd talent
  • Dealing with intrusive thoughts
  • Facing bodily illness
  • Confronting societal marginalization
  • Experiencing mental breakdown

Key Concepts

Autonomy vs control Metaphor of speech Carnival as stage Physical decay Psychological breakdown

Practical Applications

  • Satirical commentary on self‑destruction
  • Exploring limits of bodily autonomy

Questions to Reflect On

  • What does the talking asshole represent in our own psyche?
  • How does the loss of speech mirror loss of agency?
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