Love you in Throat Gristle: Subvocal Speech and Tainted Proprioception in the Work of William S. Burroughs

The notion of subvocal speech looms over the American writer William S. Burroughs’ work and its defining feature is an involuntary continuity. Burroughs borrows concept from behaviorist psychologist John B. Watson’s attempts between 1920s ‘30s to come up with image thinking which foregrounds laryngeal correlates. Yet, while adopting this picture, brings a much more pragmatic experimental slant speech, waging battle against heteronomy lived as impossibility silence. Trying out mimetic intervention that appropriates elusive language conduct discourse description, he positions his formal experiments (“cut-ups”) medium registration acceleration tries disable compulsory character by taking it most extreme conclusions. When these seem reproduce instead removing associated explores other approaches, organic evolutionary implications providing material for new directions in narrative, polyvalent status human throat coming under detailed focus. Accordingly, opens series “organological” inquiries richness finds philosophical anthropological resonances. While philosophers like Deleuze Guattari find inspiration “the body without organs,” phenomenology also turns have lot contribute renewed understanding speech. In sum, paper aims demonstrate originally has layered than visible at first glance, enlisting once modes cut-up, routine, speculation aside straightforward critique.