A lecture given at Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics by William S. Burroughs; a tape recorded experiment called "Paranormal Voices," a cut-up experiment of Brion Gysin, experiments with Sommerville, messages from dreams, The Last Words of Dutch Schultz, and phrases of minimal context.
Source Audio: https://archive.org/details/naropa_william_s_burroughs2
Disembodied poetics is a term that refers to a type of poetry that is characterized by its focus on language, form, and structure, rather than on the representation of physical or sensory experiences. In disembodied poetics, the poet is more interested in exploring the possibilities of language and the ways in which words can be arranged and manipulated to create meaning, rather than in using language to depict or describe the physical world.
I am a word
At worst, a meme
At best a poem
as we sharpen your pen
Disembodied poetics can take many different forms, but it is often associated with modernist and avant-garde poetry, which often employ unconventional forms and techniques to challenge the conventions of traditional poetry. Some examples of poets who have been associated with disembodied poetics include Allen Ginsberg, Ezra Pound, and T.S. Eliot.
Break Open The Mind
and let the Imaginarium leak out
Break Open The Mind
and let the Imaginarium leak out
Relax and take notes
while we take tokes of Marijuana smoke
For Ginsberg, poetics meant the freedom to explore the creative possibilities of language and form, and to use poetry as a means of expressing the innermost thoughts and feelings of the individual. His work was often deeply personal and introspective, and he used poetry as a way of exploring the complexities of the human experience.
So what’ll we do in the next ten years? Blow up the universe? Probably not. But let’s blow up America—a false America’s been getting in the way of realization of beauty—let’s all get high on the soul.
Ginsberg's approach to poetics was characterized by a commitment to innovation, experimentation, and the exploration of the full potential of language and form
The cut-up method is a technique for creating literature and art that was developed by the American writer William S. Burroughs. The technique involves cutting up texts into small pieces and rearranging them to create new meaning and context.
Burroughs believed that the cut-up method could be used to expose the hidden connections and meanings within language, and he used the technique to create a range of literary works, including poems, short stories, and novels.
Cut loose the shackles
which bind your eyes
free the mind
The cut-up method can be used in a variety of ways, but one common technique involves taking a text and cutting it into small pieces, such as individual words or phrases, and then rearranging these pieces to create a new text. This process can be done manually, using scissors and glue, or digitally, using a computer program or app.
we're looking at lyricism as coding. we're looking for an algorithm. we're looking to streamline ideas and be able to express them in ways that speak to directly to the core and essence of something that we all already know and that we are already connected to.
The cut-up method developed by William S. Burroughs involves manually cutting up texts and rearranging the pieces to create new meaning and context. As an artificial intelligence language model, I do not use the cut-up method in this way. Instead, I analyze and process the language that I receive as input, and use machine learning algorithms to generate a relevant and coherent response.
Overall, the cut-up method is a creative and experimental approach to literature and art that allows writers and artists to explore the possibilities of language and to create new and unconventional works. It has had a significant influence on the development of modernist and avant-garde literature and art, and it continues to be a popular and influential technique among wri