The Job: Interviews with William S. Burroughs

by William S. Burroughs and Daniel Odier

Book Overview

The Job is William S. Burroughs at work, attacking our traditional values, condemning what he calls "the American nightmare," and expressing his often barbed views on Scientology, the police, orgone therapy, history, women, writing, poitics, sex, drugs, and death. His conversation splices images of death-by-hanging with elevators and airports, the story of his drug addiction and cure with ideas on the use of hieroglyphs.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0140118829
• ISBN13: 9780140118827
• Release Date: March 1989
• Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
• Length: 224 Pages
• Weight: 1.50 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 5.1" x 7.8"

Customer Reviews

Disquietingly prescient and funny

"The Job" is a fantastic introduction to the obsessions and maverick idealism that characterize Burroughs' fiction. This is not a straight question-and-answer session; Burroughs includes liberal samples of text (his own as well as others') to illustrate his ideas. The final product is an effective, surreal manifesto urging all of us to break out of our private tunnel realities and confront social control systems with open, empowered minds. Especially fascinating are Burroughs' thoughts on language and his prescient examination of media-viruses. "The Job" is often brutal, always controversial, and possessed by the author's inimitable knack for nailing his target. This is an unforgettable plunge into one of the 20th century's foremost countercultural intellects.

Burroughs proves that paranoia is intelligent

I read somewhere that intelligence is the ability to make connections that others don't see. By that definition, and probably by any other, Burroughs is a philosophical and literary genius. Who else could make the connection between Mayan ritual calendars and the totalian nature of modern nation-states? Who else gives detailed explanations of his proven methods for dissembling reality?? For sheer brilliance and brutal truth about modern society, only Foucault approaches Burroughs. But Foucault never went to hell and came back to write about it.

Confused about WSB? READ THIS BOOK!!!

An excellent compendium of Bill Burrough's interests and obsessions. Mostly focusing on the totalitarian nature of nation-states, The Job gives you all at once Burroughs being interviewed, Burroughs straight prose and Burroughs gobbledygook. He also explains--clearly--why his books are written the way they are. I don't know if I've ever learned so much--or at the very least had so many of my perceptions radically altered--from such a thin tome. Highly recommended.

Burroughs lives through his words.

The death of William S. Burroughs has left a huge gap in our world. The Job is a fascinating, thought provoking, and telling collection of interviews. His insights into politics, sexuality, and America are unique and intelligently spoken. While The Job is a must read for any Burroughs fan, I am sure that anyone could glean something from his words. Certain critics may find the opinions that Burroughs shared to be absurd. I believe that Burroughs was a man who genuinely cared about the future of humanity. His words in The Job are a testament to this. Perhaps it is the value system of America that is becoming more and more absurd. "All knowledge is yours by right."

Weird insights, strange words

This is definately a book for the hardcore Burroughs fan. It is bizarre, held in a flippant "mad professor" style, but it is also very interesting - if you are of the inside Bull Lee crowd, that is. I am