Keep Those Dirty Beatniks Out of Istanbul!
reason.com | Apr 27th 2011
It must be 1966 in Turkey: They're putting a William Burroughs book on trial.
The Istanbul Prosecutor's Office has opened an investigation into a book
written by internationally renowned author William S. Burroughs. It was
translated and published by Sel Publishing House in January.
The court referred to a report written by the Prime Ministry's Council for
Protecting Minors from Explicit Publications that accused the novel, "The Soft
Machine," of "incompliance with moral norms" and "hurting people's moral
feelings."...The council also accused the novel of "lacking unity in its
subject matter," "incompliance with narrative unity," for "using slang and
colloquial terms" and "the application of a fragmented narrative style," while
claiming that Burroughs's book contained unrealistic interpretations that were
neither personal nor objective by giving examples from the lifestyles of
historical and mythological figures. None of the above, argued the publishing
house, constitutes a criminal act.
The council went further and said, "The book does not constitute a literary
piece of work in its current condition," adding it would add nothing new to the
reader's reservoir of knowledge, and argued the book developed "attitudes that
were permissive to crime by concentrating on the banal, vulgar and weak
attributes of humanity."
Since the council is devoted to "protecting minors," perhaps it could also
weigh in on Burroughs' words of advice for young people.
Elsewhere in Reason: Burroughs is named a hero of freedom.
Original Page: http://reason.com/blog/2011/04/27/keep-those-dirty-beatniks-out
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