Every word is autobiographical, and every word is fiction. William S. Burroughs More Quotes by William S. Burroughs More Quotes From William S. Burroughs If after having been exposed to someone's presence you feel as if you've lost a quart of plasma, avoid that presence. You need it like you need pernicious anemia. William S. Burroughs anemialike-youneeds I am not a person and I am not an animal. There is something I am here for something I must do before I can go. William S. Burroughs i-canpersonsanimal There is no intensity of love or feeling that does not involve the risk of crippling hurt. It is a duty to take this risk, to love and feel without defense or reserve. William S. Burroughs riskhurtfeelings Desperation is the raw material of drastic change. Only those who can leave behind everything they have ever believed in can hope to escape. William S. Burroughs despairchangebelieve Open your mind and let the pictures out William S. Burroughs mind I don't care if people hate my guts; I assume most of them do. The important question is whether they are in a position to do anything about it. William S. Burroughs hatepositivepeople There is no line between the 'real world' and 'world of myth and symbol.' Objects, sensations, hit with the impact of hallucination. William S. Burroughs impactrealworld When you cut into the present the future leaks out. William S. Burroughs leakscutting There is nothing more provocative than minding your own business. William S. Burroughs minding-my-own-businessmind-your-own-businessprovocative in the magical universe there are no coincidences and there are no accidents. nothing happens unless someone wills it to happen William S. Burroughs coincidence-in-lifemagichappens Man is an artifact designed for space travel. He is not designed to remain in his present biologic state any more than a tadpole is designed to remain a tadpole. William S. Burroughs mathsciencetravel I prefer cats to people, for the most part. Most people aren't cute at all, and if they are cute they very rapidly outgrow it. William S. Burroughs catcutepeople If you are asking me what the individual can do right now, in a political sense, I'd have to say he can't do all that much. Speaking for myself, I am more concerned with the transformation of the individual, which to me is much more important than the so-called political revolution. William S. Burroughs political-revolutionimportantasking Whether you like it or not, you are committed to the human endeavor. I cannot ally myself with such a purely negative goal as avoidance of suffering. Suffering is a chance you take by the fact of being alive. William S. Burroughs goalsufferingfacts I don't know what falling in love for me is. The concept of romantic love arose in the Middle Ages. Now remember, the Arabs don't even have a word for love-that is, a word for love apart from physical attraction or sex. And this separation of love and sex is a western concept, a Christian concept. As to what falling in love means, I'm uncertain. Love, well, it means simply physical attraction and liking a person at the same time. William S. Burroughs falling-in-lovechristiansex America is not so much a nightmare as a non-dream. The American non-dream is precisely a move to wipe the dream out of existence. The dream is a spontaneous happening and therefore dangerous to a control system set up by the non-dreamers. William S. Burroughs dreamamericamoving Political conflicts are merely surface manifestations. If conflicts arise you may be sure that certain powers intend to keep this conflict under operation since they hope to profit from the situation. William S. Burroughs conflictpoliticalmay The people in power will not disappear voluntarily, giving flowers to the cops just isn't going to work. This thinking is fostered by the establishment; they like nothing better than love and nonviolence. The only way I like to see cops given flowers is in a flower pot from a high window. William S. Burroughs flowerhippielove A paranoid is someone who knows a little of what's going on. William S. Burroughs psychedeliclittlesphilosophy There are no innocent bystanders ... what are they doing there in the first place? William S. Burroughs bystandersinnocentfirsts
