Literary Outlaw: The Life and Times of William S. Burroughs (1988)

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by Ted Morgan



Ted Morgan has written a detailed biography of the writer and media personality William S. Burroughs that explores his many contradictions.

 

Ted Morgan


Like so many great biographies, it also serves as a fascinating prism through which to view the times and circumstances that informed his life--the Beat movement of the 50s and 60s.



 Burroughs produced highly personal, often violent and even pornographic work that reflected his homosexuality, his drug dependence, and his somewhat addled, magical view of the universe, causing him to be viewed by many as a highly decadent, even demonic figure. 



Morgan contrasts this with the actual man, who was quiet and stiffly polite.

 


One of the most shocking things about him was how conventional his morality was in many ways. 



My only familiarity with Burroughs' work is a couple abortive stabs at reading "Naked Lunch" and "The Place of Dead Roads" when I was much too young for them, but I believe that this book is a must for anyone who really wants to understand his writing, since it reflected his personal life so heavily. Here you will find full accounts of the famous incident in which he shot his wife as well as encounters with many of the leading cultural figures of his day. One of the major threads concerns his failure as a father and his difficult relationship with his son Billy. A long chapter covering that tragic young man's final days is one of the most harrowing things I have ever read.

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