what's the grossest thing you've ever read? (1 Viewer)

[Super Dexta]

..besides 'guts' by chuck palahniuk.
this is for research purposes. i'm especially interested in nasty bits in books that you weren't expecting to be nasty for whatever reason. and gross stuff in literature from before, say, 1950. the only thing i can think of is 'the facts in the case of m.valdemar' by edgar allan poe, where the lad's body just basically liquifies in front of everyone.
any suggestions very much appreciated. trying to do research on this by the usual academic routes is rather frustrating.

 

[glen]

The bit in the bible where the dead lad gets up again.

 

[ICUH8N]

There's some fairly vivid torture scenes in glamorama.

for all-out ridiculous, effectively unreadable fucked-up chaos, you want Pierre Guyotat - Eden, Eden, Eden and Tomb for 500,000 soldiers. Descriptions on Amazon.

 

[plug]

the bit in the wasp factory with the maggot infested baby's brain.

 

[SONYMEGADRIVE]

your posting on thumped about a year and a half ago

yuk yuk yuk

 

[oh shit]

old accounts of torture are usually pretty amazing, this opens Foucault's 'discipline and punish'

The Death of Damiens the Regicide

"The sulphur was lit, but the flame was so poor that only the top skin of the hand was burnt, and that only slightly. Then the executioner, his sleeves rolled up, took steel pincers, which had been especially made for the occasion, and which were about a foot and half long, and pulled first at the calf of the right leg, then at the thigh, and from there at two fleshy parts of the right arm, then at the breasts. Though a strong, sturdy fellow, this executioner found it so difficult to tear away the pieces of flesh that he set about the same spot two or three times, twisting the pincers as he did so, and what he took away formed at each part a wound about the size of a six-pound crown piece.

The executioner filled these holes with molten lead, as Damiens cried out 'Pardon, my God! Pardon, Lord!' From time to time he would raise his head and look over his tortured body. Ropes were then tied to his limbs

The horses tugged hard, each pulling striaght on a limb, each horse held by an executioner. After a quarter of an hour, and several attempts, the direction of pull of the horses were changed: those at the arms were made to pull towards the head, those a the thighs towards the arms. The arms then broke at the joints. He raised his head and looked at himself. Two more horses had to be added to those harnessed to the thighs, which made six horses in all. Without success. Monsier Le Breton ordered renewed efforts to be made, but the horses gave up and one of them harnessed to the thigh fell to the ground. Damiens was heard to say "Kiss me gentlemen" and to ask the priest to say a mass for his soul. 'After two or three attemps [to pull the body apart], the executioner, Samson, and the other man who had used the pincers, drew out knives and cut through the thighs.' At last the horses were able to tear away the legs, first the right, then the left. next the upper limbs were cut through to the bone and the joints in order to facilitate the severance of the arms. 'When the four limbs had been pulled away, the confessors came to speak to him; but his executioner told them that he was dead, though the truth was that I saw the man move, his lower jaw moving from side to side as if he were talking. One of the executioners said that he was still alive when his trunk was thrown on the stake.' The torso and limbs were reduced to ashes and thrown to the four winds"

 

[rampz]

the big book of martyrs has some pretty awful stuff. like the way nero used to use christains as human torches by first impaling them through the bottom jaw to keep them upright and then covering them with pitch and setting fire to them. they were alive throughout.

 

[Super Dexta]

ta very much, all. muchos helpos.

 

[krystal]

fairly horrible bits in american psycho juxtaposed with chapters about huey lewis - not sure which is worse.

My idea of fun by will self - loads o grossness, but it's so deliberately placed to be craxy and controversial I dunno if it really counts.

the bit in the kraftwerk book by wolfgang fleur where he describes having a wank on his parents couch whilst listening to the who and shooting his man fat all over said couch actually really did turn my stomach. YURGH.

 

[shitepipe]

the bit in the kraftwerk book by wolfgang fleur where he describes having a wank on his parents couch whilst listening to the who and shooting his man fat all over said couch actually really did turn my stomach. YURGH.

ahhh, the ol' dangerwank

 

[oh shit]

history is largely comprised of awe-inspiring grossness. pretty much everything imaginable that can be done to a human body, has been done to a human body, in fact probably to many thousands of them.

 

[Super Dexta]

history is largely comprised of awe-inspiring grossness. pretty much everything imaginable that can be done to a human body, has been done to a human body, in fact probably to many thousands of them.

ah yeah, but fictional representations thereof before the late 20th century are pretty hard to find. still all i'm coming up with in that department is poe.

 

[Lili Marlene]

The Torture Garden by Octave Mirbeau is just before the 20th century and pretty gross in parts.....

or arousing, i can't remember

 

[Denny Oubidoux]

fairly horrible bits in american psycho juxtaposed with chapters about huey lewis - not sure which is worse.

that book was mank. satire is all well and good, and it was entertaining but it was still a horrid read. i wouldnt bother with any more of his books. there was one bit in american psycho where he physically and sexually assaulted this bint in every imaginable way, and eventually she died, and when he (the character) couldnt think of anything else to do he cut off here head and hung it on his knob and strutted around his flat with it hanging off him like that.

shockin.

 

[BC]

de sade's "120 days of sodom" would be relevant, pretty much essential.
of modern authors, you could try peter sotos (though personally i dont have much time for him), dennis cooper and durbeen tarflow.

 

[rampz]

ive never read them but arent shaun hutson's books meant to be quite horrific (in a cartoon sort of way)

 

[BC]

durbeen tarflow.

misspelling. meant "tarfloe", a writer for the anorexic-rec website, which is now gone. would also add "anna k" of that website to the ranks of most disturbing / sick writing i have read. the website was an extreme pro-anorexia one, with photographs sent in by these women of their starved bodies and self-punishments for times when they eat. the text was even more disturbing though, really horrible stuff. completely sick in all senses of the word.

 

[тхеодоре кацзынски]

The bit in the bible where the dead lad gets up again.

that be jesus or lazarus???

 

[nofriendo]

Kiss me, Judas by Will Christopher Baer is pretty rank

 

[La La]

'guts' is pretty gross, alright.