The Atrocity Exhibition (1970)

The Atrocity Exhibition (1970)

Author: J.G. Ballard | Page Count: 184 

'The blitzkriegs will be fought out on the spinal battlefields, in terms of the postures we assume, of our traumas mimetized in the angle of a wall or balcony.'

TAE is one of the finest examples of the English experimental novel that I've ever read. There's no obvious start/middle/end structure. You can flick to any page and start reading to get an immediate feel for the overall style and perspective of the work. In fact, doing just that is something that Ballard recommended.

The thematic merging of sexual excitement, death of celebrity, architecture and the evils of consumer society are explored as only he could, without deference to the social consciousness or exhibiting shame.

It's an obtuse book that'll only begin to make any kind of sense if you're able to adopt the protagonist's point of view and look at your own life like he views his.

I'm not saying you should get your jollies watching automobile crashes or begin fantasising about the removal of the top of an American President's head - I mean appreciating the minutiae of life by being aware of the lack of difference in things at their most basic level.

The protagonist Talbert (Travis, Talbot, Traven - his name changes frequently depending on where he is or what he's doing) looks upon a poster of a dune but the anatomist in him sees an outsized female pudenda; the point where two walls merge can be a sexual thing; central nervous systems have been externalised as roads; the assassination of Kennedy encapsulates everything that's wrong and right with the world not from a political point of view but from a universal constant. It's a complex but also equally rewarding read, particularly the second half if you can set aside your teachings and embrace its unique structure.

NOTE: I recommend the Fourth Estate edition published by Harper Collins (pictured above) because it has extended notes by the author that offer insight into the creation of many of the stories. In some cases the notes are more interesting than the part of the novel they refer to.