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{{Short description|1963 nonfiction book by William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg}}
{{infobox book | <!-- See Wikipedia:WikiProject_Novels or Wikipedia:WikiProject_Books -->
⚫
{{For|the musical group by this name|The Yage Letters (band)}}
{{one source|date=November 2024}}
{{infobox book |
| name = The Yage Letters
| name = The Yage Letters
| title_orig =
| title_orig =
| translator =
| translator =
| image = [[Image:YageLetters.jpg|200px]]
| image = Image:YageLetters.jpg
| caption = First edition cover
| caption = Cover of the first edition
| author = [[William S. Burroughs]] and [[Allen Ginsberg]]
| author = [[William S. Burroughs]] and [[Allen Ginsberg]]
| cover_artist =
| cover_artist =
Line 10: Line 13:
| language = English
| language = English
| series =
| series =
| genre = [[letter (message)|Correspondence]], [[Autobiography]], [[Drug culture]]
| subject = [[Drug culture]]
| publisher = [[City Lights Books]]
| publisher = [[City Lights Books]]
| release_date = [[1963 in literature|1963]]
| release_date = 1963
| media_type = Print ([[Hardcover]] and [[Paperback]])
| media_type = Print ([[Hardcover]] and [[Paperback]])
| pages = 68 pp
| pages = 68 pp
| isbn = NA <!-- first published before ISBn system started -->
| preceded_by =
| preceded_by =
| followed_by =
| followed_by =
}}
}}
⚫
: ''For the musical group by this name, see [[The Yage Letters (band)]].''


'''''The Yage Letters''''', first published in 1963, is a collection of correspondence and other writings by [[Beat Generation]] authors [[William S. Burroughs]] and [[Allen Ginsberg]]. It was issued by [[City Lights Books]].
'''''The Yage Letters''''', first published in 1963, is a collection of correspondence and other writings by [[Beat Generation]] authors [[William S. Burroughs]] and [[Allen Ginsberg]]. It was issued by [[City Lights Books]].<ref name=Banco>{{cite book |last1=Banco |first1=Lindsey Michael |title=Travel and Drugs in Twentieth-Century Literature |date=11 January 2013 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-136-09698-3 |page=45 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XfulAP5k6BUC&pg=PA45 |language=en}}</ref>


==Amazon Rainforest==
==Amazon rainforest==
Most of the letters date back to 1953 and chronicle Burroughs' visit to the [[Amazon rainforest]] in search of yagé ([[ayahuasca]]), a plant with near-mythical [[hallucinogen]]ic and some say [[telepathic]] qualities. Along the way, Burroughs and Ginsberg share other stories and anecdotes, including some concepts Burroughs would later use in novels such as ''[[Naked Lunch]]''. The book ends with further correspondence written in 1960 detailing Ginsberg's experiments with yagé.
Most of the letters date back to 1953<ref name=Banco /> and chronicle Burroughs' visit to the [[Amazon rainforest]] in search of yagé ([[ayahuasca]]), a plant with near-mythical hallucinogenic and some say telepathic qualities. Along the way, Burroughs and Ginsberg share other stories and anecdotes, including some concepts Burroughs would later use in novels such as ''[[Naked Lunch]]''. The book ends with further correspondence written in 1960 detailing Ginsberg's experiments with yagé.


==Two Burroughs Pieces==
==Two Burroughs pieces==
Beyond the letters themselves, the book is noteworthy for two short pieces by Burroughs. The [[anarchy (word)|anarchic]] "Roosevelt After Inauguration", a savage parody of American politics in which "a purple-assed [[baboon]]" is appointed to the [[United States Supreme Court]], was omitted from the original edition of the book on the grounds it might be considered obscene; it was subsequently issued as a [[chapbook]] later in the 1960s and was later published in the small volume ''[[Roosevelt After Inauguration and Other Atrocities]]'' with two political essays. The story was restored to ''The Yage Letters'' in a later reprinting by City Lights.
Beyond the letters themselves, the book is noteworthy for two short pieces by Burroughs. The anarchic "Roosevelt After Inauguration", a savage parody of American politics in which "a purple-assed baboon" is appointed to the [[United States Supreme Court]], was omitted from the original edition of the book on the grounds it might be considered obscene; it was subsequently issued as a [[chapbook]] later in the 1960s and was later published in the small volume ''[[Roosevelt After Inauguration and Other Atrocities]]'' with two political essays. The story was restored to ''The Yage Letters'' in a later reprinting by City Lights.


The second notable piece serves as the epilogue to the book. "I Am Dying, Meester?" is considered a poem by some and is an early demonstration of the "[[cut-up technique]]" espoused by Burroughs in the 1960s, shuffling together fragments of sentences and thoughts from other texts to create a surreal new narrative.
The second notable piece serves as the epilogue to the book. "I Am Dying, Meester?" is considered a poem by some and is an early demonstration of the "[[cut-up technique]]" espoused by Burroughs in the 1960s, shuffling together fragments of sentences and thoughts from other texts to create a surreal new narrative.


==A Novel(?)==
==Status as a novel==
Some sources, including City Lights Books itself, consider ''The Yage Letters'' to be a novel. According to the back cover of a 1990s edition of the book, Burroughs and Ginsberg began compiling the work in late 1953, not long after the original set of letters was written, but it was not published for nearly a decade.
Some sources, including City Lights Books itself, consider ''The Yage Letters'' to be a novel. According to the back cover of a 1990s edition of the book, Burroughs and Ginsberg began compiling the work in late 1953, not long after the original set of letters was written, but it was not published for nearly a decade.


==The Yage Letters Redux==
==The Yage Letters Redux==
In April 2006, City Lights Books published ''Yage Letters Redux'', a new edition of the book edited by [[Oliver Harris]] (who has previously edited other collections of correspondence by Burroughs). The book has been expanded with an extensive essay on its history (written by Harris), along with previously unpublished material by Burroughs and Ginsberg.
In April 2006, City Lights Books published ''Yage Letters Redux'', a new edition of the book edited by [[Oliver Harris]]. The book has been expanded with an extensive essay on its history (written by Harris), along with previously unpublished material by Burroughs and Ginsberg. Harris established that the 1953 letters were in fact largely fabricated from notes and a prose narrative which Burroughs first wrote.

==References==
{{reflist}}


{{William S. Burroughs}}
{{William S. Burroughs}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Yage Letters, The}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yage Letters, The}}
[[Category:1963 books]]
[[Category:1963 non-fiction books]]
[[Category:Books by William S. Burroughs]]
[[Category:Books by William S. Burroughs]]
[[Category:Ayahuasca]]
[[Category:Works about ayahuasca]]
[[Category:Works by Allen Ginsberg]]
[[Category:Works by Allen Ginsberg]]
[[Category:Psychedelic literature]]
[[Category:Collections of letters]]
[[Category:City Lights Publishers books]]

Latest revision as of 05:05, 20 December 2024

For the musical group by this name, see The Yage Letters (band).
The Yage Letters
Cover of the first edition
AuthorWilliam S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg
LanguageEnglish
SubjectDrug culture
PublisherCity Lights Books
Publication date
1963
Publication placeUnited States
Media typePrint (Hardcover and Paperback)
Pages68 pp

The Yage Letters, first published in 1963, is a collection of correspondence and other writings by Beat Generation authors William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg. It was issued by City Lights Books.[1]

Amazon rainforest

[edit]

Most of the letters date back to 1953[1] and chronicle Burroughs' visit to the Amazon rainforest in search of yagé (ayahuasca), a plant with near-mythical hallucinogenic and some say telepathic qualities. Along the way, Burroughs and Ginsberg share other stories and anecdotes, including some concepts Burroughs would later use in novels such as Naked Lunch. The book ends with further correspondence written in 1960 detailing Ginsberg's experiments with yagé.

Two Burroughs pieces

[edit]

Beyond the letters themselves, the book is noteworthy for two short pieces by Burroughs. The anarchic "Roosevelt After Inauguration", a savage parody of American politics in which "a purple-assed baboon" is appointed to the United States Supreme Court, was omitted from the original edition of the book on the grounds it might be considered obscene; it was subsequently issued as a chapbook later in the 1960s and was later published in the small volume Roosevelt After Inauguration and Other Atrocities with two political essays. The story was restored to The Yage Letters in a later reprinting by City Lights.

The second notable piece serves as the epilogue to the book. "I Am Dying, Meester?" is considered a poem by some and is an early demonstration of the "cut-up technique" espoused by Burroughs in the 1960s, shuffling together fragments of sentences and thoughts from other texts to create a surreal new narrative.

Status as a novel

[edit]

Some sources, including City Lights Books itself, consider The Yage Letters to be a novel. According to the back cover of a 1990s edition of the book, Burroughs and Ginsberg began compiling the work in late 1953, not long after the original set of letters was written, but it was not published for nearly a decade.

The Yage Letters Redux

[edit]

In April 2006, City Lights Books published Yage Letters Redux, a new edition of the book edited by Oliver Harris. The book has been expanded with an extensive essay on its history (written by Harris), along with previously unpublished material by Burroughs and Ginsberg. Harris established that the 1953 letters were in fact largely fabricated from notes and a prose narrative which Burroughs first wrote.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b Banco, Lindsey Michael (11 January 2013). Travel and Drugs in Twentieth-Century Literature. Routledge. p. 45. ISBN 978-1-136-09698-3.
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