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Ali's Smile: Naked Scientology is a collection of essays and a short story by Beat writer William S. Burroughs (1914–97). First published in 1971 as the short story "Ali's Smile", the book eventually contained a group of previously published newspaper articles as well, all of which address Scientology. Burroughs had been interested in Scientology throughout the 1960s, believing that its methods might help combat a controlling society. He joined the Church of Scientology later in the decade. However, he became disenchanted with the authoritarian nature of the organization. In 1970 Burroughs had published a "considered statement" on Scientology's methods because he felt that they were significant enough to warrant commentary. These pieces were later gathered together into Ali's Smile: Naked Scientology, which religious studies scholar Hugh Urban describes as a "nonscholarly popular exposé of Scientology". Burroughs's texts argue that while some of Scientology's therapies are worthwhile, the dogmatic nature of the group and its secrecy are harmful.

Background

"Scientology was useful to me until it became a religion and I have no use for religion. It's just another one of those control-addict trips and we can all do without those."

Beat writer William S. Burroughs, the author of the controversial novel Naked Lunch (1959) and sometimes called the "Godfather of Punk", frequently wrote with "a cold-blooded, almost insectlike presence" about contentious topics. In the Dictionary of Literary Biography, Matt Theado, a scholar of the Beats, writes that "to the end of his life Burroughs cleaved to the image of a tormented but supremely curious person who explored the dark side of the human consciousness." Burroughs wrote to reveal "the control that governments, religions, greedy human beings, and their own cravings for drugs, sex, or power often hold over them". In Naked Lunch, which prompted several important critics to call Burroughs the most important American writer since World War II, he wrote about "the battle against control". As Theado explains, "Burroughs believed that language is a virus and that words and images are instruments of control that allow evil forces to impose their will over people." Burroughs attempted to use words themselves to combat this problem.

Burroughs had been interested in Scientology since the early 1960s, having been introduced to the concepts of its founder L. Ron Hubbard by artist Brion Gysin. Burroughs's novels emphasized the power of Scientology to combat a controlling society. For example, in both The Ticket That Exploded (1962) and Nova Express (1964), Scientology, along with cut-ups, silence, and apomorphine, allow the characters to resist social control. Burroughs connected his cut-up style to the theories of the self expounded by Hubbard's Dianetics. As religious studies scholar John Lardas explains, "the cut-up method was the evangelical counterpart of Scientology in that it was intended to alter a reader's consciousness". Burroughs believed that readers needed to take an active part in reshaping their own reality through reading; cut-ups and Scientology allowed both he and his readers to redefine words and thereby create new levels of meaning, liberating themselves from social control. As Lardas puts it, "through the cut-up method, Burroughs sought to expose the arbitrary nature and manipulative power of all linguistic systems."

In 1967, Burroughs became more serious about Scientology, taking several courses and becoming what the Church of Scientology calls a "clear" in 1968. In his biography of Burroughs, author Barry Miles writes that "Burroughs came to regard the E-Meter as a useful device for deconditioning, though he had growing doubts about some of the other Scientology technology, and grave reservations about their policy as an organisation". Burroughs himself said that "They have a great deal of very precise data on words and the effects produced by words – a real science of communication. But I feel that their presentation has been often deplorable and that as a science, a body of knowledge, it is definitely being vitiated by a dogmatic policy". Although Burroughs believed that Scientology's practice of auditing had helped him resolve some traumatic life experiences, he was frustrated by the authoritarian nature of the organization. Scientology appealed to Burroughs because it "confirmed his belief that consciousness is akin to a tape recording that can be rewound, fast-forwarded, or even erased". In his works, Burroughs represented the process of "clearing" memories, as Scientologists refer to the process, as a step towards becoming an active rather than passive member of society. However, as biographer Ted Morgan writes, Burroughs "had hoped to find a method of personal emancipation and had found instead another control system." By 1970, Burroughs had severed connections with the Church of Scientology. He was eventually expelled from the organization and declared to be in "Condition of Treason". He became increasingly disenchanted with the group and wrote a series of critical articles published in Mayfair. Burroughs also forced one of their headquarters to move by publicizing photos of it.

Publication and contents

Ali's Smile, Burroughs's short story on Scientology, was originally published in a limited-edition run of 99 copies by Unicorn in 1971. A recording of Burroughs reading the story was simultaneously released. Two years later, Expanded Media Editions issued a revised and enlarged version titled Ali's Smile: Naked Scientology, which contained a series of articles, most of which had been previously published. In 1970 Burroughs had published a "considered statement" on Scientology's methods because he felt that they were significant enough to warrant commentary. This statement articulates what he calls the group's "precise and efficient" therapeutic methods, however he also criticizes the authoritarian nature of the institution, describing Hubbard's statements as fascistic and comparing their internal surveillance methods to that of the FBI and CIA. He also condemns the "unquestioning acceptance" demanded of Scientologists as well as the institution's secrecy. These pieces were later gathered together into Ali's Smile: Naked Scientology, which religious studies scholar Hugh Urban describes as a "nonscholarly popular exposé of Scientology". In 1985, Expanded Media Editions published a bilingual German and English edition.

"Burroughs on Scientology" was originally published in the Los Angeles Free Press on 6 March 1970. It begins "In view of the fact that my articles and statements on Scientology may have influenced young people to associate themselves with the so called Church of Scientology, I feel an obligation to make my present views on the subject quite clear." Writing in The Scandal of Scientology (1971), Paulette Cooper explains that Scientology attempts to keep many of its counseling methods secret, quoting Burroughs's analysis: "Suppose Newton had founded a Church of Newtonian physics and refused to show his formula to anyone who doubted the tenets of Newtonian physics? ... It's like a physicist saying 'you can't see my formulae unless you first agree that they are correct sight unseen.'"

"William Burroughs: Open Letter to Mr. Garden Mustain" was originally published in the East Village Other on 7 July 1970. The East Village Other introduction to Burroughs' piece notes that in April 1970, Burroughs "started a controversy going by publishing an attack on the psychiatry profession and related fields such as Scientology". According to the editors of the East Village Other, the open letter "is Mr. Burroughs' final answer to his critics and to Mister Gorden Mustain who attacked him for his position on Scientology in the pages of the L.A. FREE PRESS. In it he asks the inevitable question to be faced by us all, whether we be in a professional status or not: 'We would like to know where Scientology and Mr. Hubbard stand on the Vietnam war, on sexual freedom, militant students, Black Power, pot, Red China, the politics of the American Narcotics department and the CIA. If it comes to a revolution: which side would you fight on?'"

"William Burroughs on 'Inside Scientology' by Robert Kaufman" was originally published in Rolling Stone on 9 November 1972. It is a book review of Inside Scientology, which was embroiled in a legal controversy. In the review, Burroughs relates his personal experiences as a Scientologist and describes himself as an anthropologist. Burroughs begins by praising Kaufman's decision to reveal confidential upper-level Scientology teachings in the book: "Mr. Kaufman has shown real courage in publishing Hubbard's so-called confidential materials for the first time in Inside Scientology."

"Letter to Rolling Stone" by R. Sorrell (Church of Scientology) was originally published in Rolling Stone on 5 December 1972. Sorrell wrote on behalf of the Church of Scientology to Rolling Stone, asserting that statements made by Burroughs in his review of Inside Scientology were inaccurate. Sorrell noted that the book had been involved in legal controversy and commented: "I have included here an itemization of these inaccuracies with documentation to show that Mr. Burroughs may be a writer but cannot always be trusted to be an accurate one."

"Answer to R. Sorrell's Letter" by William Burroughs is a point-by-point response to Sorrell's letter in Rolling Stone. In total, Burroughs addresses 28 issues, including "Scientology's security checks", Fair Gaming, excommunication, the financial dealings of Scientology, Scientology terminology such as "Wog", and the efficacy of the E-meter as a lie detector.

"Ali's Smile" by William Burroughs was originally published by Unicorn in 1971 and later republished in Burroughs's collection of short stories, Exterminator! (1973). It is set in an English suburb, where "an ex-colonial official goes amok with a Mayan kris that once belonged to Ali, a former houseboy. In the ensuing melee, hippies, locals, and scientologists fight and an intelligence official who is investigating scientology is killed. A mudslide buries everyone."

Notes

1. ^ Seed 2004, pp. 149–50
2. Urban 2006, p. 357
3. ^ Caveney 1998, p. 121
4. ^ Theado 1997, p. 331
5. ^ Theado 1997, p. 332
6. ^ Theado 1997, p. 333
7. ^ Miles 1992, p. 155
8. Lardas 2001, p. 233
9. Miles 1992, pp. 114, 120, 129
10. ^ Lardas 2001, pp. 234–35
11. ^ Lardas 2001, pp. 237–38
12. Miles 1992, pp. 155–56
13. Morgan 1988, p. 440
14. Morgan 1988, pp. 440–41
15. ^ Morgan 1998, p. 443 harvnb error: no target: CITEREFMorgan1998 (help)
16. Murphy 1997, pp. 1115–16
17. Murphy 1997, pp. 117–18
18. Miles 1992, p. 156
19. Miles 1992, pp. 156–57
20. ^ Goodman & Coley 1990, pp. 16–17
21. ^ Miles 1992, p. 173
22. Urban 2006, p. 373
23. Urban 2006, p. 357
24. Seed 2004, p. 297
25. Burroughs & Weissner 1985, p. 63
26. Cooper 1971, pp. 133–34
27. Cooper quotes from Burroughs's Mayfair articles, portions of which appear verbatim in "Burroughs on Scientology".
28. Russell 2001, pp. 209, 236
29. ^ Burroughs & Weissner 1985, p. 78
30. Staff (1 June 1973). "Inside scientology: how I joined scientology and became superhuman (Book Review)". Times Literary Supplement. p. 619. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)
31. Goodman & Coley 1990, p. 69
32. Burroughs & Weissner 1985, p. "Review of 'Inside Scientology' by Robert Kaufman"
33. ^ Burroughs & Weissner 1985, p. "Contents"
34. ^ Burroughs & Weissner 1985, p. 90
35. Burroughs & Weissner 1985, pp. 91–98

References

• Burroughs, William S.; Weissner, Carl (translator) (1985), Ali's Smile/Naked Scientology, Bonn: Expanded Media Editions, ISBN 3880300119 {{citation}}: |first2= has generic name (help)
• Caveney, Graham (1998), Gentleman Junkie: The Life and Legacy of William S. Burroughs, Boston: Little, Brown and Company, ISBN 0316137251
• Cooper, Paulette (1971), The Scandal of Scientology, New York: Tower Publications, Inc., OCLC 921001
• Goodman, Michael B.; Coley, Lemuel B. (1990), William S. Burroughs: A Reference Guide, New York: Garland Publishing, Inc., ISBN 0824086422
• Lardas, John (2001), The Bop Apocalypse: The Religious Visions of Kerouac, Ginsberg, and Burroughs, Urbana: University of Illinois Press, ISBN 0252025997
• Miles, Barry (1992), William Burroughs: El Hombre Invisible, London: Virgin Books, ISBN 1852274409
• Morgan, Ted (1988), Literary Outlaw: The Life and Times of William S. Burroughs, New York: Henry Holt and Co., ISBN 0805009019
• Murphy, Timothy S. (1997), Wising Up the Marks: The Amodern William Burroughs, Berkeley: University of California Press, ISBN 0520209508
• Russell, Jamie (2001), Queer Burroughs, New York: Palgrave Macmillan, ISBN 0312239238
• Seed, David (2004), Brainwashing: the fictions of mind control: a study of novels and films since World War II, Kent, OH: Kent State University Press, ISBN 0873388135
• Theado, Matt (1997), "William Seward Burroughs", in Matthew J. Bruccoli and George Garrett (ed.), Dictionary of Literary Biography Yearbook 1997, Detroit: Gale, ISBN 0787625191
• Urban, Hugh B. (June 2006), "Fair Game: Secrecy, Security, and the Church of Scientology in Cold War America", Journal of the American Academy of Religion, vol. 74, no. 2, pp. 356–389, ISSN 0002-7189{{citation}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)

External links

• Reality Studio, a William S. Burroughs community

• 1978 short stories
• 1978 books
• Short story collections by William S. Burroughs
• Essay collections by William S. Burroughs
• Books critical of Scientology
• Scientology in popular culture