The Atrocity Exhibition

by J. G. Ballard

  The latent sexual content of the automobile crash. Numerous studies have been conducted to assess the latent sexual appeal of public figures who have achieved subsequent notoriety as auto-crash fatalities, e.g. James Dean, Jayne Mansfield, Albert Camus. Simulated newsreels of politicians, film stars and TV celebrities were shown to panels of (a) suburban housewives, (b) terminal paretics, (c) filling station personnel. Sequences showing auto-crash victims brought about a marked acceleration of pulse and respiratory rates. Many volunteers became convinced that the fatalities were still living, and later used one or other of the crash victims as a private focus of arousal during intercourse with the domestic partner.

  Tallis was increasingly distressed

  Relatives of auto-crash victims showed a similar upsurge in both sexual activity and overall levels of general health. Mourning periods were drastically reduced. After a brief initial period of withdrawal, relatives would revisit the site, usually attempting a discreet re-enactment of the crash mode. In an extreme 2 percent of cases spontaneous orgasms were experienced during a simulated run along the crash route. Surprisingly, these results parallel the increased frequency of sexual intercourse in new-car families, the showroom providing a widely popular erode focus. Incidence of neurosis in new-car families is also markedly less.

  by the images of colliding motor cars.

  Behaviour of spectators at automobile accidents. The sexual behaviour of spectators at major automobile accidents (=minimum one death) has also been examined. In all cases there was a conspicuous improvement in born marital and extra-marital relationships, combined with a more tolerant attitude towards perverse behaviour. The 552 spectators of the Kennedy assassination in Dealey Plaza were observed closely in follow-up surveys. Overall health and frequency of sexual activity increased notably over subjects in nearby Elm and Commerce Streets. Police reports indicate mat Dealey Plaza has since become a minor sexual nuisance area.

  Celebrations of his wife's death,

  Pudenda of auto-crash victims. Using assembly kits constructed from photographs of (a) unidentified bodies of accident victims, (b) Cadillac exhaust assemblies, (c) the mouth-parts of Jacqueline Kennedy, volunteers were asked to devise the optimum auto-crash victim. The notional pudenda of crash victims exercised a particular fascination. Choice of subjects was as follows: 75 percent J. F. Kennedy, 15 percent James Dean, 9 percent Jayne Mansfield, 1 percent Albert Camus. In an open category test, volunteers were asked to name those living public figures most suitable as potential crash victims. Choices varied from Brigitte Bardot and Prof. Barnard to Mrs Pat Nixon and Madame Chiang.

  the slow-motion newsreels

  The optimum auto-disaster. Panels consisting of drive-in theatre personnel, students and middle-income housewives were encouraged to devise the optimum auto-disaster. A wide choice of impact modes was available, including rollover, roll-over followed by head-on collision, multiple pile-ups and motorcade attacks. The choice of death-postures included (1) normal driving position, (2) sleep, rear seat, (3) acts of intercourse, by both driver and passenger, (4) severe anginal spasm. In an overwhelming majority of cases a crash complex was constructed containing elements not usually present in automobile accidents, i.e. strong religious and sexual overtones, the victim being mounted in the automobile in bizarre positions containing postural elements of both perverse intercourse and ritual sacrifice, e.g. arms outstretched in a notional crucifixion mode.

  recapitulated all his memories of childhood,

  The optimum wound profile. As part of a continuing therapy programme, patients devised the optimum wound profile. A wide variety of wounds was imagined. Psychotic patients showed a preference for facial and neck wounds. Students and filling station personnel overwhelmingly selected abdominal injuries. By contrast suburban housewives expressed a marked preoccupation with severe genital wounds of an obscene character. The accident modes which rationalized these choices reflected polyperverse obsessions of an extreme form.

  the realization of dreams

  The conceptual auto-disaster. The volunteer panels were shown fake safety propaganda movies in which implausible accidents were staged. Far from eliciting a humorous or sardonic response from the audience, marked feelings of hostility were shown towards the film and medical support staff. Subsequent films of genuine accidents exerted a notably calming effect. From this and similar work it is clear that Freud's classic distinction between the manifest and latent content of the inner world of the psyche now has to be applied to the outer world of reality. A dominant element in this reality is technology and its instrument, the machine. In most roles the machine assumes a benign or passive posture – telephone exchanges, engineering hardware, etc. The twentieth century has also given birth to a vast range of machines – computers, pilotless planes, thermonuclear weapons – where the latent identity of the machine is ambiguous even to the skilled investigator. An understanding of this identity can be found in a study of the automobile, which dominates the vectors of speed, aggression, violence and desire. In particular the automobile crash contains a crucial image of the machine as conceptualized psychopathology. Tests on a wide range of subjects indicate that the automobile, and in particular the automobile crash, provides a focus for the conceptualizing of a wide range of impulses involving the elements of psycho pathology, sexuality and self-sacrifice.

  which even during the safe immobility of sleep

  Preferred death modes. Subjects were given a choice of various death modes and asked to select those they would most fear for themselves and their families. Suicide and murder proved without exception to be most feared, followed by air disasters, domestic electrocution and drowning. Death by automobile accident was uniformly considered to be least objectionable, in spite of the often extended death ordeal and severe mutilatory injuries.

  would develop into nightmares of anxiety.

  Psychology of crash victims. Studies have been carried out on the recuperative behaviour of crash victims. The great majority of cases were aided by any opportunity of unconscious identification with such fatalities as J. F. Kennedy, Jayne Mansfield and James Dean. Although many patients continued to express a strong sense of anatomical loss (an extreme 2 percent of cases maintained against all evidence that they had lost their genitalia) this was not regarded as any form of deprivation. It is clear that the car crash is seen as a fertilizing rather than a destructive experience, a liberation of sexual and machine libido, mediating the sexuality of those who have died with an erotic intensity impossible in any other form.

  Crash!

  This 1968 piece was written a year before my exhibition of crashed cars at the New Arts Laboratory, and in effect is the gene from which my novel Crash was to spring. The ambiguous role of the car crash needs no elaboration – apart from our own deaths, the car crash is probably the most dramatic event in our lives, and in many cases the two will coincide. Aside from the fact that we generally own or are at the controls of the crashing vehicle, the car crash differs from other disasters in that it involves the most powerfully advertised commercial product of this century, an iconic entity that combines the elements of speed, power, dream and freedom within a highly stylised format that defuses any fears we may have of the inherent dangers of these violent and unstable machines.

  Americans are now scarcely aware of automobile styling, but the subject has always intrigued me, and seems a remarkably accurate barometer of national confidence, When I visited the U.S.A. in 1955 all the optimism of Eisenhower's post-war America was expressed in the baroque vehicles that soared along its highways, as if an advanced interstellar race had touched down on a recreational visit But the doubts engendered by the Soviet H-bomb, the death of Kennedy and the Vietnam war led to a slab-sided and unornamented flatness, culminating in the Mercedes look, simultaneously aggressive and defensive, like German medieval armour, among the most dark and paranoid I have ever seen. On my last visit to the States, in 1988, I was happy to see that 1950s exuberance was returning.

&n
bsp; I take it for granted, by the way, that only American cars are truly styled. European cars are merely streamlined, though within those limits, as in the Delahaye, Lagonda and Jaguar, there have appeared some of the most beautiful objects ever made, a reminder of Marinetti's dictum that ‘a racing car is more beautiful than the Winged Victory of Samothrace’. For those interested, she stands arms outstretched in the lobby of the Louvre, and the contest is a close-run thing, much as I admire Marinetti and the futurists. But only the most advanced Italian concept cars break free of streamlining into a strange, interiorized realm of their own, where their complex body shells seem to be trying to escape from time and space altogether. The ultimate concept car will move so fast, even at rest as to be invisible.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  THE GENERATIONS OF AMERICA

  These are the generations of America.

  Sirhan Sirhan shot Robert F. Kennedy. And Ethel M. Kennedy shot Judith Birnbaum. And Judith Birnbaum shot Elizabeth Bochnak. And Elizabeth Bochnak shot Andrew Witwer. And Andrew Witwer shot John Burlingham. And John Burlingham shot Edward R. Darlington. And Edward R. Darlington shot Valerie Gerry. And Valerie Gerry shot Olga Giddy. And Olga Giddy shot Rita Goldstein. And Rita Goldstein shot Bob Monterola. And Bob Monterola shot Barbara H. Nicolosi. And Barbara H. Nicolosi shot Geraldine Cairo. And Geraldine Cairo shot Jeanne Voltz. And Jeanne Voltz shot Joseph P. Steiner. And Joseph P. Steiner shot Donald Van Dyke. And Donald Van Dyke shot Anne M. Schumacher. And Anne M. Schumacher shot Ralph K. Smith. And Ralph K. Smith shot Laurence J. Whitmore. And Laurence J. Whitmore shot Virginia B. Adams. And Virginia B. Adams shot Lynn Young. And Lynn Young shot Lucille Beachy. And Lucille Beachy shot John J. Concannon. And John J. Concannon shot Ainslie Dinwiddie. And Ainslie Dinwiddie shot Dianne Zimmerman. And Dianne Zimmerman shot Gerson Zelman. And Gerson Zelman shot Paula C. Dubroff. And Paula C. Dubroff shot Ebbe Ebbeson. And Ebbe Ebbeson shot Constance Wiley. And Constance Wiley shot Milton Unger. And Milton Unger shot Kenneth Sarvis. And Kenneth Sarvis shot Ruth Ross. And Ruth Ross shot August Muggenthaler. And August Muggenthaler shot Phyllis Malamud. And Phyllis Malamud shot Josh Eppinger III. And Josh Eppinger III shot Kermit Lanser. And Kermit Lanser shot Lester Bernstein. And Lester Bernstein shot Frank Trippett. And Frank Trippett shot Wade Greene. And Wade Greene shot Kenneth Auchincloss. And Kenneth Auchincloss shot Bruce Porter. And Bruce Porter shot John Lake. And John Lake shot John Mitchell. And John Mitchell shot Kenneth L. Woodward. And Kenneth L. Woodward shot Lee Smith. And Lee Smith shot Arthur Cooper. And Arthur Cooper shot Arthur Higbee. And Arthur Higbee shot Anne M. Schlesinger. And Anne M. Schlesinger shot Jonathan B. Peel. And Jonathan B. Peel shot Ruth Wertham. And Ruth Wertham shot David L. Shirey. And David L. Shirey shot Saul Melvin. And Saul Melvin shot Penelope Eakins. And Penelope Eakins shot Mary K Doris. And Mary K Doris shot Melvyn Gussow. And Melvyn Gussow shot Roger De Borger. And Roger De Borger shot Edward Cumberbatch. And Edward Cumberbatch shot Shirlee Hoffman. And Shirlee Hoffman shotjayne Brumley. And Jayne Brumley shot Joel Blocker. And Joel Blocker shot George Gaal. And George Gaal shot Ted Slate. And Ted Slate shot Mary B. Hood. And Mary B. Hood shot Laurence S. Martz. And Laurence S. Martz shot Harry F. Waters. And Harry F. Waters shot Archer Speers. And Archer Speers shot Kelvin P. Buckley. And Kelvin P. Buckley shot George Fitzgerald. And George Fitzgerald shot Lew L. Callaway. And Lew L. Callaway shot Gibson McCabe. And Gibson McCabe shot Americo Calvo. And Americo Calvo shot Francois Sully. And Francois Sully shot Edward Klein. And Edward Klein shot Edward Weintal. And Edward Weintal shot Arleigh Burke. And Arleigh Burke shot James C. Thompson. And James C. Thompson shot Alison Knowles. And Alison Knowles shot Walter Hinchup. And Walter Hinchup shot Pedlar Forrest. And Pedlar Forrest shot Jim Gym. And Jim Gym shot James McBride. And James McBride shot Cyrus Partovi. And Cyrus Partovi shot Lewis P. Bohler.

  And James Earl Ray shot Martin Luther King. And Coretta King shot Jacqueline Fisher. And Jacqueline Fisher shot Ernest Brennecke. And Ernest Brennecke shot Peggy Bomba. And Peggy Bomba shot Barry A. Erlich. And Barry A. Erlich shot James E. Huddleston. And James E. Huddleston shot Jerry Miller. And Jerry Miller shot Robert Nordvall. And Robert Nordvall shot William E. Harris. And William E. Harris shot Marguerite Sekots. And Marguerite Sekots shot Vernard Foley. And Vernard Foley shot Dale C. Kisteler. And Dale C. Kisteler shot Bruce Sperber. And Bruce Sperber shot Kay Flaherty. And Kay Flaherty shot Sol Babitz. And Sol Babitz shot Richard M. Clurman. And Richard M. Clurman shot Frederick Gruin. And Frederic Gruin shot Edward Jackson. And Edward Jackson shot Judson Gooding. And Judson Gooding shot Rosemarie Zadikov. And Rosemarie Zadikov shot Donald Neff. And Donald Neff shot Joseph J. Kane. And Joseph J. Kane shot Mark Sullivan. And Mark Sullivan shot Barry Hillenbrand. And Barry Hillenbrand shot Linda Young. And Linda Young shot Nina Wilson. And Nina Wilson shot Jack Meyes. And Jack Meyes shot Arlie W. Schardt. And Arlie W. Schardt shot Roger M. Williams. And Roger M. Williams shot Marcia Gauger. And Marcia Gauger shot Nancy Williams. And Nancy Williams shot Susanne W. Washburn. And Susanne W. Washburn shot Timothy Tyler. And Timothy Tyler shot David C. Lee. And David C. Lee shot James E. Broadhead. And James E. Broadhead shot Robert S. Anson. And Robert S. Anson shot Robert Parker. And Robert Parker shot Donald Birmingham. And Donald Birmingham shotJohn Steele. And John Steele shot Fortunata Vanderschmidt. And Fortunata Vanderschmidt shot Stephanie Trimble. And Stephanie Trimble shot Hugh Sidey. And Hugh Sidey shot Edwin W. Goodpaster. And Edwin W. Goodpaster shot Bonnie Angelo. And Bonnie Angelo shot Walter Bennett. And Walter Bennett shot Martha Reingold. And Martha Reingold shot Lane Fortin-berry. And Lane Fortinberry shot Jess Cook. And Jess Cook shot Kenneth Danforth. And Kenneth Danforth shot Marshall Berges. And Marshall Berges shot Samuel R. Iker. And Samuel R. Iker shotJohn F. Stacks. And John F. Stacks shot Paul R. Hathaway. And Paul R Hathaway shot Raissa Silverman. And Raissa Silverman shot Patricia Gordon. And Patricia Gordon shot Greta Davis. And Greta Davis shot Harriet Bachman. And Harriet Bachman shot Charles B. Wheat. And Charles B. Wheat shot William Bender. And William Bender shot Alan Washburn. And Alan Washburn shot Julie Adams. And Julie Adams shot Susan Saner. And Susan Saner shot Richard Burgheim. And Richard Burgheim shot Larry Still. And Larry Still shot Alten L. Clingen. And Alten L. Clingen shot Jerry Kirshenbaum.

  And Lee Harvey Oswald shot John F. Kennedy. And Jacqueline Kennedy shot Mark S. Goodman. And Mark S. Goodman shot Beverley Davis. And Beverley Davis shot James Willwerth. And James Willwerth shot John J. Austin. And John J. Austin shot Nancy Jalet. And Nancy Jalet shot Leah Shanks. And Leah Shanks shot Christopher Porterfield. And Christopher Porterfield shot Edward Hughes. And Edward Hughes shot Madeleine Berry. And Madeleine Berry shot Hilary Newman. And Hilary Newman shot James A Linen. And James A. Linen shot James Keogh. And James Keogh shot Putney Westerfield. And Putney Westerfield shot Oliver S. Moore. And Oliver S. Moore shot James Wilde. And James Wilde shot John T. Elson. And John T. Elson shot Rosemary Funger. And Rosemary Funger shot Piri Halasz. And Piri Halasz shot William Mader. And William Mader shot John Larsen. And John Larsen shot Joy Howden. And Joy Howden shot Andria Hourwich. And Andria Hourwich shot Betty Sukyer. And Betty Sukyer shot Ingrid Krosch. And Ingrid Krosch shotJohn Koffend. And John Koffend shot Rodney Sheppard. And Rodney Sheppard shot Rudi Brine. And Ruth Brine shot Judy Mitnick. And Judy Mitnick shot Paul Hathaway. And Paul Hathaway shot Manon Gaulin. And Manon Gaulin shot Katherine Prager. And Katherine Prager shot Marie Gibbons. And Marie Gibbons shot James E. Broadhead. And James E. Broadhead shot Philip Stacks. And Philip Stacks shot Peter Babcox. And Peter Babcox shot Christopher T. Cory. And Christopher T. Cory shot Erwin Edleman. And Erwin Edleman shot William Forbis. And William Forbis shot Ingrid Carroll.

  These are the generations of America.

  These names were taken from the editorial mastheads of Look, Life and Time, my only available source of large numbers of American surnames. The choice had nothing to do with the magazines themselves – I have been a keen reader of Time and Life since the late 1930s – though there is an unintended irony in recruiti
ng the names from the editors and production staff of three mass-magazines that helped to create the media landscape at the heart of The Atrocity Exhibition.

  Over the years, trying to get away from the provincially English surnames of the London phone book, I have taken a large number of my characters' names from the masthead of Time, though I never had the nerve to use the redoubtable Minnie Magazine. I soon noticed that Anglo-Saxon names seemed to rise effortlessly to the top of the mast, while Italian and Slavic names crowded the plinth. In recent years things have changed.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  WHY I WANT TO FUCK RONALD REAGAN

  During these assassination fantasies

  Ronald Reagan and the conceptual auto-disaster. Numerous studies have been conducted upon patients in terminal paresis (G.P.I.), placing Reagan in a series of simulated auto-crashes, e.g. multiple pile-ups, head-on collisions, motorcade attacks (fantasies of Presidential assassinations remained a continuing preoccupation, subjects showing a marked polymorphic fixation on windshields and rear trunk assemblies). Powerful erotic fantasies of an anal-sadistic character surrounded the image of the Presidential contender. Subjects were required to construct the optimum auto-disaster victim by placing a replica of Reagan's head on the unretouched photographs of crash fatalities. In 82 percent of cases massive rear-end collisions were selected with a preference for expressed faecal matter and rectal haemorrhages. Further tests were conducted to define the optimum model-year. These indicate that a three-year model lapse with child victims provide the maximum audience excitation (confirmed by manufacturers' studies of the optimum auto-disaster). It is hoped to construct a rectal modulus of Reagan and the auto-disaster of maximized audience arousal.