Fashioning the Body: Versions of the Citizen, the Self, and the Subject

horizon (1)

but this dread was something different. it was a fear of intrusion into _____ rather than of expansion into the World's gaze. ___ felt ___ leg as a soft, shrinking and vulnerable thing. ___ longed to cry out to _____ and warn ______ to examine ______ leg in a particular way, but specific firm, yet calm, movements. But ____ tongue was dried out and glued to the floor of ____ mouth.

love always tends to union, and the greater the love the closer is the alliance to which it inspires (2)

Oh, God,

as there are souls singularly favored and caressed by you, you raise some to be as dear mistress or seraphic level

and

could concieve of nothing more embarrassing than an involuntary ______ -- especially if a _____ such as ______ was touching _____.

though the love ____ bore to you made _____ sigh after the enjoyment of a similar grace

___- had to cant ______ up on to the curve of ___ _______ coincidentally adopting the same posture as ___ had when ___ first became aware of the ____.

___ mind was agitated with many different sensations and ____ felt two different sorts of agitations, similar to the two contrary pulsations which physicians regognize in our hearts.

this was different to the fear that ____ usually felt when ___ was touched by ____ in non-intimate situations, or had to address in

your love made _____ words like burning coals.

love is always communicative, it allows of no secrets between those whose affections it unites; and it is a sort of injustice to give the heart to anyone without revealing all that it contains of any importance....And you loved ____ so tenderly, and even publicly took ___ for ___ spouse, we cannot wonder that ___ honored ___ with the gift of prophecy.

__ waited. and waited. all ___ could hear was ____ breathing, which seemed to have become heavy, laboured and slightly intermittent. ____ lay still, holding himself in readiness for the ____ pronouncement, and, of course, willing himself not to get an ____. he stared fixedly at the way the plaster had been teased up into little fronds, like miniature stalactites.

___ was ravished in ecstasy. you entered again into ___ mind with so brilliant a light and enkindled so great a love.

one human being can accomplish only what one human being can accomplish. That is certain. That limitation gives many human beings who accomplish nothing satisfaction. One human being sooner or later finds that ___ must join with others if ___ is to get done what ____ had hoped to do alone. (3)

(1) bold and un-italicized text courtesy of Cock and Bull, by Cock and Bull (Sheridan, Wyoming: Elk Mountain Press, 1926) pages indefinite.

(2) italicized text from The Life of St. Rose of Lima, Jean-Baptiste Feuillet, Ed. F.W. Faber, (Philadelphia: Peter F Cunningham and Son, CATHOLIC BOOKSELLERS, 1855) page numbers infinite, MLA don't send my ass to Hell please, at least give me Works Cited Purgatory (1st Level).

(3) underlined text comes from some sheet Julia tore off ferociously involving Marxism and France.

Artist? statement: I am trying to create accessible hagiography. Am trying to show the similarities of 'erotic ticklings' in relation to God and in relation to people. also, taking out the references to body parts, gender or even deity in general make the similarities even more striking and may help in two arenas: making the profane more sacred, and making the sacred more profane. Am moving against modern critiques of religion and sexuality which imply an erect penis as a sexualized penis, or as a saint experiencing what could be considered orgasm in sexual terms from our era -- which, actually, is just like labeling Sappho a lesbian ('cept some who are anti-label still talk about Jesus' erect penis as if it's the most important thing, so where is the give?). So when we look at bodies, we must detach ourselves from our current sexualized culture, in which every body part is used for an explicit sexual purpose. It could also help in a third arena: making yr own love story or human experience, which, in the end, is quite Godly indeed.

Whether I succeeded in this one piece, nyyyah.