Chuck Pahalniuk on transgression
Chuck Palahniuk wrote a piece called "Monkey Think, Monkey Do" for a recent issue of Gear magazine (the one with Jamie Bergman on the cover). It's a fascinating little philosophical piece arguing against both transgression for the sake of transgression and the desire for absolute security from the world's evils. Palahniuk's suggested alternative: "stop living as a reaction and start living as a force for what you say should be." The opening paragraphs present striking examples of real-life and fictional transgressions.
This summer a young man pulled me aside in a bookstore and said he loved how in Fight Club I wrote about waiters tainting food. He asked me to sign a book and said he worked in a five-star restaurant where they monkey with celebrities' food all the time.
"Margaret Thatcher," he said, "has eaten my sperm." He held up one hand, fingers spread, and said, "At least five times."
Just try to get that image out your mind. (Unfortunately, Gear doesn't put any of its content online. The magazine's website takes minimalist design to an odd extreme.) . . . UPDATE: Palahniuk has "Monkey Think, Monkey Do" posted at his personal site.
