| A Swallowing Artist |
Inspired by Kafka's A Hunger Artist,
A Swallowing Artist was Ausherman's
first work of fiction to appear online,
thanks to elimae, circa 1998.
The story is also included in his award-
winning collection of short fiction,
Night Weeding.
A Turkish translation inexplicably
appeared at altZine in 2005 and
has since resurfaced on kelimeyiyen
and oezers alternatif forum
A Swallowing Artist was Ausherman's
first work of fiction to appear online,
thanks to elimae, circa 1998.
The story is also included in his award-
winning collection of short fiction,
Night Weeding.
A Turkish translation inexplicably
appeared at altZine in 2005 and
has since resurfaced on kelimeyiyen
and oezers alternatif forum
by Stephen Ausherman
His name was Abel Webber, and it was said that his mother
birthed him through her mouth on a November morning. This
Abel believed because his father told him so when he was still
very young. His father, a man of authoritarian stature with a
voice to match, told him that the doctor said something he
didn't understand about ectopic pregnancies, tainted waters,
and her very peculiar mouth, which Abel had inherited. His
jaws clicked like a ratchet and he hadn't any lips to speak of,
just a gash that split open his face and exposed his molars to
the moonlight at the slightest grin.
That his mother had just puked him forth into the world then
quickly left it behind drove Abel mad at times, and he would
set about the house just swallowing things. Flashlights,
clocks, linens.
Abel was nearly twenty before he heard of a man from
Lubbock who attempted the world record for eating an El
Dorado piece by piece. Though this man was fatally
unsuccessful, Abel realized there was a living to be made in
swallowing things and set out on his calling.
He soon found this line of work crowded, as there were
hundreds of people who could put large and dangerous things
in their mouths. Things he never thought of, like rattlers and
cacti, toasters and bicycle chains.
birthed him through her mouth on a November morning. This
Abel believed because his father told him so when he was still
very young. His father, a man of authoritarian stature with a
voice to match, told him that the doctor said something he
didn't understand about ectopic pregnancies, tainted waters,
and her very peculiar mouth, which Abel had inherited. His
jaws clicked like a ratchet and he hadn't any lips to speak of,
just a gash that split open his face and exposed his molars to
the moonlight at the slightest grin.
That his mother had just puked him forth into the world then
quickly left it behind drove Abel mad at times, and he would
set about the house just swallowing things. Flashlights,
clocks, linens.
Abel was nearly twenty before he heard of a man from
Lubbock who attempted the world record for eating an El
Dorado piece by piece. Though this man was fatally
unsuccessful, Abel realized there was a living to be made in
swallowing things and set out on his calling.
He soon found this line of work crowded, as there were
hundreds of people who could put large and dangerous things
in their mouths. Things he never thought of, like rattlers and
cacti, toasters and bicycle chains.
Abel decided instead to follow a traveling folk festival. One day he got it in his head to drink paint when no
one was looking. Then he stood before a crowd and presented to them a white flag. This he bundled up to
the size of a dinner roll, swallowed, then delicately regurgitated. The flag, unfurled, boasted designs more
intricate than stained-glass spider webs. Many people applauded, but festival managers expressed their
concerns: The act was not suitable and the flags would never sell.
Confidence unshaken, Abel repeated the performance at carnivals, rodeos and flea markets. Though he
never sold anything, he was arrested several times for not having the proper permits. During one of these
arrests, police informed him that someone in his hometown was looking for him. His father recently died,
they told him. And in an uncommon gesture of kindness, they bought him a bus ticket home.
It was an open-casket funeral and his father was too large for the box. His chin pressed down on his chest.
Halfway through the service, his arm slipped out and dangled, swinging slightly for the next few minutes.
Abel stared at the watch on his father's wrist until a kind of hypnotic fit overpowered him. He stood and
approached the coffin, then knelt beside it. He trembled with heaving sobs, and the congregation allowed
him the space to pray out his grief. It wasn't until after the final hymn that they discovered he’d tried to
swallow his father’s arm, and choked to death on his elbow.
one was looking. Then he stood before a crowd and presented to them a white flag. This he bundled up to
the size of a dinner roll, swallowed, then delicately regurgitated. The flag, unfurled, boasted designs more
intricate than stained-glass spider webs. Many people applauded, but festival managers expressed their
concerns: The act was not suitable and the flags would never sell.
Confidence unshaken, Abel repeated the performance at carnivals, rodeos and flea markets. Though he
never sold anything, he was arrested several times for not having the proper permits. During one of these
arrests, police informed him that someone in his hometown was looking for him. His father recently died,
they told him. And in an uncommon gesture of kindness, they bought him a bus ticket home.
It was an open-casket funeral and his father was too large for the box. His chin pressed down on his chest.
Halfway through the service, his arm slipped out and dangled, swinging slightly for the next few minutes.
Abel stared at the watch on his father's wrist until a kind of hypnotic fit overpowered him. He stood and
approached the coffin, then knelt beside it. He trembled with heaving sobs, and the congregation allowed
him the space to pray out his grief. It wasn't until after the final hymn that they discovered he’d tried to
swallow his father’s arm, and choked to death on his elbow.
A Swallowing Artist
The short version of Ausherman's
video adaptation of the Turkish
translation premiered in Louisville
and later appeared at Art Basel via
Art Disk.
The full 3-minute version
premiered in Ausherman's
award-winning production:
The Unfinished Films
video adaptation of the Turkish
translation premiered in Louisville
and later appeared at Art Basel via
Art Disk.
The full 3-minute version
premiered in Ausherman's
award-winning production:
The Unfinished Films
##
The first release of the full-length
audio recording is now available
as an mp3 download from the
Daily Constitutional's Soundcast
audio recording is now available
as an mp3 download from the
Daily Constitutional's Soundcast
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