Today, in class we discussed the series of poems that make up Percival Everett’s Body. Within the work, Everett uses biological and scientific terms in order to describe a sexual encounter. He refers to body parts and processes by their scientific names which I found incredibly interesting and even a little unsettling.
I say unsettling because growing up, a large majority of children are taught that sex is a very intimate and beautiful thing. But in these poems, it is almost as if Everett is stripping away that intimacy and beauty and turning the act of sex into a very scientific thing. Which upon further reflection, I realized it kind of makes sense. When it all boils down, sex is science. All of the reasons sex is sex are scientific, whether it be the science of having a baby or the science of the pleasure of sex. Sex is science.
Additionally, after having that discussion, we were directed to look at the term Blazon, as explained by the Poetry Foundation. The Poetry Foundation explains Blazon as a way in which bodies, typically female, are masked in literature. Specifically by being regarded as some form of celestial being or phenomenon. So, naturally, after reading this definition, I looked up just the word. Blazon.
The definition of the word blazon is “to display prominently or vividly”. Which I found ironic since in literary terms it is almost the complete opposite.
Then, I thought of applying the term to Body, this is when I sort of had a mind blown moment. One could argue that Everett almost uses the biological terms to display both versions of the term blazon. He uses the words in one way to censor the erotic nature of the sexual act, but while using these words he very prominently illustrates this sexual encounter. He uses one definition to achieve the other. That idea of one word having two meanings is often very evident in Percival Everett’s work and often it has to do with things being very subtly “in your face”.
In my opinion, Body is a very interesting and thoughtful take on the very human action of sex. It is both scientific and artistic, it is a prominent example of Interdisciplinary writing.