(pre)possessed: an erasure sequence

Journal article

Overall, S. 2023. (pre)possessed: an erasure sequence. Supernatural Studies: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Art, Media, and Culture. 9 (1).
AuthorsOverall, S.
Abstract

‘(pre)possessed’ is a sequence of six erasure poems created using found text. The work explores the concept of hidden messages as a form of possession, where apparently unbiased newspaper coverage and banal magazine columns contain the seeds of other–darker–ideas exposed through erasure. Riffing on the urban legend of satanic messages buried in song lyrics using ‘backmasking’ and the practice of subliminal advertising, ‘(pre)possessed’ demonstrates how creative erasure can ‘uncover’ the demonic apparently hiding in plain sight. The found text used in the work was drawn randomly from a collection of British print media gathered over five months.

KeywordsBlackout poems; Erasure poems; Creative writing; Posession; Backmasking; Subliminal advertising; Media
Year2023
JournalSupernatural Studies: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Art, Media, and Culture
Journal citation9 (1)
PublisherSupernatural Studies
ISSN2470-203X
2325-4866
Official URLhttps://www.supernaturalstudies.com/previous-journal-issues/vol-9-issue-1/overall
Publication dates
OnlineOct 2023
Publication process dates
Accepted04 Dec 2022
Deposited14 Dec 2022
Publisher's version
License
Output statusPublished
Additional information

Special Edition Guest Editors: Edmund P. Cueva (University of Houston-Downtown) and Nadia Scippacercola (Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II)

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