''Rat Catching'' () is a book by actor and filmmaker

Crispin Glover Crispin Hellion Glover (born April 20, 1964) is an American actor. He is known for portraying eccentric characters on screen, such as George McFly in ''Back to the Future'' (1985), Layne in ''River's Edge'' (1986), Andy Warhol in ''The Doors'' ...

. The book is a form of

collage Collage (, from the french: coller, "to glue" or "to stick together";) is a technique of art creation, primarily used in the visual arts, but in music too, by which art results from an assemblage of different forms, thus creating a new whole. ...

, reworked from ''Studies in the Art of Rat Catching'' by Henry C. Barkley, an 1896 book now in the

public domain The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work A creative work is a manifestation of creative effort including fine artwork (sculpture, paintings, drawing, sketching, performance art), dance, writing (literature), filmmaking, ...

. Pictures from the book, as well as the book itself, were shown in the opening credits of the 2003 film '' Willard'', starring Glover. The book forms a segment of Glover's live slideshow readings, performed during particular screenings of his self-produced films ''

What Is It? ''What Is It?'' is a 2005 American surrealist film written, edited, co-produced and directed by Crispin Glover and starring Glover, Fairuza Balk, and Steven C. Stewart. Background ''What Is It?'' is the first entry in a planned trilogy directe ...

'' and '' It Is Fine! Everything Is Fine.''.

Overview

The original book, ''Studies in the Art of Rat Catching'', was written partially as an informative guide about the practicalities and methods regarding vermin control during the late 19th century, apparently directed at students within the English

public school Public school may refer to: * State school (known as a public school in many countries), a no-fee school, publicly funded and operated by the government * Public school (United Kingdom), certain elite fee-charging independent schools in England an ...

system with the intention of educating those particular pupils.

The Neglected Books Page ''The Neglected Books Page'' is a book review website. The site features reviews of books that have been, according to the site, "neglected, overlooked, forgotten, or stranded by changing tides in critical or popular taste." The site was founded i ...

argues that the book is, in fact, more than a non-fiction guide book, but also a collage containing satire aimed at the education and employment prospects of the upper class and a collection of quaint tales of life and adventures in that era's rural England. Glover's modified version, ''Rat Catching'', alters the original and its intended meaning into a somewhat fragmented collection of words and sentences by means of

obfuscation Obfuscation is the obscuring of the intended meaning of communication by making the message difficult to understand, usually with confusing and ambiguous language. The obfuscation might be either unintentional or intentional (although intent u ...

of particular texts with ink and drawing, along with the inclusion of imagery from various other sources that, while retaining some of the original context, forms its own particular narrative resulting in either humorously surreal or utterly disturbing results.

References

1999 books Artists' books Books about mice and rats {{book-art-stub

Overview

See also

References