Writing Degree Zero

221 Pages·03.486 MB·English

by  Roland Barthes

Roland
Bardies
Writing
Degree
Zero
Thmlated by AnnetteLavers and Colin Smith
'Preface by Susan Sontag
WritiDnegg reZee riost ranslaftreodm
theF rencLhe D egrZee rdoe L 'Ecriture
© 1953b yE ditiodnus S euil
Translat©i o19n6 7b yJ onathaCna peL td.
Prefacceo pyrig©h 1t9 68b yS usanS ontag
LibraorfyC ongrescsa talocga rdn umber7:5 -105325
StandarBdo okN umber8:0 70-1545-8
Firsptu blishaesda BeaconP aperbaickn1 970
bya rrangemewnitt hH ilaln dW ang,I nc.
BeaconP resbso oksa rep ublishuendd etrh ea uspices
oft heU nitarUinainv ersaAlsissotc iation
Alrli ghrtess erved
Printiendt heU niteSdt ateosfA merica
WritiDnegg reZee ro

Contents
PrefabcyeS usaSno ntagVl l
Introduction
PART I
Whati sW riting?9
PolitMiocdaels o fW riting1 9
Writinagn dt heN ovel2 9
Ist heraen yP oetWirci ting4? 1
PART II
TheT riumpahn dB reak-oufpB ourgeWoriist ing5 5
StylaesC raftsmans6h2ip
Writinagn dR evoluti6o7n
Writinagn dS ilenc7e4
'Vr itianngdS peech7 7
TheU topioafL anguag8e 4
SelectBeidb liogra8ph9y
Noteo nt heA uthor9 0

PREFACE
To descriBbaer thaessa literCarrIyt dloce sh ima n
obvioiunsj ustAi mcaen.o fp rodigiloeuasr niunngfl,a g­
ginmg entaeln ergayn,d a cuteolryi gisneanls ibihlei ty,
hase stablihsihcser de dentaisaa elsst hetilciitaenra,an rdy
theatcrrei tic, socmieotplaso ygcishto,l osgoicsitca,rl i tic,
historoifai nd eaasn,d c ulturjaolu rnalOinsltyi. f t he
ideaolfc riticiises nml argteotd a kien a w idev arieotfy
discoubrosteth,h eoretaincdda els cripatbiovuect,u lture,
languaagned,c ontemporcaoryn sciouscnaenBs asr,t hes
plausibbelc ya llae cdr itKiacr.lK rausT., W. Adorno,
andK ennetBhu rkceo met om inda so thedri stinguished
examploefts h irsa rber eeodf i ntellevcitrutaulow shoi,l e
McLuhans uggestthser iskosf r adicuanle venneosfs
qualiatnyd j udgmenitn currweidt ht himsa gnituodfe
intelleacptpueatlai ntdea mbitiEovna.l uataitto hni vsi r­
tualulnyc lassilfieavboelflea chievemmeanyts eems ome­
whatf rivolSotuisl.Il w,o uld artghuaeBt a rthiesst he
mostc onsisteinnttleyl liigmepnotr,t aanntdu, s efcurli tic
-stretchtihnagtt e mr-toh avee mergeadn ywhere in
thel asfitf teeyne ars.
WritiDnegg reZee rol,o nogv erdiuneE nglitsrha nsla­
tioinsB, a rthfierss'bt o oki;ta ppearien1d 593.Se enf rom
thep erspecotfi1 v9e 6h8ow,e veWrr,i tiDnegg reZee ro
probabilsyn t'hte e asietsetx wti thw hicht os taratn
acquaintwaintchBe a rthTehse.b ooki sc ompacttot he
Xl
PREFACE
poinotfe lliposfitsea,nr canIetb. a relsyu ggetshtesv ari­
etya ndi ntellemcotbuiallio tfBy a rthseusb's equweonrtk
-whichn ow totaslisxb ookso,n lyo neo fw hichh as
alreabdeye nb roughotu ti nt heU niteSdt atesa,n·d
numerouusn collecetsesda yTsh.o ughe xplicitthleyo ­
retiicnac lh aracttehrea, r gumehnetr cea n'cto mparien
rigoorr c ompletenweistshB arthelsa't edre velopment
ofs omeo ft hesied eaisnh is"E lemendtesS emiologie,"
thes ystemattrieca tfiirsspetu blisihnei ds sNuoe. 4 ( 9164)
ofC ommunicattihoei nmsp,or taFnrte ncjho urnoafl
whichh ei sa ne ditoMro.r eoveWrr, itiDnegg reZee ro
givevsi rtuanloli yn dicatoifBo anr thesse'n sitiavnidt y
imaginativienhn aensdsl iinngd ividluiatle rtaerxyta sn d
andi ns tatitnhgeu nifyimnegt aphoorfas s ingaluet hor's
bodyo fw orks,k ilhlews a st oe xerciinst eh es horbto ok
on Michel(et15 94) andi nt hei nfluentsitauld ioefs
Brechatn dR obbe-Griwlrliettt iennt hem id 1590'S.
Lastltyh,ep resetnetx dto esnd'its cltohseew ittcyo n­
cretenoefsB sa rthesse'n sibihliistt ayl,e fnotr s ensuous
phenomenolodgeisccarli pteivoind,e ncientd h eb rilliant
essay-epipchoalnlieecsit ne1 d59 7u ndetrh et itMlyet ho­
logiTehsus.W, r itiDnegg rZeeer iose arlBya rthseesm,i ­
nalb utn otr epresent(aPteirvhea.op nsl yt hec ollection
publisihne1 d69 4E,s saCirsi tiqsupeansn,i wnogr kf rom
1593to 1 69,3g iveisno neb ooka nythilnigka er easonable
samploef B arthersa'n geA.n)d ,e vena parftr omt his
provistoh,eb ookm ay presecnotn siderdaibffilceu lties
tot her eadeurn acquainwtietdht heb ackgrouanndd
provenanofcB ea rthes' argument.
·SuRra ci(n1e9 6w3a)sp ublishbeyd H ilaln dW ang in1 <)64
asO nR aciniena , t ranslabtyiR oinc harHdo ward.
Xli
PREFACE
WritiDnegg rZeeer mou stb el ocatientd h ec onteoxfta
cultusriatlu atiinot nw oi mportarnets pecutnsl ikoeu r
own.
FirsBta,r thiesas d dressail nigt ercaormym uniwthyi ch
hasf ors evergaeln eratioonnm so,s tl evehlosn,o readn d
treataesdc entraa cla noonf c ontemporwaorryk s till
regardaesmd a rginaanlds uspebcytt hAen glo-American
litercaormym unitSyu.c h" difficullti"t ertaernyd encies
asS ymboliasnmd S urrealainsdmi ,n p articutlhaelr i ne
ofp ost-nopvreolsn ea rratfirvoemt heS urreafilcitsito ns
tot hosoefB orgeBse,c ketatn,dR obbe-Grialrlete atk,e n
too ccuptyh ec entrpaols itiinocn o ntemporlaertyt ers­
whilmeo stn ovelisnt raditi"orneaall isftoircm"(s s uch
asc ontintuote h idsa yt ob ec ritsiuccacle sisnEe nsg land
andA mericaa)r er egardaesde ssentiuanlilnyt eresting,
barenloyt ewortphryo ducotfas r etardoerrd e actionary
consciousInneesvsi.t atbhlitys,r iumpohfl iter"amroyd ­
ernismi"nP arihsa sh adi tism pacotn critidceabla te,
shifttihnesg u bstanctoinvcee rannsdt het onoef s erious
literary disInc tuhsiscsio ounn.t royf,c oursae Q,u ite
differetnats ptree vaialnsdc, o mparawbolrek - froml ate
JoyceS,t eiann,d late VWioroglifnt ioBa u rroug-hiss
stigleln erarlelgya rdaesda provocatmiivneo rictuyr ­
rentl,a bel"eadv ant-gaorrd" ee"x perimenltiatle"r ature.
(Thec ritisciatlu attihoaintsc o mparahbelreie s t hec on­
sensuosf " avant-gasrtdaen"d arfdosrp aintiwnhgi ch
havep revaielveedsr i ncteh ee arl1y9 05'wSi,t hth ec on­
secratbiyob no tthh ea rt-woerllidat ned T ime-Lisftey le
populariozfPe orlsl ocDke,K ooninKgl,i nMeo,t herwell,
Rothkoe,ta l.)
SecondB,a rthebso'o ki sa latceo ntributtoit ohna t
vigoroduesb atteh ahta se ngagetdh eE uropealni terary
communistiyn cteh ed ecadbee forteh ew aro nt her ela­
tiobne tweepno litaincdls i teraNtou rdee.b atoefs imilar
Xlll
PREFACE
Qualiotny t hatto piecv ert ookp lachee reD.e spiatlel
rumortsh atth eroen cee xistaeg de neratoifpo onl itically
radicwarli teirnsE nglanadn dA merictah,eQ uestioofn
thep olitical-reetshpiocnasli boiflw irtiyt ewrass n ever
posehde rien a nythibnegt ttehra ann e mbryoniicn,t el­
lectuaclrluydf eo rm-lao neex ceptbieoinn tgh eb rilliant
'
bookpsu blisihnet dh el at1e9 03bSyt hey oungC hristo­
pheCra udwell.
It'asg aintshtib sa ckgroutnhda Wtr itiDnegg reZee ro
mustb es ituatBeedc.a uBsaer thiessa ddressai snigz able
litercaormym uniattyh omei na ndr espectofflu ilt erary
modernismmo,s to fw hichha sa cceptseodm ev arieotfy
left-woirnn ge o-Marxpioslti tical- bsottahcn ocned i­
tioness,p ecitahlelf yo rmebre,i nQgu ituen typiocfat lh e
litercaormym unitiynt heE nglish-spewaokril-ndhg e
simpltya kes gfroarn tae dg reat dtehaawlte do not.
WritiDnegg reZee rloe ndssu ppotrott hea lreawdeyl l­
establicsahuesdoe f a dvanceldi teratnuortew ,i tha n
argumeonvt erf undamentoaftl as staen dp urposbeu,t
by ana llusrievfien emeonftt haatr gumenotr,i ented
moret om odernilsitt eratfuurret'hspe rro spetchtastn o
itcse lebraptaesdBt u.t W ritiDnegg reZee riosn oto nly
manifebsuttop olemic. aWniydt ihffi cutletx tth,er eader,
ino rdetro u nderstwahnadt t hep hilosopohrce rri tiisc
arguifnogr mu,s tg raswph ato rw homh ei st acitalryg u­
inga gainCosnts.i dearsea dp olemiBca,r thiescs h alleng­
ingt hem osti ntellivgeernstio ofnt het heoroyf l itera­
tureo'bsl igattioob ne s ociaclolmym ittetdh,at th eory
havinagl wayesn taisloemde a ttacokv,e rotr i mplicoint ,
thet raditoifom no dernilsitt erature.
IndeeId t,h inokn,e c ann amet hes peciafidcv ersary
ofB artheasr'g umenBta.r thetso'p iicst hes amea st hat
posebdy ,a nds tatiendt het itolfeS, a rtrfea'mso uWsh at
IsL iterat(uSrupep?l ementcoanrfiyr matiboyn d ates:
XlV