Roland Barthes' Pleasure Lists
Roland Barthes on Pleasure and Pleasurable Texts
This week, we explore Pleasures by way of French literary critic and philosopher Roland Barthes (1915–1980).
A few weeks ago, I wrote about Susan Sontag’s Likes and Dislikes — which are something of a Pleasure List. Sontag was a devoted fan of the late Roland Barthes, editing a collection of his works in a compilation titled, “Barthes: Selected Writings.”
In that collection, she included a list of Barthes’s likes and dislikes, originally titled: “J’aime, je n’aime pas (I like, I don’t like),” which was first published in Roland Barthes by Roland Barthes.
J’aime, je n’aime pas
I like: salad, cinnamon, cheese, pimento, marzipan, the smell of new-cut hay (why doesn’t someone with a “nose” make such a perfume?), roses, peonies, lavender, champagne, loosely held political convictions, Glenn Gould, too-cold beer, flat pillows, toast, Havana cigars, Handel, slow walks, pears, white peaches, cherries, colors, watches, all kinds of writing pens, desserts, unrefined salt, realistic novels, the piano, coffee, Pollock, Twombly, all romantic music, Sartre, Brecht, Verne, Fourier, Eisenstein, trains, Médoc wine, having change, Bouvard and Pécuchet, walking in sandals on the lanes of southwest France, the bend of the Adour seen from Doctor L.’s house, the Marx Brothers, the mountains at seven in the morning leaving Salamanca, etc.
I don’t like: white Pomeranians, women in slacks, geraniums, strawberries, the harpsichord, Miró, tautologies, animated cartoons, Arthur Rubinstein, villas, the afternoon, Satie, Bartók, Vivaldi, telephoning, children’s choruses, Chopin’s concertos, Burgundian branles and Renaissance dances, the organ, Marc-Antoine Charpentier, his trumpets and kettledrums, the politico-sexual, scenes, initiatives, fidelity, spontaneity, evenings with people I don’t know, etc.
I like, I do not like: it does not matter to anyone, and this apparently has no meaning. Yet, in this anarchic foam of tastes and distastes, a kind of listless blur, gradually appears the figure of a bodily enigma, requiring complicity or irritation. Here begins the intimidation of the body, which obliges others to endure me liberally, to remain silent and polite confronted by pleasures or rejections which they do not share.
(A fly bothers me, I kill it: you kill what bothers you. if I had not killed the fly, it would have been out of pure liberalism: I am liberal in order not to be a killer.)
You can read the original in French here.
Bonus: a video of Barthes speaking about Pleasure. Watch it here.
He explains the title of his book, speaking about the notion of pleasure, emphasizing the subtle difference between enjoyment and the pleasure of reading. He defines eroticism as a loving investment in an object whatever it may be, such as the text. The author explains why pleasure is on the right and wants to show people on the left that there is no contradiction between the social and political commitment of the text on the one hand, and on the other hand, its power of pleasure , its erotic power. He gives his conception of the writer. He says he doesn't like the stereotype and recognizes a purifying value in what is new.
Make your own Barthes-inspired Pleasure List and submit it below.
This Week’s Pleasurable Encounters
Lemon pie from
’s and ’s Upstate NY restaurant, Day June (and go check out their new hotel next door, The Henson):
Another great Love-Hate publication,
fromDiscovering the work of late fiber artist, Yvonne Bobrowicz (1928-2022)
Highlights from Instagram you may have missed:
Pleasures, Curated
A series in which a member from The Pleasure Lists community curates a weekly selection of their Pleasures, along with a Q&A about what makes their Pleasures tick. Become a paid subscriber so you don’t miss out!
In Case You Missed It:
Why submit a list?
Pleasure Lists are a summary of what you need, want, or have, or see at a particular moment in time. They are a survey, an overview, a summary of the crucial facts of the state of one aspect of your life. It’s a kind of blueprint that can be a guide to the future.
Mull it over and if you’re moved to, send me a list.
Questions? Comments? Send any recommendations or suggestions for what you’d like to see in these newsletters my way. I’d love to hear more about what you’re currently finding pleasure in.
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