May 1, 2020

Book Beginnings / Friday 56 - A Lover's Discourse, by Roland Barthes


Hello, everyone! Happy May 😊🌸 What have you been reading this week? Today, it's Friday, so you know what this means! It's time for the two fun weekly memes :)

First, we have Book Beginnings on Fridays, hosted by Rose City Reads. In this meme, we have to share the first sentence (or a bit more) from the book we are currently reading. The second meme is called Friday 56 and it is hosted by Freda's Voice. For this one, we have to share a small snippet from a book, taken from page 56 (or 56% on an e-reader).


This week, I have chosen to show you some snippets from a book I've recently read and reviewed. It's called A Lover's Discourse and it was written by Roland Barthes. In essence, A Lover's Discourse is an essay on the language that a lover uses to describe all the nuances of love. It is an interesting and thought-provoking book, even though it's not the easiest read you'll find. 

Anyway, I hope that these snippets will convince you to give it a try!

Book Beginnings:


"The necessity for this book is to be found in the following consideration: that the lover's discourse is today of an extreme solitude. This discourse is spoken, perhaps, by thousands of subjects (who knows?), but warranted by no one; it is completely forsaken by the surrounding languages: ignored, disparaged, or derided by them, severed not only from authority but also from the mechanisms of authority (sciences, techniques, arts)."

This is actually a small part before even the prologue of the book, but it explains perfectly what this book is about. It consists of small chapters, each one explaining a different feeling/expression.

Friday 56:


(Fulfillment means an abolition of inheritances: "...Joy has no need of heirs or of children - Joy wants itself, wants eternity, the repetition of the same things, wants everything to remain eternally the same." The fulfilled lover has no need to write, to transmit, to reproduce.)

So, page 56 only included the above sentence, so here you have it. The truth is that this book is very quotable and I was sure that no matter the page I would turn, I would find something I had underlined. Indeed, the last part of this paragraph was underlined.

Anyway, this way the book of the week. Have you read A Lover's Discourse? What do you think of these quote?
Share with me some quotes from the books you are currently reading! 

20 comments:

  1. I'm having trouble paying attention this days. My mind is so distracted by what is going on. I don't thin I could properly attend to this one. My Friday quotes

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's definitely not an easy read, but I can assure you that it is rewarding once you get the hang of it :)

      Delete
  2. I don't think I could give this one the attention it deserves either. Happy weekend, stay safe!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Sounds like an interesting read. Thanks for sharing! Hope you have a nice weekend! :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. I would need to be in the right frame of mind for this one.

    Happy reading and happy weekend!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, you really need to be in the mood to read this one, but it's worth it :)

      Delete
  5. I absolutely love when books are very quotable. I actually just finished a book today that had some beautiful writing, and some very amazing quotes.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Having beautiful quotes to share is wonderful! I hope you'll share some of them with us :)

      Delete
  6. I haven't read this one. I'm not sure if it would be for me. I'd have to try it though. Have a great week!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I can't promise that you'll enjoy it, and I certainly can't say that it will be an easy read. I can say though that it will be stimulating :)

      Delete
  7. I haven't read this book, but it sounds wonderful. Thanks for sharing it on BBOF!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It was definitely unlike any other book I've read!

      Delete
  8. It seems like a deeper read that the ones I usually read. Thank you for sharing :)

    ReplyDelete
  9. Wow, I see what you mean by highly quotable! Love the snippets.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes! And these are not even my favorite ones!

      Delete
  10. Oh it seems like a thinker one, really quotable! I haven't read such books yet..
    Sorry for replying so late, I'll reply on your latest post as well to make up!
    Also, a new bloglovin' follower here!
    Priyanka @ A Booklion's Hideaway

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you for visiting!
      It is a challenging book, to be sure! However, you gain so much from it :)

      Delete

Hello, everyone! Thanks for stopping by. I value comments a lot. So if you have anything to say feel free to express yourselves on the comments below! I try to respond to all of your comments and if you leave a link to your blog I will visit it :)