From Text to Textonomies: Writing With Roland Barthes' "De l'Oeuvre à Texte," With or Without Quotation Marks
Johannah Rodgers
From Text
to Textonomies Johannah Rodgers From Work
to Text Roland Barthes De l'oeuvre a texte
Roland Barthes Change
is always taking place in language, It is a
fact that over the last few years a certain change has taken place (or is
taking place) C'est un fait que,
depuis quelques années, un certain changement s'est opéré (ou s'opère) our
conception of language and, consequently, of literary works which in our
conception of language and, consequently, of the literary work which dans l'idée que nous
nous faisons du langage et, par voie de conséquence, de l'oeuvre (littéraire) owe
at least their phenomenal existence to language. These changes are owes at
least its phenomenal existence to this same language. The change is qui doit à ce même
langage au moins son existence phénoménal.
Ce changement est clearly
connected with changes in society and culture, and in the disciplinary
structures, which being inflected and re-constituted by these changes, are at
the same time used to study them. clearly
connected with the current development of (amongst other disciplines) évidemment lié au
développement actuel (entre autres disciplines) These
include: linguistics, anthropology, economics, psychology, sociology, history,
etc. (the term 'connection' linguistics,
anthropology, Marxism and psychoanalysis (the term 'connection' de la linguistique, de
l'anthropologie, du marxisme, de la psychanalyse (le mot « liaison » is
used here in the sense of connection as association, not determination.) is used
here in a deliberately neutral way: one does not decide a est ici employé d'une
façon volontairement neutre : on ne décide pas d'une The
novelty that occurs to determination,
be it multiple and dialectical). What is new and which affects détermination,
fût-elle multiple et dialectique). La nouveauté qui a incidence sur the
idea of literary works comes not necessarily from the changes themselves in
society, in culture, and in the disciplines, the idea of
the work comes not necessarily from the internal recasting of each la notion d'oeuvre ne
provient pas forcément du renouvellement intérieur de chacune but
rather from the ways in which the functions and relations of all of these
operate. of these
disciplines, but rather from their encounter in relation to an object de ces disciplines,
mais plutôt de leur rencontre au niveau d'un objet It is indeed as though the which
traditionally is the province of none of them. It is indeed as though the qui par tradition ne
relève d'aucune d'elles. On dirait
en effet que interdisciplinarity
which is today held up as a prime value in research cannot be interdisciplinarity which is today held up as a prime value in research cannot be l'i_n_t_e_r_d_i_s_c_i_p_l_i_n_a_i_r_e_, dont on fait
aujourd'hui une valeur forte de la recherche, ne peut accomplished by the simple
confrontation of specialist branches of knowledge. accomplished
by the simple confrontation of specialist branches of knowledge. s'accomplir par la
simple confrontation de savoirs spéciaux Interdisciplinarity
is in many ways impossible; but it is happening Interdisciplinarity
is not the calm of an easy security; it begins effectively (as l'interdisciplinaire
n'est pas de tout repos : il commence e_f_f_e_c_t_i_v_e_m_e_n_t_ _(et and
it is inevitable because it is part and parcel of the changes that are taking
place in society and culture. opposed to
the mere expression of a pious wish) when the solidarity of the old non par la simple
émission d'un voeu pieux) lorsque la solidarité des anciennes Disciplines
become historical objects for study disciplines
breaks down -- perhaps even violently, via the jolts of fashion -- in se défait, peut-être
même violemment à travers les secousses de la mode, au and
from an understanding of their formations, functions, and devolutions, we can
evaluate the operations and costs of interdisciplinarity in textual behaviors,
none of which have a place the
interests of a new object and a new language neither of which has a place profit d'n objet
nouveau, d'un langage nouveau, qui ne sont ni l'un ni l'autre in
the field of the sciences that were brought together, this in the
field of the sciences that were to be brought peacefully together, this dans le champ des
sciences que l'on visait paisiblement à confronter ; c'est précisément ce classificatory
illness being precisely the point from which it is possible to unease in
classification being precisely the point from which it is possible to malaise de
classification qui permet de diagnose
a certain mutation in which the idea of the work diagnose a
certain mutation. The mutation in which the idea of the work seems diagnostiquer une
certaine mutation. La mutation qui semble saisir l'idée d'oeuvre leaves
its traces, as does the idea of the text: it is more to be
gripped must not, however, be over-estimated: it is more in the nature of ne doit pas,
cependant, être surévaluée ; elle participle of
an epistemological slide than of a real break. The break, as is frequently stressed, an
epistemological slide than of a real break. The break, as is frequently stressed, d'un glissement
épistémologique, plus que d'une véritable coupure : celle-ci, comme on l'a dit
souvent, is
seen to have taken place in the last century with the appearance of networked
information and communication systems; is seen to
have taken place in the last century with the appearance of Marxism serait intervenue au
siècle dernier, à l'apparition du marxisme since
then there has been no further break, so that in a way and
Freudianism; since then there has been no further break, so that in a way et du freudisme ;
aucune coupure nouvelle ne se serait produite et it
can be said that for the next hundred years we will be living in repetition. it can be
said that for the last hundred years we have been living in repetition. l'on peut dire que,
d'une certaine manière, depuis cent ans, nous sommes dans la répétition. What
the History, our History, allows us today is merely to slide, to vary, to What
History, our History, allows us today is merely to slide, to vary, to Ce que l'Histoire,
notre Histoire, nous permet aujourd'hui, c'est seulement de glisser, de varier,
de Exceed,
to repudiate. Just as Chaos Theory
demands that exceed, to
repudiate. Just as Einsteinian science demands that the
relativity of dépasser, de répudier.
De même que la science einsteinienne oblige the
behaviors of texts, not simply its functions, be studied, so the combinations the frames of reference be included in the object studied, so the
combined à inclure dans l'objet
étudié la r_e_l_a_t_i_v_i_t_é _d_e_s_ _r_e_p_èr_e_s_, de même l'action
conjuguée of
natural and artificial language processing demand, in literature, the action of
Marxism, Freudianism and structuralism demands, in literature, the du marxisme, du
freudisme et du structuralisme oblige, en littérature, à relativization
of the relations of writer, reader, and text. relativization
of the relations of writer, reader and observer (critic). Over relativiser les
rapports du scripteur, du lecteur et de l'observateur (du critique). En face de
Moving
from work to text to textonomy, methodologically tracing a path that can be
compared to that from Newtonian (macroscopic objects) to Eisensteinian
(microscopic objects) to Chaos Theory/Quantum Chaos (relations and behaviors), against the
traditional notion of the work, for long -- and still -- conceived of in a, so to
speak, Newtonian way, there is now the requirement of a new object, l'o_e_u_v_r_e_ _–
notion traditionnelle, conçue pendant longtemps, et aujourd'hui encore, d'une façon,
si l'on peut dire, newtonienne –, il se produit l'exigence d'un objet
nouveau, we
find there is no longer an object of study, but only processes, functions, and
behaviors: obtained by
the sliding or overturning of former categories. That object is the obtenu par glissement
ou renversement des catégories antérieures. Cet objet est le textonomies. I know the term has limitations and Text. I know the word is fashionable (I am myself often led to use it) and
T_e_x_t_e_. Je sais que ce mot est à la mode (moi-même, je suis
entraîné à l'employer souvent), donc therefore
regarded by some with suspicion, but that is exactly why I therefore
regarded by some with suspicion, but that is exactly why I donc suspects à
certains ; mais c'est précisément pour cela que je should
like to remind myself of the principal propositions at the intersection of should like
to remind myself of the principal propositions at the intersection of voudrais en quelque
sorte me rappeler à moi-même les principales propositions à la croisée
desquelles which
I see these textual behaviors appearing/being constituted from. which I see
the Text as standing. le Texte se trouve à
mes yeux ;