COP2: Death of the Author

In Death of the Author, Barthes raises the idea that the creators behind work do not matter, that in modern society the ideas behind art, and the place or person it comes from do not matter. Barthes states that; "It is Language which speaks, not the author" (Barthes, 1968). This idea would mean that a piece of work should stand on its own merit, and its interpretation should be up to the reader. He also makes the argument that as a culture, the focus is too heavy on "the explanation of a work"(Barthes, 1968) with the addition of an author, the work becomes more an analysis of a character than the work itself; "The image of literature to be found in any ordinary culture is tyrannically centred on the author, his person, his life, his tastes, is passions, while criticism still consists for the most part in saying that Baudelaire's work is the failure of Baudelaire the man, Van Gogh's his madness, Tchaikovsky's his vice" (Barthes, 1968). An argument can be made that this is an outdated view on the topic. In The Designer as Author, Rock agrees that historically Anonymity in ancient art served as a form of authenticity, and that the idea of authorship came about in the Renaissance with scientific texts, as they demanded an authors name for validation, giving the opportunity for punishment and scrutiny for inaccuracy. Rock states that "Text became a kind of private property, owned by the author, and a critical theory developed which reinforced that relationship, searching for keys to the text in the life and intention of its writer" (Rock, 1996). However, Rock questions the legitimacy of Barthes writing due to the political state of world at the time. He states that because of it was written in paris in 1968, during the midst of a social revolution, it isn't surprising that such writing would be produced. "The figure of the author implied a totalitarian control of creative activity and seemed an essential ingredient of high art" (Rock, 1996). With the idea that authors are some kind of enablers of a cultural separation in art during a period of social unrest it is no wonder that Barthes would sell authors in a negative light. Rock also argues that in more recent years, a single author is no longer the way work is produced, he states that "most design takes place in a collaborative setting" (Rock, 1996) either with a client relationship, or a studio setting. But this is exactly what Barthes argues would be a better method for us absorbing works when he states that "the author is thought to nourish the book", but "the modern scriptor is born simultaneously with the text"(Barthes, 1968) leading to the text being "Eternally here and now" (Barthes, 1968).


Barthes, R. (1968) "Death of the Author" in Image Music Text, (1977), London, Fontana Press

Rock, M. (1996) 'The Designer as Author', Eye no. 20 vol. 5 1996.