Roland Barthes, Mythologies [Mythologies]

Graham Allen (University College Cork)

The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.5.2.07: French Writing and Culture: Postwar and Contemporary, 1945-present.
Vol. editors: Kate Averis (University of Western Australia), Hugo Azerad (University of Cambridge), Patrick ffrench (King's College London), Edward Forman (University of Bristol), Akane Kawakami (Birkbeck, University of London), Siobhán McIlvanney (King's College London), Sinan Richards (King's College London), Tim Unwin (University of Bristol), David Williams (University of Sheffield)

Dates

First circulation or publication 1957

Places

France (Country of Origin)

Genres and Modes

Non-Fiction
- Commentary / Criticism (literary)
- Essay Collection

Resources

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One of Roland Barthes's most widely read works,

Mythologies

, is a collection of short essays, written one per month between 1954 and 1956. Covering numerous aspects of French cultural life, the essays, with a few exceptions, were originally published in the journal

Les Lettres Nouvelles

. The essays have been translated into English by Annette Lavers (

Mythologies

, London: Jonathan Cape, 1972) and Richard Howard (

The Eiffel Tower and Other Mythologies

, New York: Hill and Wang, 1979). All of Barthes's essays, with the exception of “Astrologie”, have been translated in these two collections.

The Eiffel Tower

adds five other essays not originally included in the French edition: “The Two Salons”, “Dining Car”, “Cottage Industry”, “Buffet Finishes Off New York”, and the essay…

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2664 words

Citation: Allen, Graham. "Mythologies". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 20 September 2002 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=10339, accessed 23 April 2024.]

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