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Incestuous Quote by Roland Barthes

“Besides intercourse (when the Image-repertoire goes to the devil), there is that other embrace, which is a motionless cradling: we are enchanted, bewitched: we are in the realm of sleep, without sleeping; we are within the voluptous infantilism of sleepiness: this is the moment for telling…” quote by Roland Barthes
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““Besides intercourse (when the Image-repertoire goes to the devil), there is that other embrace, which is a motionless cradling: we are enchanted, bewitched: we are in the realm of sleep, without sleeping; we are within the voluptous infantilism of sleepiness: this is the moment for telling stories, the moment of the voice which takes me, siderates me, this is the return to the mother ("in the loving calm of your arms," says a poem set to music by Duparc). In this companionable incest, everything is suspended: time, law, prohibition: nothing is exhausted, nothing is wanted: all desires are abolished, for they seem definitively fulfilled. Yet, within this infantile embrace, the genital unfailingly appears; it cuts off the diffuse sensuality of the incestuous embrace; the logic of desire begins to function, the will-to-possess returns, the adult is superimposed upon the child. I am then two subjects at once: I want maternity and genitality. (The lover might be defined as a child getting an erection: such was the young Eros.)””

Roland Barthes

About This Quote

Source Essay: “The Pleasure of the Text”, 1973

The passage describes an intimate, dream‑like state where storytelling merges with a motherly, timeless embrace, blurring boundaries between desire and innocence.

In simple terms: A dreamy, motherly embrace blends desire and innocence.

Key Takeaway

Embrace the timeless, intimate moment.

Themes

intimacy desire memory

Mood

reflective introspective

Type

philosophical literary

When to use this quote

  • creative writing
  • therapy sessions
  • artistic inspiration

Key Concepts

psychoanalysis literary theory

Questions to Reflect On

  • How does this blend of desire and innocence affect creativity?
  • What boundaries exist between comfort and constraint?
A Different Perspective

Such idealized intimacy may ignore real relational complexities.

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