--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The Tower is not a sacred monument, and…" description: "\"“The Tower is not a sacred monument, and no taboo can forbid a commonplace life to develop there, but there can be no question, nonetheless, of a trivi..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1eb/roland-barthes-1062_eiffel-tower_the-tower-is-not-a-sacred-monument-and-n_3212748.png" --- # The Tower is not a sacred monument, and no taboo can… ![“The Tower is not a sacred monument, and no taboo can forbid a commonplace life to develop there, but there can be no question, nonetheless, of a trivial phenomenon here; the installation of a restaurant on the Tower, for instance ... The Eiffel Tower is a comfortable object, and moreover, it is in…” quote by Roland Barthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1eb/roland-barthes-1062_eiffel-tower_the-tower-is-not-a-sacred-monument-and-n_3212748.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1eb/roland-barthes-1062_eiffel-tower_the-tower-is-not-a-sacred-monument-and-n_3212748.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1eb/roland-barthes-1062_eiffel-tower_the-tower-is-not-a-sacred-monument-and-n_3212748.png) > ““The Tower is not a sacred monument, and no taboo can forbid a commonplace life to develop there, but there can be no question, nonetheless, of a trivial phenomenon here; the installation of a restaurant on the Tower, for instance ... The Eiffel Tower is a comfortable object, and moreover, it is in this that it its an object wither very old (analogous, for instance, to the Circus) or very modern (analogous to certain American institutions such as the drive-in movie, in which one can simultaneously enjoy the film, the car, the food, and the freshness of the night air). Further, by affording its visitor a whole polyphony of pleasures, from technological wonder to haute cuisine, including the panorama, the Tower ultimately reunites with the essential function of all major human sites: autarchy; the Tower can live on itself: one can dream there, eat there, observe there, understand there, marvel there, shop there, as on an ocean liner (another mythic object that sets children dreaming), one can feel oneself cut off from the world and yet the owner of a world.”” [Roland Barthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-barthes/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The Tower serves as a multifunctional space where everyday life, leisure, and contemplation coexist, turning a monumental structure into a personal, dreamlike environment. **In simple terms:** The Tower blends daily activities with wonder, making it a personal, dream space. Key Takeaway Embrace ordinary experiences in iconic places. Themes culture space experience modernity myth Mood reflective nostalgic critical Type analytical observational cultural commentary When to use this quote - planning cultural events - designing public spaces - marketing tourism - creating immersive experiences - studying urban mythmaking Key Concepts semiotics urban sociology pleasure architecture tourism public space leisure travel daily life dreamlike atmosphere cityscape social interaction Questions to Reflect On - How does commercialization affect the Tower’s symbolic power? - Can everyday rituals transform monumental spaces? A Different Perspective Its commercial aspects may dilute its cultural significance, turning it into a consumer spectacle. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Eiffel tower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eiffel-tower/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Tower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tower/) [Tower Comfortable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tower-comfortable-2751584/) [Tower Sacred](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tower-sacred-6008833/) [Tower Ultimately](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tower-ultimately-6008834/) ## Related quotes > [ “In order to satisfy this great oneiric function, which makes it not a kind of total monument, the \[Eiffel\] Tower must escape reason. The… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-barthes/in-order-to-satisfy-this-great-oneiric-function-which-makes-it-not-a/) [Roland Barthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-barthes/) > [“staying safely in the ivory tower is much more comfortable for academics,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-tirole/staying-safely-in-the-ivory-tower-is-much-more-comfortable-for/) [Jean Tirole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-tirole/) > [When I was 18, I was halfway up the Eiffel Tower with my friend, Tom, when we decided to stick our heads through the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-webb/when-i-was-18-i-was-halfway-up-the-eiffel-tower-with-my-friend-tom/) [Robert Webb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-webb/) > [Statues and children frame the Eiffel Tower and its watery image. When the Germans occupied Paris, they housed a beacon light in the Tower…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maynard-owen-williams/statues-and-children-frame-the-eiffel-tower-and-its-watery-image-when/) [Maynard Owen Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maynard-owen-williams/) > [Every time I look at the Eiffel Tower, it completely blows my mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-fallon/every-time-i-look-at-the-eiffel-tower-it-completely-blows-my-mind/) [Brian Fallon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-fallon/) > [I like the Eiffel Tower in Las Vegas more than the actual one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-lachapelle/i-like-the-eiffel-tower-in-las-vegas-more-than-the-actual-one/) [David LaChapelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-lachapelle/) > [Men flocked to see it and ascended it as it was a novelty and of unique dimensions. It was the toy of the exhibition.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/men-flocked-to-see-it-and-ascended-it-as-it-was-a-novelty-and-of/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [“I ought to be jealous of the tower. She is more famous than I am.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-eiffel/i-ought-to-be-jealous-of-the-tower-she-is-more-famous-than-i-am/) [Gustave Eiffel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-eiffel/) > [I don't like being up high. It took me three days to get to the top of the Eiffel Tower.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/i-don-t-like-being-up-high-it-took-me-three-days-to-get-to-the-top-of/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [ “Like man himself, who is the only one not to know his own glance, the \[Eiffel\] Tower is the only blind point f the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-barthes/like-man-himself-who-is-the-only-one-not-to-know-his-own-glance-the/) [Roland Barthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-barthes/) > [“To visit the Tower, then, is to enter into contact not with a historical Sacred, as is the case for the majority of monuments,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-barthes/to-visit-the-tower-then-is-to-enter-into-contact-not-with-a/) [Roland Barthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-barthes/) > [“The Tower is not a usual spectacle; to enter the Tower, to scale it, to run around its courses, is, in a manner both…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-barthes/the-tower-is-not-a-usual-spectacle-to-enter-the-tower-to-scale-it-to/) [Roland Barthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-barthes/) > [“You deserve more of their attention than their phone does. You deserve quality time, not just time. You deserve effort, not just routines. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-alex-jeanty/you-deserve-more-of-their-attention-than-their-phone-does-you-deserve/) [Pierre Alex Jeanty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-alex-jeanty/) > [“The next night I went back to the sea dressed in 1950s silk travel scarves – Paris with the Eiffel tower and ladies in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francesca-lia-block/the-next-night-i-went-back-to-the-sea-dressed-in-1950s-silk-travel/) [Francesca Lia Block](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francesca-lia-block/) > [What an immense impression Paris made upon me. It is the most extraordinary place in the world!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/what-an-immense-impression-paris-made-upon-me-it-is-the-most/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) ## More by Roland Barthes > [“Werther identifies himself with the madman, with the footman. As a reader, I can identify myself with Werther. Historically, thousands of subjects have done…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-barthes/werther-identifies-himself-with-the-madman-with-the-footman-as-a/) [Roland Barthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-barthes/) > [The Text is not a definitive object.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-barthes/the-text-is-not-a-definitive-object/) [Roland Barthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-barthes/) > [“Valéry used to speak of those people who die in an accident because they are unwilling to let go of their umbrellas; how many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-barthes/val-ry-used-to-speak-of-those-people-who-die-in-an-accident-because/) [Roland Barthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-barthes/) > [Today there is no symbolic compensation for old age, no recognition of a specific value: wisdom, perceptiveness, experience, vision.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-barthes/today-there-is-no-symbolic-compensation-for-old-age-no-recognition-of/) [Roland Barthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-barthes/) > [The unary Photograph has every reason to be banal, 'unity' of composition being the first rule of vulgar (and notably, of academic) rhetoric: 'The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-barthes/the-unary-photograph-has-every-reason-to-be-banal-unity-of/) [Roland Barthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-barthes/) > [“A creative writer is one for whom writing is a problem.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-barthes/a-creative-writer-is-one-for-whom-writing-is-a-problem/) [Roland Barthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-barthes/) > [“Man does not exist prior to language, either as a species or as an individual. We never encounter a state where man is separated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-barthes/man-does-not-exist-prior-to-language-either-as-a-species-or-as-an/) [Roland Barthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-barthes/) > [“It is said that Time soothes mourning – No, Time makes nothing happen; it merely makes the emotivity of mourning pass.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-barthes/it-is-said-that-time-soothes-mourning-no-time-makes-nothing-happen-it/) [Roland Barthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-barthes/) > [“So long as I perceive the world as hostile, I remain linked to it: \*I am not crazy\*. But sometimes, once my bad temper…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-barthes/so-long-as-i-perceive-the-world-as-hostile-i-remain-linked-to-it-i-am/) [Roland Barthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-barthes/) > [I think that cars today are almost the exact equivalent of the great Gothic cathedrals: I mean the supreme creation of an era, conceived…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-barthes/i-think-that-cars-today-are-almost-the-exact-equivalent-of-the-great/) [Roland Barthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-barthes/) > [“(Sartre) (The world is full without me, as in Nausea; the world plays at living behind a glass partition; the world is in an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-barthes/sartre-the-world-is-full-without-me-as-in-nausea-the-world-plays-at/) [Roland Barthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-barthes/) > [“Like love, mourning affects the world—and the worldly—with unreality, with importunity. I resist the world, I suffer from what it demands of me, from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-barthes/like-love-mourning-affects-the-world-and-the-worldly-with-unreality/) [Roland Barthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-barthes/) > [Painting can feign reality without having seen it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-barthes/painting-can-feign-reality-without-having-seen-it/) [Roland Barthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-barthes/) > [“There is an age at which we teach what we know. Then comes another age at which we teach what we do not know;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-barthes/there-is-an-age-at-which-we-teach-what-we-know-then-comes-another-age/) [Roland Barthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-barthes/) > [As a jealous man, I suffer four times over: because I am jealous, because I blame myself for being so, because I fear that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-barthes/as-a-jealous-man-i-suffer-four-times-over-because-i-am-jealous/) [Roland Barthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-barthes/) [Explore all 282 Roland Barthes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-barthes/) ## More Eiffel tower quotes > [What an immense impression Paris made upon me. It is the most extraordinary place in the world!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/what-an-immense-impression-paris-made-upon-me-it-is-the-most/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [“The next night I went back to the sea dressed in 1950s silk travel scarves – Paris with the Eiffel tower and ladies in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francesca-lia-block/the-next-night-i-went-back-to-the-sea-dressed-in-1950s-silk-travel/) [Francesca Lia Block](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francesca-lia-block/) > [“You deserve more of their attention than their phone does. You deserve quality time, not just time. You deserve effort, not just routines. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-alex-jeanty/you-deserve-more-of-their-attention-than-their-phone-does-you-deserve/) [Pierre Alex Jeanty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-alex-jeanty/) > [I always wish the hotels were like they are in movies and TV shows, where if you're in Paris, right outside your window is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-gottfried/i-always-wish-the-hotels-were-like-they-are-in-movies-and-tv-shows/) [Gilbert Gottfried](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-gottfried/) > [“Eiffel Tower" To Robert Delaunay Eiffel Tower Guitar of the sky Your wireless telegraphy Attracts words As a rosebush the bees During the night…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vicente-huidobro/eiffel-tower-to-robert-delaunay-eiffel-tower-guitar-of-the-sky-your/) [Vicente Huidobro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vicente-huidobro/) > [I like the Eiffel Tower in Las Vegas more than the actual one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-lachapelle/i-like-the-eiffel-tower-in-las-vegas-more-than-the-actual-one/) [David LaChapelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-lachapelle/) > [“Étant la plus saisissante manifestation de l'art des constructions métalliques par lesquelles nos ingénieurs se sont illustrés en Europe, elle est une des formes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-eiffel/tant-la-plus-saisissante-manifestation-de-l-art-des-constructions-m/) [Gustave Eiffel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-eiffel/) > [but do i need to say anything?" sophie asked. "do i need to learn any words?" "like what?" saint-germain said. "well, when you lit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scott/but-do-i-need-to-say-anything-sophie-asked-do-i-need-to-learn-any/) [Michael Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scott/) > [A walk about Paris will provide lessons in history, beauty, and in the point of Life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/a-walk-about-paris-will-provide-lessons-in-history-beauty-and-in-the/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [I haven't seen the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, the Louvre. I haven't seen anything. I don't really care.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyra-banks/i-haven-t-seen-the-eiffel-tower-notre-dame-the-louvre-i-haven-t-seen/) [Tyra Banks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyra-banks/) > [The process of making an independent film is like building a mini Eiffel Tower with popsicle sticks - it doesn't happen overnight, and it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-fichtner/the-process-of-making-an-independent-film-is-like-building-a-mini/) [William Fichtner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-fichtner/) > [“I have these worksheets. They're great for the irregular verbs..." "Not today." He shot me a look and kept shuffling papers. "Okay," I said.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melissa-jensen/i-have-these-worksheets-they-re-great-for-the-irregular-verbs-not/) [Melissa Jensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melissa-jensen/) > [“Brighton Beach does not look, smell, or sound like Russia. It's a parody of Russia at best, something as different from the real thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lara-vapnyar/brighton-beach-does-not-look-smell-or-sound-like-russia-it-s-a-parody/) [Lara Vapnyar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lara-vapnyar/) > [you know this means that what we did-what we almost did in Paris-" "Going to the Eiffel Tower?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/you-know-this-means-that-what-we-did-what-we-almost-did-in-paris/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [“If I knew you were going to die, I'd make your last moment on earth last forever. I'd take you to the Eiffel Tower…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-i-knew-you-were-going-to-die-i-d-make-your-last-moment-on-earth/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 97 Eiffel tower quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eiffel-tower/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The Tower is not a sacred monument, and no taboo can forbid a commonplace life to develop there, but there can be no question, nonetheless, of a trivial phenomenon here; the installation of a restaurant on the Tower, for instance ... The Eiffel Tower is a comfortable object, and moreover, it is in this that it its an object wither very old (analogous, for instance, to the Circus) or very modern (analogous to certain American institutions such as the drive-in movie, in which one can simultaneously enjoy the film, the car, the food, and the freshness of the night air). Further, by affording its visitor a whole polyphony of pleasures, from technological wonder to haute cuisine, including the panorama, the Tower ultimately reunites with the essential function of all major human sites: autarchy; the Tower can live on itself: one can dream there, eat there, observe there, understand there, marvel there, shop there, as on an ocean liner (another mythic object that sets children dreaming), one can feel oneself cut off from the world and yet the owner of a world.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Roland Barthes" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-barthes/the-tower-is-not-a-sacred-monument-and-no-taboo-can-forbid-a/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Eiffel tower" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-barthes/the-tower-is-not-a-sacred-monument-and-no-taboo-can-forbid-a/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1eb/roland-barthes-1062_eiffel-tower_the-tower-is-not-a-sacred-monument-and-n_3212748.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1eb/roland-barthes-1062_eiffel-tower_the-tower-is-not-a-sacred-monument-and-n_3212748.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1eb/roland-barthes-1062_eiffel-tower_the-tower-is-not-a-sacred-monument-and-n_3212748.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The Tower is not a sacred monument, and no taboo can forbid a commonplace life to develop there, but there…” — Roland Barthes", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Roland Barthes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-barthes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“The Tower is not a sacred...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-barthes/the-tower-is-not-a-sacred-monument-and-no-taboo-can-forbid-a/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-barthes/the-tower-is-not-a-sacred-monument-and-no-taboo-can-forbid-a/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```