Enclosed among these "Reflections on Photography" is a provocative theory of art in general, of what gives art the power to keep us looking. Barthes speaks of what he calls the 'punctum,' that aspect of a photograph (or, by implication, of any image, visual or textual) that pierces the viewer's consciousness, that wounds us like a dart of desire and leads to a blurring of the line between the aesthetic and the erotic. Here is an answer to Sontag's call for an 'erotics of art.' (Barthes and Sontag were friends, and it's quite possible that they influenced each other.) A great image, great art, has the power to wound us and fascinate us like a lover. And we as viewers must open ourselves to this power, like people in love. Indeed, one of the things Barthes is doing in this book is 'cruising' photography in the same way that he, a gay man, might have 'cruised' attractive men in the beaches, bars and baths of the 1970's. A wonderful book that deserves to be more widely read.

It is my belief that people who really know what they are talking about can explain their thoughts clearly. I cannot be sure if the fault in this book is with the original author or the translator, but it certainly does not measure up to this criterion. It may be of interest to photography academics, but I doubt if a photographer will get much out of it that is useful.

This book is a sure snooze-fest. Luckily for me I did not have to read the entire book for my undergrad art history photo class. We read selected chapters of the book.
They writing was horrible. Many parts were unclear. I had to reread what I read over and over. I can't stand this style of writing. Barthes attempts to come off as interesting and intelligent. Instead, he comes off as boring and pretentious.
Skip this book... try something else.