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For The Photograph's Immobility Is Somehow The Result Of A Perverse Confusion Between Two Concepts: The Real And The Live: By Attesting That The Object Has Been Real, The Photograph Surreptitiously Induces Belief That It Is Alive, Because Of That Delusion Which Makes Us Attribute To Reality An Absolute Superior, Somehow Eternal Value; But By Shifting This Reality To The Past ("this-has-been"), The Photograph Suggests That It Is Already Dead.
-Roland Barthes
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For The Photograph's Immobility

Roland Barthes
For The Photograph's Immobility Is Somehow The Result Of A Perverse Confusion Between Two Concepts: The Real And The Live: By Attesting That The Object Has Been Real, The Photograph Surreptitiously Induces Belief That It Is Alive, Because Of That Delusion Which Makes Us Attribute To Reality An Absolute Superior, Somehow Eternal Value; But By Shifting This Reality To The Past ("this-has-been"), The Photograph Suggests That It Is Already Dead.
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Mourning
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Age
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Climate
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Modern
Bother
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School
Culture
I Am Interested In Language Because It Wounds Or Seduces Me.
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Wounds
One Must Turn The Tongue Seven Times In The Mouth Before Speaking.
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Tongue
Seven
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Messages
Code
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Infinity
Photograph
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Society
Way
Retreat
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Law
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What Love Lays Bare In Me Is Energy.
Energy
Lays
Myth Is Neither A Lie Nor A Confession: It Is An Inflexion.
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Confession
Myth
Language Is Neither Reactionary Nor Progressive; It Is Quite Simply Fascist; For Fascism Does Not Prevent Speech, It Compels Speech.
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Language
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Song
School
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Mean
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Photography
Memories
Intellectual
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Glasses
Risk
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Understanding
Kind
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Photography
Winter
Secret
I Passed Beyond The Unreality Of The Thing Represented, I Entered Crazily Into The Spectacle, Into The Image, Taking Into My Arms What Is Dead, What Is Going To Die.
Arms
Unreality
Dies
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Photography
Thinking
Pensive
...language Is Never Innocent.
Language
Innocent
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Fashion
Past
Oppression
Literature Is That Which He Can Not Read Without Pain, Without Choking On Truth.
Pain
Literature
Choke
Every Exploration Is An Appropriation.
Exploration
Appropriation
I Cannot Classify The Other, For The Other Is, Precisely, Unique, The Singular Image Which Has Miraculously Come To Correspond To The Speciality Of My Desire. The Other Is The Figure Of My Truth, And Cannot Be Imprisoned In Any Stereotype (which Is The Truth Of Others).
Unique
Desire
Stereotype
As Spectator I Wanted To Explore Photography Not As A Question (a Theme) But As A Wound.
Photography
Theme
Wanted
Language Is Legislation, Speech Is Its Code. We Do Not See The Power Which Is In Speech Because We Forget That All Speech Is A Classification, And That All Classifications Are Oppressive.
Speech
Language
Forget
Take The Gesture, The Action Of Writing. I Have An Almost Obsessive Relation To Writing Instruments. I Often Switch From One Pen To Another Just For The Pleasure Of It. I Try Out New Ones. I Have Far Too Many Pens - I Don't Know What To Do With All Of Them! And Yet, As Soon As I See A New One, I Start Craving It. I Cannot Keep Myself From Buying Them.
Writing
Trying
Gestures
Literature Is Without Proofs. By Which It Must Be Understood That It Cannot Prove, Not Only What It Says, But Even That It Is Worth The Trouble Of Saying It.
Understanding
Literature
Trouble
The Haiku Reproduces The Designating Gesture Of The Child Pointing At Whatever It Is (the Haiku Shows No Partiality For The Subject), Merely Saying: That!
Children
Gestures
Shows
Who Speaks Is Not Who Writes, And Who Writes Is Not Who Is.
Writing
Speak
Thus Every Writer's Motto Reads: Mad I Cannot Be, Sane I Do Not Deign To Be, Neurotic I Am.
Writing
Mad
Motto
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Dream
Unions
Gestures
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Keys
Class
Bourgeoisie
To Make Someone Wait: The Constant Prerogative Of All Power.
Waiting
Constant
Prerogative
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Taken
Law
Interesting
The Best Principals Are Not Heroes; They Are Hero Makers.
Hero
Vision
Makers
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Erotic
Glimpse
Body
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Sad
Grief
Bereavement
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Portraits
Photographer
Every Photograph Is A Certificate Of Presence.
Photograph
Certificates
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Games
Play
Waiting
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Desire
Encounters
Body
For The Photograph's Immobility Is Somehow The Result Of A Perverse Confusion Between Two Concepts: The Real And The Live: By Attesting That The Object Has Been Real, The Photograph Surreptitiously Induces Belief That It Is Alive, Because Of That Delusion Which Makes Us Attribute To Reality An Absolute Superior, Somehow Eternal Value; But By Shifting This Reality To The Past ("this-has-been"), The Photograph Suggests That It Is Already Dead.
Real
Past
Two
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Art
Progress
Doe
I Love You Is Unsubtle. It Removes Explanations, Facilities, Degrees, Scruples.
Love You
Degrees
Scruples
Man Does Not Exist Prior To Language, Either As A Species Or As An Individual.
Men
Doe
Language
One Day, Quite Some Time Ago, I Happened On A Photograph Of Napoleon’s Youngest Brother, Jerome, Taken In 1852. And I Realized Then, With An Amazement I Have Not Been Able To Lessen Since: ‘i Am Looking At Eyes That Looked At The Emperor.’ Sometimes I Would Mention This Amazement, But Since No One Seemed To Share It, Nor Even To Understand It (life Consists Of These Little Touches Of Solitude), I Forgot About It.
Brother
Taken
Eye
Tout Refus Du Langage Est Une Mort. Any Refusal Of Language Is A Death.
Language
Refusal
There Are Two Kinds Of Liberalism. A Liberalism Which Is Always, Subterraneously Authoritative And Paternalistic, On The Side Of One's Good Conscience. And Then There Is A Liberalism Which Is More Ethical Than Political; One Would Have To Find Another Name For This. Something Like A Profound Suspension Of Judgment.
Names
Two
Profound
This Endured Absence Is Nothing More Or Less Than Forgetfulness. I Am, Intermittently, Unfaithful. This Is The Condition Of My Survival.
Survival
Unfaithful
Absence
To Try To Write Love Is To Confront The Muck Of Language: That Region Of Hysteria Where Language Is Both Too Much And Too Little, Excessive And Impoverished.
Love
Writing
Hysteria
The Text You Write Must Prove To Me That It Desires Me. This Proof Exists: It Is Writing. Writing Is: The Science Of The Various Blisses Of Language, Its Kama Sutra (this Science Has But One Treatise: Writing Itself).
Writing
Desire
Language
To Hide A Passion Totally (or Even To Hide, More Simply, Its Excess) Is Inconceivable: Not Because The Human Subject Is Too Weak, But Because Passion Is In Essence Made To Be Seen: The Hiding Must Be Seen: I Want You To Know That I Am Hiding Something From You, That Is The Active Paradox I Must Resolve: At One And The Same Time It Must Be Known And Not Known: I Want You To Know That I Don't Want To Show My Feelings: That Is The Message I Address To The Other.
Passion
Hiding Something
Essence
The Lover's Fatal Identity Is Precisely This: I Am The One Who Waits.
Waiting
Identity
Lovers
I Call The Discourse Of Power Any Discourse That Engenders Blame, Hence Guilt, In Its Recipient.
Power
Guilt
Blame
Literature Can No Longer Be Either Mimesis Or Mathesis But Merely Semiosis, The Adventure Of What Is Impossible To Language, In A Word: Text (it Is Wrong To Say That The Notion Of 'text' Repeats The Notion Of 'literature': Literature Represents A Finite World, The Text Figures The Infinite Of Language).
Adventure
Literature
World
We Can Never Know, For The Good Reason That Writing Is The Destruction Of Every Voice, Every Origin. Writing Is That Neuter, That Composite, That Obliquity Into Which Our Subject Flees, The Black-and-white Where All Identity Is Lost, Beginning With The Very Identity Of The Body That Writes.
Writing
Voice
Destruction
The Politician Being Interviewed Clearly Takes A Great Deal Of Trouble To Imagine An Ending To His Sentence: And If He Stopped Short? His Entire Policy Would Be Jeopardized!
Would Be
Interviews
Trouble
It Is Said That Mourning, By Its Gradual Labour, Slowly Erases Pain; I Could Not, I Cannot Believe This; Because For Me, Time Eliminates The Emotion Of Loss (i Do Note Weep), That Is All. For The Rest, Everything Has Remained Motionless. For What I Have Lost Is Not A Figure (the Mother), But A Being; And Not A Being, But A Quality (a Soul): Not The Indispensable, But The Irreplaceable.
Mother
Pain
Believe
If I Acknowledge My Dependency, I Do So Because For Me It Is A Means Of Signifying My Demand: In The Realm Of Love, Futility Is Not A "weakness" Or An "absurdity": It Is A Strong Sign: The More Futile, The More It Signifies And The More It Asserts Itself As Strength.)
Strong
Mean
Weakness
It Must Always Be Considered As Though Spoken By A Character In A Novel
Character
Novel
Henceforth I Would Have To Cosent To Combine Two Voices: The Voice Of Banality (to Say What Everyone Sees And Knows) And The Voice Of Singularity (to Replenish Such Banality With All The élan Of An Emotion Which Belonged Only To Myself).
Two
Voice
Emotion
I Want A History Of Looking. For The Photograph Is The Advent Of Myself As Other: A Cunning Dissociation Of Consciousness From Identity. Even Odder: It Was Before Photography That Men Had The Most To Say About The Vision Of The Double. Heautoscopy Was Compared With An Hallucinosis; For Centuries This Was A Great Mythic Theme.
Photography
Men
Vision
Language Is A Skin: I Rub My Language Against The Other. It Is As If I Had Words Instead Of Fingers, Or Fingers At The Tip Of My Words. My Language Trembles With Desire.
Desire
Skins
Language And Power
In 1850, August Salzmann Photographed, Near Jerusalem, The Road To Beith-lehem (as It Was Spelled At The Time): Nothing But Stony Ground, Olive Trees; But Three Tenses Dizzy My Consciousness: My Present, The Time Of Jesus, And That Of The Photographer, All This Under The Instance Of 'reality' - And No Longer Through The Elaborations Of The Text, Whether Fictional Or Poetic, Which Itself Is Never Credible Down To The Root.
Jesus
Reality
August
…the Book Creates Meaning, The Meaning Creates Life.
Book
New York... Is A City Of Geometric Heights, A Petrified Desert Of Grids And Lattices, An Inferno Of Greenish Abstraction Under A Flat Sky, A Real Metropolis From Which Man Is Absent By His Very Accumulation.
New York
Real
Men
I Have Tried To Be As Eclectic As I Possibly Can With My Professional Life, And So Far It's Been Pretty Fun.
Fun
Eclectic Style
Eclectic
Why Is It Better To Last Than To Burn?
Lasts
Understanding Quotes: Their Essence and Application

Quotes, or quotations, are powerful tools in communication, encapsulating ideas, emotions, and wisdom in concise expressions. They serve various purposes across different contexts, from academic writing to everyday conversation.

1. Defining Quotes

A quote is a repetition of someone else's statement or thoughts. It can be a direct replication of words spoken or written by another individual, often used to support arguments, provide evidence, or convey profound insights.


2. The Importance of Quotes

2.1. Enhancing Credibility

Incorporating quotes from authoritative sources can bolster the credibility of your work. By referencing experts or primary sources, you demonstrate thorough research and a solid foundation for your arguments.


2.2. Providing Evidence

Quotes serve as concrete evidence to support claims. In academic and professional writing, they validate points made, offering readers a basis to trust the information presented.


2.3. Conveying Emotions and Perspectives

Quotes can encapsulate emotions and perspectives succinctly. They allow writers to express complex feelings or viewpoints through the words of others, often more eloquently than paraphrasing.


3. Types of Quotes

3.1. Direct Quotes

Direct quotes involve copying the exact words from a source, enclosed in quotation marks. They are used when the original wording is significant or particularly well-expressed.


3.2. Indirect Quotes (Paraphrasing)

Indirect quotes restate the original message in your own words. While not enclosed in quotation marks, they still require proper attribution to the original source.


3.3. Block Quotes

Block quotes are lengthy direct quotations, formatted as a separate block of text. They are typically used for quotes exceeding a certain length, varying by citation style. For instance, in APA style, quotes longer than 40 words are formatted as block quotes.



4. Proper Usage of Quotes


4.1. Contextual Relevance

Ensure that the quote you choose is relevant to the topic and adds value to your content. Avoid inserting quotes solely for decorative purposes.


4.2. Integration into Your Writing

Seamlessly integrate quotes into your writing. Introduce them appropriately and follow up with analysis or commentary to connect them to your main points.


4.3. Attribution and Citation

Always attribute quotes to their original authors and provide proper citations according to the required style guide (APA, MLA, Chicago, etc.).


5. Common Mistakes to Avoid


5.1. Overusing Quotes

Relying too heavily on quotes can overshadow your voice. Use them sparingly to support your arguments, not replace them.


5.2. Lack of Analysis

Presenting a quote without analysis or explanation can leave readers questioning its relevance. Always follow up with your interpretation or discussion.


5.3. Misquoting or Taking Out of Context

Ensure that quotes are accurate and not taken out of context, as this can mislead readers and undermine your credibility.



6. Quotes in Different Contexts


6.1. Academic Writing

In academic writing, quotes are used to support arguments, provide evidence, and engage with existing literature. Proper citation is crucial to avoid plagiarism.


6.2. Journalism

Journalists use quotes to provide firsthand accounts, add authenticity, and present multiple perspectives within a story.


6.3. Literature and Creative Writing

In literature, quotes can be used to convey character voices, themes, and stylistic elements. They enrich narratives and provide depth to storytelling.



7. Punctuation and Formatting


Understanding the correct punctuation and formatting of quotes is essential:


Quotation Marks: Always enclose direct quotes within quotation marks.


Punctuation Placement: In American English, periods and commas are placed inside quotation marks, while colons and semicolons are placed outside.


Block Quotes: For longer quotes, format them as block quotes without quotation marks, and indent the entire block.



8. Ethical Considerations


Ethical use of quotes involves accurate representation, proper attribution, and respect for intellectual property. Misuse can lead to plagiarism, which carries serious academic and professional consequences.

9. Tools for Managing Quotes


Utilize tools like citation generators and plagiarism checkers to manage quotes effectively. These tools help ensure proper formatting and originality in your writing.



Conclusion


Quotes are invaluable in enriching content, providing evidence, and conveying complex ideas succinctly. When used appropriately, they enhance the quality and credibility of your writing. Always ensure relevance, proper integration, and ethical usage to maximize their impact.


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