Atopy (Greek ατοπία, atopía; Socrates has often been called "átopos")[1] is a concept describing the ineffability of things or emotions that are seldom experienced, that are outstanding and that are original in the strict sense. It is a certain quality (of experience) that can be observed within oneself or within others, differing from the ideal quality that is conceptualized, not experienced.[2]

History

Roland Barthes

French literary theorist Roland Barthes discussed and reevaluated the concept of atopy multiple times in his work. In A Lover's Discourse: Fragments, Barthes defined it as "unclassifiable, of a ceaselessly unforeseen originality", referring to the circumstance, an atopia, in which atopy is intercommunicated in interest and love.[3] Previously, in The Pleasure of the Text, he regarded pleasure itself as atopic,[4] saying that "the pleasure of the text is scandalous: not because it is immoral but because it is atopic."[5]

Icelandic singer Björk credited Barthes' interpretation of atopy as a main inspiration for the lyrics of her 2022 song "Atopos".[6]

References

  1. ↑ Schlosser, Joel Alden (2014). What Would Socrates Do?: Self-Examination, Civic Engagement, and the Politics of Philosophy. Cambridge University Press. pp. 11–19. ISBN 978-1-107-67226-0.
  2. ↑ Schlosser, Joel Alden (2014). What Would Socrates Do?: Self-Examination, Civic Engagement, and the Politics of Philosophy. Cambridge University Press. pp. 142–151. ISBN 978-1-107-67226-0.
  3. ↑ Barthes, Roland (1979). A Lover's Discourse: Fragments. Translated by Miller, Richard. Hill and Wang. p. 34. ISBN 9780374521615.
  4. ↑ Allen, Graham (2003). Roland Barthes. Routledge. pp. 103–104. ISBN 9780415263627.
  5. ↑ Barthes, Roland (1975). The Pleasure of the Text. Translated by Miller, Richard. Hill and Wang. p. 23. ISBN 9780374521608.
  6. ↑ Torres, Eric (6 September 2022). "Björk: "Atopos" Track Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved 8 September 2022.


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