Post Class Readerly v Writerly blog- fang

            Barthes makes a point to differentiate between writerly and readerly texts. I actually experienced this difference the other night with a roommate. Blades of Glory was on TBS and we were laughing at some of the ridiculous plot points and jokes in the movie. He said, “obviously this movie was meant purely for entertainment.” For those unaware, the movie stars Will Ferrell and Jon Heder and tells the story of the two men who skate in pair skating, a sport traditionally for a man and woman. Both men are heterosexual but often have to be physically close to one another leading to many jokes and gags. Blades of Glory is a readerly text. It has a simple and humorous story, does not rely on metaphors, and is seldom open for interpretation. Readerly texts are simply that, they are for pleasure or entertainment and not critically analyzed in any way.

            Writerly texts are the opposite. Writerly texts are filled with metaphor and nuance and almost force the reader to critically investigate the text. The reader struggles to formulate a meaning out of the immense depth in the text. With his or her own experiences, the reader’s interpretation of writerly texts vary whereas most readers can understand a readerly text and develop the meaning that it conveys.  

Barthes seemingly describes a readerly text as a commodity or product that has a prescribed meaning that people simply ingest whereas writerly texts are more works of art.