Empire of Signs

This book, which Barthes himself called the «happiest» of all his books, is inspired by his trips to Japan and — more broadly — the «Japanese text» of his life: an early fascination with haiku, later — calligraphy, bunraku theater,... etc. This is a Barthesian «illustrated guide» to a country (both real and imagined) where he dreamed of living, but was never able to settle. The Russian translation of «Empire of Signs», first published in 2004, is being released in a new edition and is supplemented with detailed commentary and an afterword by the translator and editor.