1. Consider the course title, “Text technologies: The changing spaces of reading and writing.” What is text? What is technology? How would you define these terms? Without consulting any resources, record your initial thoughts on these questions.
Text: language in written form.
Technology: a tool or system that enhances or extends human ability.
4. Graph the Usage of the terms over time with Google Ngram Viewer[…] what patterns are revealed?
The word “text” was very commonly used in the 1500s, likely in part to additional previous meanings of the word that have since fallen out of favour. I would also guess that some uses of the word “text” being published at this time might have possibly been related to the proliferation of the printing press in Europe. As a result of other “texts” being more widely available, it stands to reason that they would be referenced more frequently in writings at that time.
The word “technology” really does not start to gain traction until the mid 1900s, perhaps related to the incredible rate of technological developments that accelerated during the Second World War that had enormously transformative effects on not only warfare but also politics, further scientific advances, and commercial goods and services that increasingly altered ordinary civilian life inthe following years.
5. Consider the following questions…
What does the etymology of these words suggest about their inherent meanings?
The latin origin of the word textus (“that which is woven, web, texture” [The Oxford English Dictionary]) might suggest an idea of weaving words together (such as to “spin a tale”) or weaving letters together to form words with meanings.
I’m not entirely familiar with how to navigate the multiple etymological connections listed in the OED, but it seems that the “techno-” portion of “technology”, borrowed from ancient Greek (to fashion), shares a common root with the Latin word texere, making both “text” and “technology” related in their origins.
How is technology related to text?
I would argue that text, in the sense of written language, is one of the most important technologies ever developed, allowing a human to save ideas in a persistent record so that the information can be passed to another person at another time (and possibly another place).
What does teche (teaching) have to do with technology?
The Oxford English Dictionary defines the oldest use of the word technology in English as “A discourse or treatise on an art or arts; esp. (in later use) a treatise on a practical art or craft”. A technology, in its original sense, was a text designed to teach the reader about a particular craft or branch of knowledge.
References:
Google Ngram Viewer. https://books.google.com/ngrams
The Oxford English Dictionary. https://www-oed-com.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/