{"id":1977,"date":"2009-11-16T00:50:16","date_gmt":"2009-11-16T07:50:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec540sept09\/?p=1977"},"modified":"2009-11-16T00:50:58","modified_gmt":"2009-11-16T07:50:58","slug":"commentary-2-the-fragmentation-of-print","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec540sept09\/2009\/11\/16\/commentary-2-the-fragmentation-of-print\/","title":{"rendered":"Commentary #2: The Fragmentation of Print"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Bolter argues that hypertext is remediating print forms, offering a dichotomous view separating print from hypertext, separated on the basis of links and imagery and arguing the benefits of imagery will supersede print.\u00a0 Will hypertext overwrite print due to inherent qualities such as flexibility and relation to natural ways of processing ideas which cross cultural and linguistic lines? The reader is forced to consider which form will become dominant, print or imagery:<\/p>\n

\u201cAlthough the writer and reader may use words to describe and interpret the pictoral message, two readers of different languages could share the same system of picture writing.\u201d\u00a0 (Bolter, 2001, 59)<\/p>\n

While he questions the effectiveness of voiceless picture writing on its own, he purports that through hypermedia we realize \u201ca kind of picture writing, which refashions the qualities of both traditional picture writing and phonetic writing.\u201d (58)\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Bolter argues that hypermedia and eBooks offer increased flexibility to printed books in that they do not align themselves end to end on a shelf, rather \u201cmerging into the network of the World Wide Web, the electronic book invite exploration as part of a network of texts.\u201d (81)\u00a0 Bolter asserts that books must be complete units in themselves, and despite their physical proximity to other books, they become completely separate once placed on a library shelf.\u00a0 While the idea of linking books, texts and images is interesting I question the value of this approach for all types of literature.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The issue Bolter has failed to address to this point is the reasonable applicability of image and link based hypermedia to all forms of text.\u00a0 Hypertext emulates magazines and newspapers in its marriage of images to text, offering unparalleled means to further exploration of ideas and concepts through linking nodes of information that allow the reader to follow paths of links through endless pages on the World Wide Web.\u00a0 In encyclopedic form, hypertext offers a flexibility for the reader to explore subjects according to personal interest and in relatively effortless ways as were required in former volume-based, shelved books while images allow readers to appreciate context with less apparent description.\u00a0 This form of hypertext, however, is not necessarily the ultimate solution to all forms of text.\u00a0 Qualitatively, the text offered in such forms as magazines, newspapers, and encyclopedias differs greatly from that of prose text found in fiction.<\/p>\n

Focusing on hypertext, this form does offer increased reader control through their organization of ideas \u201cthat can arrange themselves into a kaleidoscope of hierarchical and associative patterns-each pattern meeting the needs of one class of readers on one occasion,\u201d (Bolter, 2001, 91) this encyclopedic example ignores the needs inherent to the narrative form.\u00a0 Current novels are written in a linear and arguably male organization of linear storylines, building tension, climax and denouement.\u00a0 The novel form favours author centred and directed, linear exploration of print while hypertext offers reader centred, open, non-linear exploration of links which span infinite pages and represent a multitude of variations of ways to explore the same available material.<\/p>\n

Does hypertext, which indeed offers possibilities for certain forms of text that seem to represent an extension of inherent qualities of the texts themselves, offer the best solution for all texts?\u00a0 The narrative form favours a closed author centred approach to reading and exploring text.\u00a0 Would hypertext, despite all its possibilities, fit in with the demands of the narrative form?\u00a0 Readers explore such texts as novels by following the direction of the author.\u00a0 Rather than viewing this as a negative aspect of linear based fiction, it seems more reasonable to appreciate the unique forms and qualities of various texts which arguably determine their effectiveness in various forms of textual representation.\u00a0 In the 1980\u2019s hypertext-like narratives emerged (Moulthrop, 1995), such as the Choose Your Own Adventure novels for youth which made their debut at this time.\u00a0 This type of book offered a hypertext-like situation where the reader navigated through the narrative by deciding on the course of action for plot and then turning to the appropriate page in the book to pursue the decided upon storyline.\u00a0 Despite this exciting innovation in reading, the Choose Your Own Adventure hypertext-like approach to reader centred fiction did not replace traditional novel forms.<\/p>\n

If we use this example to compare such forms as magazines and newspapers, encyclopedias and novels in the advent of hypertext, we could argue that before the advent of hypertext possibilities, the simulated hypertext forms of the encyclopedia and hypertext and image based forms of the magazine and newspaper existed independent of computer based hypertext and imagery.\u00a0 While computer based hypertext allows the inherent qualities of these forms to become stronger, the form reduces the importance of authorship in the important form of fiction and the novel.\u00a0 Who is to be in control of the text?\u00a0 Do the readers control all forms of text, including story lines?\u00a0 And how would this play out?\u00a0 As readers, would we accept stories that we decided on our own, through creating outcomes and producing a fragmenting of literary outcomes in a myriad of possible storyline directions?\u00a0 Stuart Moulthrop suggests that such reader directed programs violate \u201cour sense of commitment, at least to the extent that this is denied in terms of\u2026\u2019selfish interaction,\u2019 or an assumption that the story really does exist to please us.\u201d (73)\u00a0 Hypertext writing seems to change the act of writing in that it forces writers to envision and created a multitude of possibilities in accordance with the demands of the readers.\u00a0 The novel form then becomes \u201ca textual space within which his fiction operates\u2026 [whereby] the reader joins in actively constructing the text by selecting a particular order of episodes at the time of reading.\u201d (42)\u00a0 Despite the fact that the author still controls the text that is read, the text is only secondary to the choices made by the reader.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In terms of imagery, while images can carry meaning beyond descriptive possibilities, can this strength inherent to images overwrite the text in narrative?\u00a0 Bolter suggests that \u201c[b]y combining alphabetic writing with images and diagrams\u2026 designers are defining the computer as a writing space that vacillates between intuitive and abstract modes of representation\u2026.where the verbal text must\u2026compete for the reader\u2019s attention with a variety of pictoral elements.\u201d (Bolter, 2001, 61)\u00a0 While he admits this utilization of images falls in line with the particular material, it is important to question the blanket idea that pictoral images could replace all writing forms which utilize pure text as a medium.\u00a0 The genre of the narrative novel does not necessitate simply due to its textual makeup, inclusion in the realm of hypertext and image based alterations that will occur as a result of computer based forms.\u00a0 Bolter\u2019s use of weighted words, such as \u201cexploited,\u201d (73) when discussing the exclusive use of text in creating and presenting prose offers a glimpse into the negative view he carries with regards to the exclusive text mediums such as that of narrative.\u00a0 \u00a0<\/p>\n

Whether or not a change from \u201cbooks to electronic webs carries the force of historical necessity\u201d as suggested by Bolter and Lanham, or will simply result in a fragmentation that will create new outlets for writing is yet to be seen. \u00a0In the introduction of literacy in the era of orality, oral forms of communication were not entirely overwritten or erased.\u00a0 Both oral and literary forms continued to flourish and evolve according to benefits, possibilities and limitations of each form.\u00a0 In the same way, I argue that hypermedia and traditional text forms will develop and coexist as benefits, possibilities, and limitations are determined.\u00a0<\/p>\n

While it is impossible to accurately predict the future of either hypertext of print, it seems unnecessary to assume a total and complete overwriting of one system over another.\u00a0 Traditional literary narrative forms may indeed branch off to include hypertext version, but traditional narrative forms such as the novel may be best left to the print form.\u00a0 Hypermedia may allow for a permanent fragmentation of narration to include hypertext literature, whereby hypertext books will become readily available in addition to traditional print forms. Imagery may allow for increased image-based literature (such as is evident in comics), but primary utilization of images reflects a varying set of possibilities, benefits, and limitations that are not equivocal to the narrative novel form. \u00a0While film seems to be the closest we have come to realizing a shift towards pure image in narration, it is important to remember the text base of most films.\u00a0 Such blockbusters as the Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, or Twilight series, My Sister\u2019s Keeper, and the Boy in the Striped Pajamas are just a few.\u00a0 Just as communication branched into the areas of literacy and orality in the face of the new literacy, perhaps fiction will branch into multiple areas including, but not limited to, traditional print forms and hypertext versions in accordance with social, literary, and fiction writing demands.\u00a0<\/p>\n

References<\/p>\n

Bolter, J.\u00a0 (2001)\u00a0 Writing space: Computers, hypertext, and the remediation of print [2nd<\/sup> edition].\u00a0 Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Eribaum.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Bolter, J & Joyce, M\u00a0 (1987)\u00a0 Hypertext and creative writing.\u00a0 University of North Carolina.\u00a0 Accessed at: http:\/\/portal.acm.org\/citation.cfm?id=317431<\/a><\/p>\n

Moulthrop, S.\u00a0 (1995)\u00a0 Traveling in the breakdown lane: A principle of resistance for hypertext.\u00a0 Accessed at: http:\/\/iat.ubalt.edu\/moulthrop\/essays\/breakdown.html<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Bolter argues that hypertext is remediating print forms, offering a dichotomous view separating print from hypertext, separated on the basis of links and imagery and arguing the benefits of imagery will supersede print.\u00a0 Will hypertext overwrite print due to inherent qualities such as flexibility and relation to natural ways of processing ideas which cross cultural […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":942,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4974],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1977","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-commentary-2"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec540sept09\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1977","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec540sept09\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec540sept09\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec540sept09\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/942"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec540sept09\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1977"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec540sept09\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1977\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1980,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec540sept09\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1977\/revisions\/1980"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec540sept09\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1977"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec540sept09\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1977"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/etec540sept09\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1977"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}