“In the age of the manuscript and especially in the age of print, the book was valued for its capacity to preserve and display fixed structures. It was a technological reflection of the great chain of being, in which all of nature had its place in a subtle but unalterable hierarchy” (Bolter, 97).
There’s something permanent about books — indeed paper pages that can be torn, crumpled, burned or acidified are no more permanent than their pixelated counterparts. But what is it about electronic literature/communication that lends itself to a seemingly temporary characterization? Perhaps the permanent/temporary dichotomy is the wrong articulation for this particular observation. Maybe “static/dynamic” is wiser.
“Our culture is defining the electronic encyclopedia and electronic books in general, to reflect a different natural world, in which relationships are multiple and developing” (Bolter, 98).
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