Hypertext’s Influence on Authorship
The history of writing technologies has resulted in many changes in the way we view writing. One aspect of writing that that has seen a change as a result of writing technology is the notion of who can be a writer. Throughout history there seems to have been a trend writing technologies have followed. Each advancement in writing technology seems to have allowed authorship to a greater amount of people. First the invention of the book allowed for the first authors to record their ideas in a fixed medium. Then the invention of the printing press took the ability to make text from few well-trained bookmakers to anyone who owned a printing press. This led to a dramatic increase in the amount of books being created, resulting in a rapid proliferation of knowledge in the world. Many have theorized the next great revolution in writing technologies will be the Internet.
Just like the printing press, the Internet is changing the notion of who can be an author. Today, anyone with Internet access can get his or her ideas on a web page. Posting ones thoughts, ideas, or writing online is in many ways similar to being published: Millions of people have access to posted writings to read, think about, and unlike a published book readers can even respond directly to the author. This new revolution raises a question. If anyone can make a web page and post their writing online for all to see, what happens to the notion of the author? It seems the authority that comes with being a published author is being threatened. Bolter explores this idea in the following passage of his book Writing Space “Those theorist specifically working on hypertext…have succeeded in portraying electronic writing as a medium that questions authority and fixity. For them, electronic writing reforms print by replacing the qualities of authority and fixity with the flexibility and responsiveness that we have seen in literary hypertext”(165). If an author wished to get his or her writing and ideas out to a mass audience in the past the only way to do this was go through a publishing company. The publishing company would then pick and choose what it thought was worthy of being published.
In this day and age, writing is being portrayed through various mediums, such as film and television. Some of those portrayals depict writing as both good and bad depending on the situation that is present. Authors such as, by E. Shelley Reid, Kevin Roozen, and Anne Lamott all write about important writing concepts that are being depicted in films, like Freedom Writers. The film Freedom Writers shows a positive and accurate portrayal of writing in the sense that the writers should have a connection to what they are writing about, writing is a form of communication, and that writing does not have to be perfect the first time.
Clive Thompson is a journalist, blogger and writer. He mainly focuses his writing on science and technology but this one chapter from his book Smarter than you think, “Public thinking,” has put a spin on writing and technology. Multiple times he talks about writing in many different forms. For example, he speaks of writing on blogs, on internet short stories (or fan fiction novels), in schools, in studies, and even on a regular basis. Thomson is trying to explain to his readers how writing, and the sharing of information across the internet, is beneficial to our society and ones well-being. In my readings of Thompson’s excerpt, I will examine Thomson’s examples and show how they are relevant and that it is beneficial.
The Power of an Author Authors have the ability justify the worst actions. Authors have a way of romanticizing certain situations in order to convey a specific message. A good author has power to influence the reader into believing whatever it is the author wants. When it comes to the story of Hannah Dustan, authors such as John Greenleaf Whittier have romanticized her captivity story along with the actions she took throughout her journey. Introducing a character that will be seen in the story is one of the most vital parts when creating a piece of literature.
...ant issues facing our world today. At the end of the day, every one could learn much from a writer that was never afraid to share his opinion on any subject no matter what anyone else thought about it. This goes to show, no matter how much an opinion differs from the majority, or the popular opinion, everyone still has a right and responsibility to let it be known.
...ses a threat of humiliation and maltreating from other individuals that can have a detrimental effect on their lives. A person can go from being a normal school student to a laughing stock on a popular social network or even trend from a emotionally stable individual to a deranged, depressed critter who now hides in the shadows of society hoping never to be revealed. The informative thought of the re-occurrence of public shaming throughout history from Bennett allows the reader to question if this is an issue that is perpetual and something that will never go away. Furthermore, the author conveys the idea that publicizing oneself can be a burden; the darkside of Internet fame. Wrapping up her article, Bennett portrays a warning to the reader stating, “Shame...will always be with you”(115). Harassment from Internet fame can alter a person's life-forever.
He asserts that with the invention of television, writing can basically be eliminated (125). There’s no use for it anymore, after all. What can be more engaging than a form of media that stimulates the senses so? Despite the beliefs of those who lived in the 60s and 70s, the twenty-first century is unfortunately not home to the world of the Jetsons. Writing is still a very powerful form of media, for the very book that this essay is centered around is still influential, forty-nine years later! However, books and newspapers are not our sole source of the written word. Online blogs, articles, and newsletters now exist. Television and books have merged into one: the Internet. Revolutions, riots, and rebellions don’t just happen in our living rooms now, they happen on the go with us. On the subway, when we’re waiting in line at Subway, at our friend’s house as he talks about how he’s “way into subs.” The Internet is now our primary source of information. Evolution doesn’t only just occur in nature. Nonetheless, The Medium is the Massage was published in 1967, and several of McLuhan’s points were ahead of their time and remain relevant today. The most notable of points was made within the first few pages of the book where McLuhan delves into the fact that from the moment we are born to the moment we die we are under constant surveillance and that privacy essentially no
Keenan, T. and Evans, S. (2009) An Introduction to Child Development. 2nd ed. London: SAGE publications.
Napoleon Bonaparte was a great military leader and commander, he had a fantastic eye for detail and a phenomenal memory. Though he was not always completely honest with his colonies, and he often took advantage of their valuables, Napoleon was very brave, strong-minded and he knew how to retrieve followers everywhere he went.
Napoleon Bonaparte was historically not only the powerful invader but also the ambitious king. Napoleon made various works that effected France and the other country significantly, conquering almost of countries in Europe. Almost people in France praised Napoleon when he won in any war or any invasion. From successful occupation, people started to consider Napoleon as a god of the war and large numbers of people followed his order. Napoleon seems as the greatest emperor in the world. However, Napoleon was only concerned on his greed and ambition, which made questionable political decision and poor military decisions, changing him as an outcast. Having the highest spot in Europe, Napoleon changed to be arrogant and be rude himself. He was being not only traitor who lead a revolt against French Parliament but also the emperor who took that place himself. Caring only France, Napoleon was considered as a cruel tyrant to peoples of other countries. Every country in Europe stand against France when Napoleon failed his conquest of Russia. Finally, Napoleon era ended when Napoleon lost in Waterloo war and Napoleon became the exile.
In conclusion, Carr and Gladwell’s essays have proven that the internet positive effects are outweighed by its negative effects. Carr has found he is unable to finish a full text anymore or concentrate. He thinks that the internet has taken our natural intelligence and turned it into artificial intelligence. Gladwell discusses how nowadays, social activism doesn’t have the same risk or impact as former revolutions such as the Civil Rights Movement. The internet is mostly based on weak ties based among people who do not truly know each other and would not risk their lives for their
While preparing for one of his college lectures, Dennis Baron, a professor and linguistics at the University of Illinois, began playing with the idea of how writing has changed the world we lived in and materials and tools we use in everyday life. This lecture slowly transitioned into “Should Everybody Write?” An article that has made many wonder if technology has made writing too easy for anyone to use or strengthens a writer's ability to learn and communicate their ideas. Baron uses rhetorical strategies in his article to portray to his audience his positive tone, the contrast and comparison of context and his logical purpose.
The rise of Napoleon Bonaparte is a magnificent illustration of skillful character meeting with overwhelming opportunities to form a supreme leader. His ambition was led primarily by impulse, not a set of ideals or connection to any structure. The vacillating government of France throughout the Revolution provided opportunities which had not previously been available. The opportunities available during the Revolution were mainly in the military. This favored Napoleon because he was mentally able and willing to put in the extra effort to win essential battles. Since childhood, Napoleon had a strong ambitious character that flourished into mathematical skills to help him succeed in seizing opportunities that arose. What he lacked however, was significant ideology. Any choice Napoleon made that involved France, the church, or social class was strictly aimed to gain influence. As a result, France was a mere vessel of power he manipulated to pursue his true goal: supreme power. Napoleon Bonaparte embodied the characteristics of a true opportunist that gained enormous amount of power for himself during the Revolution by translating military success into political matter with little to no regard to the losses of others.
Computer has made the life easier by providing various applications and technologies. For example, while computer has replaced typewriter, it helps the students to become a better writer as they can “revise text, rearrange paragraphs, and experiment with the tone and shape of an essay” () while using word processing. Thus, the computer helps the students to improvise their writing. Human relationship with co...
Ong, Walter. “Writing is a Technology that Restructures Thought.” Writing Material. Ed. Evelyn Tribble. New York. 2003. 315-335.
India is measured to have 36% of the earth's poor. The World Bank identified that 32.7% of all individuals in the nation of India fall below the global poverty line of U.S. $ 1.25 per day. A projected 67.8% of India’s population lives on less than US $2 per day. Amartya Sen defined poverty to be a deprivation to the access of basic capabilities. In these terms, the number of impoverished people in India amounts to a staggering 300 million (Eleventh National Development Plan). Although this quantity has shown a slow decrease, almost one third of India’s population of more than 1.1 billion continues to live below the poverty line, and a large percentage of those who are impoverished live in rural areas, like Madhya Pradesh. Poverty conti...