During the print era, publishing was marked by the constraints of the book as a physical object with publishers as the industry's gatekeepers deciding which manuscripts would reach the public. In...Show moreDuring the print era, publishing was marked by the constraints of the book as a physical object with publishers as the industry's gatekeepers deciding which manuscripts would reach the public. In contrast, the age of Web 2.0 is defined by an abundance of freely available resources for information and entertainment. The problem is no longer of the scarcity of content, but rather the attention paid to it. With more and more books published each year by both independent publishers and large publishing conglomerates, and increasing competition from other media formats, the question has become how and where readers discover new books. Focussing on the English Language Trade Market, this thesis reviews market dynamics both in the traditional publishing environment and the online environment, arguing that the discoverability problem limits the diversity of the literary landscape. This issue can be traced back to big publishing's increasing emphasis on author brands as well as the infrastructure of social media which not only adheres to the 'Winner-takes-all' principle, but also caters to the commodification of their users, favouring form over content.Show less
This thesis examines all Dutch editions of Louis Couperus’ De stille kracht to discern trends or developments in the paratextual elements of these editions. Paratext is a concept coined by French...Show moreThis thesis examines all Dutch editions of Louis Couperus’ De stille kracht to discern trends or developments in the paratextual elements of these editions. Paratext is a concept coined by French literary theorist Gérard Genette. Instead of focussing only on the Genettian textual paratexts this thesis also examines the influence of (cover) illustrations as paratextual elements. De stille kracht was published in 1900, and as this thesis was written in 2015, it thus examines 115 years of De stille kracht publication history. Every chapter covers a few decades, thus presenting the reader with a historical narrative of the novel’s developments through time. The thesis therefore is a ‘biography’ of a book. The most important developments are the canonisation of De stille kracht, especially through the implementation of fore- and afterwords in later editions. The later editions also became part of ‘classic book series’, indicating canonisation of this literary work. A constant trend is the focus of the paratextual elements on the atmosphere and themes of the novel, instead of on the plot. In the end this thesis argues for the importance of Genette’s paratext for book historic and literary research and has shown how widely different one particular text can be presented to a reader.Show less
A selection from the Dutch edition of Bernhard von Breydenbach's travel journal, in which he describes his pilgrimage to the Holy Land. The result is a historical-critical edition.
This thesis presents an edition of some chapters of the English physician Edward Browne’s travel journal, A Brief Account of Some Travels in Hungaria, Servia, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Thessaly, Austria...Show moreThis thesis presents an edition of some chapters of the English physician Edward Browne’s travel journal, A Brief Account of Some Travels in Hungaria, Servia, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Thessaly, Austria, Styria, Carinthia, Carniola, and Friuli, published in 1685. It focuses on the author’s impressions while visiting the Hungarian cities, baths, and the northern gold, silver and copper mine region. The journal stands out as one of the most detailed descriptions of places and interesting observation of the era. The intention of the edition is to provide an introduction to the background of Edward Browne’s work, to edit the selected parts of the travel journal, and to design it in the form of a book in order to make it accessible to the general reader. This thesis comprises two parts. The first part introduces the reader to the historical background of travelling in seventeenth century, analyses the motives of Browne’s journey, describes his journal, and specifies the editorial methods. The second part consists of the selected chapters of his journal. Following the footsteps of Edward Browne, this book aims to provide an authentic reflection of his experiences, and a guide for those readers who wish to visit the country and the mentioned places today.Show less
The possibilities for exerting reader responsibility as an expression of democracy on the Internet are manifold. Reader responsibility may be seen as the process of finding, accessing, making sense...Show moreThe possibilities for exerting reader responsibility as an expression of democracy on the Internet are manifold. Reader responsibility may be seen as the process of finding, accessing, making sense of, interpreting, judging, and putting to use the information that can be gained through reading, and thereby turning it into knowledge. However, the 'democratisation discourse' on the Internet is often (mis-)used to promote mere economic aims, even under the guise of ‘digital socialism’. This is not only an obstacle to understanding reader responsibility and the process of reading, but also to gaining access to knowledge and making use of information resources successfully and effectively. It is encouraging to see though that the potential presented by reading and writing is (partly) being implemented. Historically, this occurred through commonplace and reference books, and currently it is happening through Pinterest and Wikipedia - despite some problematic economic and political circumstances. Embracing the responsibilities of the reading process will be conducive to developing the political potential of reading and as such be beneficial for society at large. Despite the connected and implied struggles of this, it is important to realise that readers can only turn information into knowledge and utilise it in their lives by being active and informed.Show less
The thesis is discussing enhanced e-books in the realm of new media. Enhanced fiction novels as a literary genre of narrative still have low acceptance in the market of digital publishing. The...Show moreThe thesis is discussing enhanced e-books in the realm of new media. Enhanced fiction novels as a literary genre of narrative still have low acceptance in the market of digital publishing. The present thesis is focusing on two aspects which might account for the low popularity of reading enhanced fiction novels: the thesis questions first if enhanced e-books and their additional embeddings neglect the tradition of linear storytelling, a defining feature of the literary genre of narrative. Second, the thesis analyses if and to what extent enhanced e-books restrict imaginative freedom of narratives. These two characteristics, the linearity of storytelling and the power of imagination, are the raison d'être of narratives and might suffer from the enhanced form of fiction novels. The paper analyses these two aspects with a look at the precise nature of enhanced e-books and what function digital amplifications fulfill within them. Above the thesis raises the questions if enhanced fiction novels still follow the traditional idea of narrative in the sense of a story embedded in a narrative discourse and, finally, how digital enhancement influence the interpretation of the narrative.Show less
In our digital age, with its blogs, social media platforms and image sharing possibilities, it appears that photographers are increasingly turning to print to get their message (or rather, images)...Show moreIn our digital age, with its blogs, social media platforms and image sharing possibilities, it appears that photographers are increasingly turning to print to get their message (or rather, images) out. This thesis seeks to investigate the contemporary phenomenon of the photozine, a self-published photography publication, generally with a small print run and available at a low price. It is argued that the photozine is embedded in the history of fanzines and artists' books, but that it is also a direct result of new technologies offered by the digital age, and a perfect example of what Alessandro Ludovico has dubbed post-digital print culture.Show less
The bookshop has a special position in the retail business. Besides its function as a shop it also fulfills a cultural purpose. This cultural position of the bookshop in society has changed through...Show moreThe bookshop has a special position in the retail business. Besides its function as a shop it also fulfills a cultural purpose. This cultural position of the bookshop in society has changed through the years, which consequentially influenced the interior. Where in the past the bookshop used to be a place for the wealthy and functioned as a meeting place for, mostly male, intellectuals, the bookshop of today is open to everyone. There is no longer a standard interior visible in the present-day bookshop, the traditional, small and dimly lit bookstore is accompanied by larger stores with a sometimes experimental interior, in which for example bright colours and a-typical designed bookcases are used. Furthermore, the competition of Internet sales forces the owners of bookshops to offer the customer something extra, much emphasis is placed on the shopping experience.Show less
