Electronic Text

Book excerpt: The electronic presentation of text has revolutionized the understanding and use of literary evidence. Formerly, readers and editors were obliged to choose one edition of a text in book form to work with and to treat other versions as ancillary. Now electronic editions of a text can incorporate all the various versions and revisions. This allows unconstrained access to a much greater range of information. This collection considers the role of computerized technology in contributing to the interpretation and editing of texts, from both practical and theoretical perspectives. The contributors investigate the ways in which the treatment of texts and the idea of a "text" are affected by current and prospective advances in electronic production and reproduction.