Tuesday, November 8, 2016

Journal #6 - Megan Quinn


In historical context, mobility of text has been responsible for the spread of literacy throughout societies. From its origins in cumbersome clay tablets to papyrus to parchment to books, the evolution of bookmaking has increasingly made movement of literature easier. What mobility has given writing is expansion and versatility. The Internet is responsible for creating greater connectivity across societies. Molz discusses travelers and the variety of ways they work together to share advice, information, or how to contact family and friends in remote places. Combined with recent advancements in technology, obtaining information is nearly an instantaneous process. Mobility has transformed from the physical transportation of texts to the accessibility of information online.

Molz also brings to mind the concept of collaboration in connection to mobility. Writing can usually be thought of as one person composing a text. Due to the ingenuity of the Internet, writing now has the capabilities of allowing two or more people to work together in writing. An example Molz uses is Wikitravel. Anyone is capable of contributing or modifying information to articles for other travelers to utilize. Online forums are another example of collaboration, as are social media websites. Platforms such as Facebook and Twitter have made it remarkably easy for one user to respond to another. Facebook allows its users to create specialized group pages designed specifically to allow for collaboration.

Mobility assists in highlighting writing as a tool of interaction in addition to its long-understood use of disseminating knowledge. Technology makes it easier for people to combine writing and ideas. To return to Molz's main topic, traveling has become a collaborative effort as people create blogs and articles to share their experiences and to ask for help or for ideas on how to spend time. A new craze circling on the Internet are blogs showcasing how to travel on $20 a day or featuring a similar concept. The purpose of all this information is to encourage others to partake in traveling and form their own experiences. Writing, at its core, is about the spread of knowledge.

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