Print and Remediation

To understand the shift writing has taken throughout multiple decades, it is crucial to comprehend how technology continues to develop. As written in The Age of Print and the Late Age of Print, writing rarely sits at a desk with pen and paper anymore. Now, it mainly consists of a computer that sits on the surface.

But, what exactly do the terms “age of print” and “late age of print” mean?

Print and the Ages

The age of print defines the period before printing and writing became technological. Everything would be written by hand, adding difficulty to creating multiples. The late age of print refers to our current age of writing. Printing has allowed for a faster means of writing and also a faster way to create multiples. The late age proves to allow for higher status for many, especially scholars.

Though technology has brought many positives to the world of writing (word processing systems and publishing software), it can be said that there are negatives as well.

Remediation

Remediation is vital when it comes to the differences between the age of print and the late age of print. Applen defines the term as “the shift to a newer form of media that takes some of the characteristics of a previous form, but then refashions it” (Applen, 13). It reinvents a previous model and conforms it to a more modern format.

There are many examples of writing that have gone through the process of remediation. One is the example of telegrams. Telegrams allowed people to communicate at a faster pace, rather than waiting for a letter to arrive. Yet, it became reformed over the years and doesn’t have a seat in the late age. In its spot is the invention of emails. Emailing allows for simpler means of communication. There is no longer a middle man as there were for telegrams. Needing a middle man to decipher the symbols being sent through the telegram proved to be expensive. Yet, with similar characteristics, emailing is a cheaper alternative and great example of remediation.