HIST230 - From Scrolls To Scrolling: A Long History of Technology and Communication

The invention of new media is often accompanied by a swell of hope. Enthusiasts expect people to become more connected, new ideas to become more accessible, and information to be shared more rapidly and in more fixed forms than ever before. While there are always nay-sayers, who warn against the effects of such inventions, the narrative linking media and progress is so strong that these detractors are most commonly painted as luddites, and the narrative itself is used to justify and promote yet newer media as well as new configurations of state and media relations.

In this class, we will examine some of the most significant transformations in media forms and the ways in which media are and were produced—from orality to writing, from scroll to codex, manuscript to print, hand-press to steam-press, print to radio, radio to tv, and tv to streaming. How were these technologies used? How did they impact the ages in which they came into use? How did contemporaries perceive these transformations? Does the invention of new media lead inherently to progress? If so, what does progress mean? By examining past revolutions in media and past actors’ perceptions of those revolutions, we will historicize our own age and experience.