Hypertext and

Intertext
Reading and Writing Skills
Q4- Module 1
Which do you prefer?

Print Reading Digital Reading

Digital Reading
Linear Text
It refers to the conventional way of
reading where text is being read
from the beginning to end.

This type of text has an order

which typically the author’s
decision on how text is being
sequenced.
Non-linear Text
• The readers do not have to go through the text in a
sequential manner in order to make sense of the text.
• This type of text has many reading paths since it’s the
readers who decide the sequence of reading, not the
author of the text.
Hypertext
• Hypertext presents a new way to read on-line text that differs
from reading standard linear text. Text is typically presented in a
linear form, in which there is a single way to progress through the
text, starting at the beginning and reading to the end.
• However, in hypertext, information can be represented in a
semantic network in which multiple related sections of the text
are connected to each other. A user may then browse through the
sections of the text, jumping from one text section to another.
This permits a reader to choose a path through the text that will
be most relevant to his or her interests.
Hypertext
• Hypertext is the text that contains links to other texts. It is simply a
non-linear way of presenting information. Rather than reading or
learning about things in the order of the author, or editor, or publisher
sets out for us, readers of hypertext may follow their own path, create
their own order –which is their own meaning out of the material.
• This is accomplished by creating “links” between information. These
links are provided so that the readers may “jump” to further information
about a specific topic being discussed. This medium is not limited to
text. It can incorporate pictures, sound even video. So it presents a
multimedia approach to gaining information known as hypermedia.
Hypertext
Why use hypertext?
• It allows the reader to explore more text or references
interconnected to each other through a link that leads to
other documents instantly.
• We are better able to figure out material if we are allowed
to move at our own pace, investigating that which interests
us, and stimulating more senses through multimedia.
• Hypertext operates very similar to the way our brains do –
in a series of networks, or associations- as opposed to
linear path.
• It creates an environment for independent critical thinking
because the author is no longer in control over what path a
reader will take.
Guidelines in writing a hypertext
• Organization – while the readers do develop their own methods of
moving about series of documents, the author does create the master
plan of a piece.

• Style – a hypertext writer’s style should be generated for the

intended audience. He should keep in mind the limits of the reader’s
electronic capabilities. Keeping this in mind, the authors might want
to consider breaking up very large files into smaller ones.
• Content – it should be interesting and accurate. It should be
maintained and kept updated. Keep the documents to a reasonable
size for downloading.
• Audience – be careful in the selection of which “pages” you link
your work to, it will help to define your audience.
Advantages of Hypertext
• 1. Multiple paths of inquiry
• 2. Individualized learning opportunities
• 3. Reader learner control
• 4. Supports connection f ideas
• 5. Ease of navigation
Disadvantages of Hypertext
• 1. Paper-based information is more comfortable to
read
• 2. Computer/gadget is required
• 3. Reader’s disorientation
• 4. Causes eye strain
• 5. Too much control
Intertext
• Intertextuality is the shaping of a text meaning by
another text. Intertextual figures include: allusion,
quotation, translation, pastiche and parody. An
example of intertextuality is an author’s borrowing
and transformation of a prior text or to a reader’s
referencing of one text in reading another.
Intertext
• Derived from the Latin intertexto, meaning to intermingle while
weaving, intertextuality is a term first introduced by French
semiotician Julia Kristeva in the late sixties. In essays such as "Word,
Dialogue, and Novel," Kristeva broke with traditional notions of the
author's "influences" and the text's "sources," positing that all
signifying systems, from table settings to poems, are constituted by
the manner in which they transform earlier signifying systems.
• A literary work, then, is not simply the product of a single author, but
of its relationship to other texts and to the structures of language
itself. "Any text," she argues, "is constructed of a mosaic of
quotations; any text is the absorption and transformation of another.”
Allusion
• indirect reference: an indirect reference to somebody or something
• a brief and indirect reference to a person, place, thing, or idea of
historical, cultural, literary, or political significance
• does not describe in detail the person or thing to which it refers
• is just a passing comment and the writer expects the reader to possess
enough knowledge to spot the allusion and grasp its importance in a text
• Examples:
1. “ Don’t act like Romeo in front of her.”
2. The rise in poverty will unlock the Pandora’s box of crimes.
PARODY
• Parody is an imitation of a particular writer, artist or a
genre, exaggerating it deliberately to produce a
comic effect. The humorous effect in parody is
achieved by imitating and overstressing noticeable
features of a famous piece of literature.
• Example of Parody
ADAPTATION

A film, TV drama, or stage play that is based on a

written work For example, JK Rowling’s Harry Potter
series has a film adaptation.
More examples of adaptation
Function of Intertextuality
Majority of the writers borrow ideas from the previous works to give a
layer of meanings to their works. In fact, when readers read the new text
with reflection of another literary work, all related assumptions, effects
and ideas of other text provide them a different meaning and changes
the technique of interpretation of the original piece.
Since readers take influence from other texts, and while reading new
texts they sift through archives, this device gives them relevance and
clarifies their understanding of the new texts. For writers, intertextuality
allows them to open new perspectives and possibilities to construct their
story. Thus, writers may explore a particular ideology in their narrative
by discussing recent rhetoric in the original text.