HYPERTEXT AND

INTERTEXT
WHAT IS HYPERTETXT?
Hypertext is simply a non-linear way of presenting
information. Rather than reading or learning about things in
the order that an author, or editor, or publisher sets out for
us, readers of hypertext may follow their own path, create
their own order-- their own meaning out the material.
This is accomplished by creating "links" between information. These links are
provided so that readers may "jump" to further information about a specific topic
being discussed (which may have more links, leading each reader off into a
different direction). For instance, if you are reading an article about marine
mammal bioacoustics, you may be interested in seeing a picture of a dolphin. Or
you may want to hear the sound it makes (~80K). Or you may even be interested
in seeing what a marine mammal sound "looks like" in a spectrogram. You might
even want to find out more about sounds made by other animals in the sea, thus
leading you on a completely different, detailed path.
WHAT IS INTERTEXT?
- is the way that one text influences another. This can be a direct
borrowing such as a quotation or plagiarism, or slightly more indirect
such as parody, pastiche, allusion, or translation. The function and
effectiveness of intertextuality can often depend quite a bit on the
reader’s prior knowledge and understanding before reading the
secondary text; parodies and allusions depend on the reader knowing
what is being parodied or alluded to.
However, there also are many examples of intertextuality
that are either accidental on the part of the author or
optional, in the sense that the reader is not required to
understand the similarities between texts to fully grasp the
significance of the secondary text.
The definition of intertextuality was created by the French semiotician
Julia Kristeva in the 1960s. She created the term from the Latin word
intertexto, which means “to intermingle while weaving.” Kristeva argued
that all works of literature being produced contemporarily are intertextual
with the works that came before it. As she stated, “[A]ny text,” she argues,
“is constructed of a mosaic of quotations; any text is the absorption and
transformation of another.”
The difference between hypertext and intertext
is that hypertext is (uncountable) digital text in which
the reader may navigate related information through
embedded hyperlinks while intertext is a reference to
one text within another.