All Together Now: Social Reading in the Digital Age

Conference: Reading Communities: Past and Present

Dates: 15 September 2016

Abstract:

The formation of diverse reading communities on the internet and social media has led to a resurgence of interest in social reading (e.g. Rehberg Sedo, 2011; Rehberg Sedo and Fuller, 2013; Lang 2012). Of course book and cultural historians are quick to remind us that there are many historical antecedents for readers coming together to share their experiences and interpretations of texts in social settings. But digital platforms can both extend the range and scale of the groups involved, and provide valuable archives comprised of the textual traces left by these acts of social reading. This paper will examine the phenomenon of social reading in two specific digital contexts. The first is an online community dedicated to the work of Jane Austen, where members routinely engage in ‘Group Reads’ of her novels as a means of rediscovering their passion for her work, and sharing new insights or titbits. The second is the use of shared hashtags on Twitter, allowing readers to chart their collective progress through a particular work, prompted by events such as the death of an author, or the release of a new television or film adaptation of a novel (as in the recent example of #mytolstory). The paper will provide close analysis of the specific forms social reading takes in these contexts, and how these contribute to the emergence of distinctive group identities and affective bonds between participants. It will also explore the specific ethical issues involved in researching readers in digital contexts, drawing on methods and approaches from internet and fan studies.

The paper is based on two projects on digital reading funded by the AHRC between 2012 and 2014.

Source: Manual