The nature of the book

Description

In The Nature of the Book, a tour de force of cultural history, Adrian Johns constructs an entirely original and vivid picture of print culture and its many arenas—commercial, intellectual, political, and individual. "A compelling exposition of how authors, printers, booksellers and readers competed for power over the printed page...The richness of Mr. Johns's book lies in the splendid detail he has collected to describe the world of books in the first two centuries after the printing press arrived in England." —Alberto Manguel, Washington Times "[A] mammoth and stimulating account of the place of print in the history of knowledge...Johns has written a tremendously learned primer." —D. Graham Burnett, New Republic "A detailed, engrossing, and genuinely eye-opening account of the formative stages of the print culture...This is scholarship at its best." —Merle Rubin, Christian Science Monitor "The most lucid and persuasive account of the new kind of knowledge produced by print...A work to rank alongside McLuhan." —John Sutherland, The Independent"Entertainingly written...The most comprehensive account available...well documented and engaging." —Ian Maclean, Times Literary Supplement

First Sentence

Pick up a modern book.

Description

In The Nature of the Book, Adrian Johns transports his readers back to early modern England and the cauldron of creative and commercial forces in which print culture was formed. His uncanny eye for detail allows us to visit booksellers' shops and the Royal Society, paper manufactories and type foundries. We can eavesdrop on the often-bitter disputes between authors and printers, printers and booksellers, clerics and intellectuals as they debate and resolve the meaning and rights attached to the creation of ideas, their appearance in written form and then in print, and the opportunity to sell, buy, and read printed work. Johns focuses on the interplay between the scientific and print revolutions and on their roles, both complementary and antagonistic, in the production and dissemination of knowledge.

Subjects

Other Editions

• The nature of the book: print and knowledge in the makingUniversity of Chicago Press1998-01-01
• The Nature of the BookPaperbackUniversity Of Chicago Press2000-04-01
• The Nature of the BookElectronic resourceUniversity of Chicago Press2009-01-01