This illustration (by Adrian Tomine) appeared on the cover of the February 25, 2008 cover of The New Yorker. It illustrates quite beautifully the ephemeral life of the book in the modern day, from it's conception to it's creation to it's existence and destruction. The details in the cartoon show the changing of the seasons, indicating that the life span of the book (or at least one particular copy of it) was only one year. It also shows how the book's value changes as it changes hands. To the writer, it is the work of months, or years, a masterpiece, perhaps a life's work. To the publisher, it is a money-making vessel, and to the buyer/reader, it is a temporary source of entertainment. Finally, the cartoon shows the book as fuel, emphasizing it's materiality alone, rather than the ideas collected within it. What is striking in this depiction of the book, other than its transience, is it's versatility. It changes function in every square of the cartoon as its surroundings change, demonstrating its multifaceted nature.
back to the book
Posted at Oct 23/2008 09:29PM:
William Barnet: Wow, what a great set of pictures. You might've slipped out a possible angle from this: "The details in the cartoon show the changing of the seasons, indicating that the life span of the book (or at least one particular copy of it) was only one year."
I can see a few interesting ways in here: one, what's the definition of a book? Strange to think about, since there isn't a linguistic distinction between "the physical book", "the text within the book", or "the ideas embodied within the book." Plus, if you try and work with these different sub-definitions, how do you define a life span, ie. when the book is burned? When society as a whole is aware of it? I'm really looking forward to this one!
Thanks William-- the idea of the definition of the book is an interesting one, and sparked our interest. Here's what the dictionary thinks about the definition of the book.
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