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The Question
Do you think the abstract nature and accessibility of text have changed how we view it?
About This Conversation
When we think of the history of books, we often neglect the people who created them. We think of history as a figment of facts, connected together by time and advances in technology. But sometimes we overlook the humanity, the souls, the fingerprints in the ink-stained margins of long-forgotten tomes. In this episode, I sit down with Oxford's Prof. Adam Smyth to discuss his Book-Makers: A History of the Book in Eighteen Lives.
How a book was made tells us about the people who created it, as well as what the culture valued about books. The way a book was formed changes how we interact with it as well.
Conversation Map
A guided path through the episode, adapted from the original topic list while preserving the questions that make the show feel like itself.
02
The book - a blend of prose and production
03
How culture influenced the design of books
04
How hand-printing influences your view of writing
05
"Do you think the abstract nature and accessibility of text have changed how we view it?"
Recurring Question
"What books have had an impact on you?"
For Young Listeners
"What advice do you have for teenagers?
Guest Bio
Adam Smyth is professor of English literature and the history of the book at Balliol College, University of Oxford. He is a regular contributor to the London Review of Books and the TLS. He also runs the 39 Steps Press, a small printing press, which he keeps in a barn in Oxfordshire, England.
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