What Digital Remediation Does to Critical Editions and Reading Practices

This chapter analyzes critical edition digitization ambitions, ranging from the conception and aims of editors to the expectations of readers. The first part deals with issues and questions raised by the digital trend in scholarly text editions as they migrate from one media to another. The chapter explains, through the concept of remediation, how the traits and configuration of editions that are present in print technology live on in digital technology, even though text creation and dissemination have profoundly changed. Digital remediation of text is taking place within a digital context impelling new reading habits. The remainder of the chapter explores these new emerging reading practices, coupled with a probing of readers' expectations.