This course (INF2161H — History of Books and Publishing) investigates print and digital publishing ecosystems both holistically and through their individual functions, including authorship, publishing, printing, bookselling, librarianship, and reading. Drawing on disciplinary perspectives such as publishing studies, media studies, and book history, the course considers topics such as literary production, distribution, and circulation, with emphasis on connections between past and present. The interplay between social, cultural, economic, technological, and political forces will be examined through case studies on small and large scales, from the local to the transnational.
Note: Prior to September 2019, course name was “History of Books and Printing”
