The Theory and Criticism of Virtual Texts: An Annotated Bibliography, 1988-1999

Virtual texts have emerged within the realm of the Internet as the predominant means of global communication. As both technological and cultural artifacts, they embody and challenge cultural assumptions and invite new ways of conceptualizing knowledge, community, identity, and meaning. But despite the pervasiveness of the Internet in nearly all aspects of contemporary life, no single resource has cataloged the ways in which numerous disciplines have investigated and critiqued virtual texts. This bibliography includes more than 1500 annotated entries for books, articles, dissertations, and electronic resources on virtual texts published between 1988 and 1999.

Because of the multiple contexts in which virtual texts are studied, the bibliography addresses virtual communication across a broad range of disciplines and philosophies. It encompasses studies of the historical development of virtual texts; investigations of the many interdisciplinary applications of virtual texts and discussions of such legal issues as privacy and intellectual property. Entries are arranged alphabetically within topical chapters, and extensive indexes facilitate easy access.

LORY HAWKES is Senior Professor of General Education at the DeVry Institute of Technology in Dallas, where she teaches professional writing and web design. She is a Fellow of the Society for Technical Communication and Assistant to the President for Communication. Her previous books include Hyperspatial Travel into the Internet (1996) and Guide to the World Wide Web (1999).

CHRISTINA MURPHY is Assistant Dean of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences and Professor of English at The William Paterson University of New Jersey. Her books include Writing Centers: An Annotated Bibliography (Greenwood, 1996), Landmark Essays on Writing Centers (1995), The St. Martin's Sourcebook for Writing Tutors (1995), Writing Center Perspectives (1995), Critical Thinking Skills Journal (1995), and Ann Beattie (1986).

JOE LAW is Coordinator of the Writing Across the Curriculum Program and Associate Professor of English at Wright State University. He is a widely published scholar in Victorian cultural studies, writing centers and writing programs, the interrelationship of literature and the fine arts, and opera history and criticism. His books include Biographical Passages: Essays on Victorian and Modernist Biography (2000), Writing Centers: An Annotated Bibliography (Greenwood, 1996), and Landmark Essays on Writing Centers (1995).