The Journey of Books

by Heather Oberlander and Janine Sobeck, dramaturgs

Do you love to read? Is your home or office full of books? In a world where books can be delivered instantly to your e-reader, it's hard to imagine a time when reading a book was a rare privilege. And yet, throughout the history of time, the wondrous stories and important information contained within the pages of books have not been always available to everyone. To see how far we have come, check out our brief look into the journey of books.

1200 B.C.

It is around this time that the Phoenicians created the first known alphabet.

The first known use of writing was in Sumeria. People used clay tablets to record information about mining and crops.

1154 B.C.

It’s not known exactly when scrolls began to be used, but it was sometime around 1154 B.C. Scrolls were made out of stretched animal skin called parchment.

The next form of the book was the codex. It was 2 pieces of wood bound together and covered in wax. The writing would be scratched in to the wax. The Codex was so important that it is still the official name of a bound book.

1 A.D.

Paper was invented in China around 1 A.D. They folded it in to books accordion style. It took quite a while for this discovery to reach the rest of the world.

7 A.D.

Eventually people started putting parchment pages in to codexes. People start making copies of books called manuscripts. These copies are made by hand, usually by monks. It can take weeks or months to copy one book.

1439 A.D.

Johannes Gutenberg invented moveable type print. Now after a page of a book is created it can be “stamped” onto paper multiple times.

1605 A.D.

Don Quixote is considered the first western novel.

1754 A.D.

Benjamin Franklin created the first editorial comic urging the colonies to fight together.

1837 A.D.

The Adventures of Mr. Obadiah Oldbuck, considered the first comic book, was published in North America.

1935 A.D.

IBM creates the first commercially successful typewriter.

1971 A.D.

The creator of e-books sends everyone on the internet a copy of the Declaration of Independence. It is the first known example of a computer virus!

1995 A.D.

Amazon.com is launched as an online bookstore.

2004 A.D.

Sony releases the first e-reader to use electronic paper technology.

2005 A.D

Princess Academy by Shannon Hale is published.

2015 A.D.

What does the future hold?

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Princess Academy

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by Emme Corbett, dramaturg As a senior student studying history at BYU. One of the first concepts you learn as a history major is that when you study history, it is vital that you do not bring your modern-day biases with you. As strange as some past behaviors or occurrences may be to our modern eyes, understanding the reality of what life was like in historical societies allows for a more authentic and rich study of the past. It also becomes evident fairly quickly that no matter what point in time you’re studying or where you are in the world, there will be commonalities across many cultures. The shared similarity of the human experience allows these connections to occur, so it is no surprise that researching various time periods could be related back to Caesar in Ancient Rome. It was necessary in our dramaturgical research to explore three major time periods that are encompassed within this play in one way or another. These time periods are first, 49 B.C. Rome, when Julius Caesar first became a dictator of Ancient Rome, and the setting for the original script. Second, 1599 England, when William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar was first performed, most likely at the Globe Theatre. And third, 1919 Italy, when Italy was recovering from participating in the First World War, and the setting for our performance at BYU. This weakened state created a situation where authoritarianism could ensue. It was an interesting experience to be able to connect the culture of Ancient Rome to that of Italy in the early 20th century. The reason for choosing this production of Julius Caesar to take place in 1919 Italy is not random. The significance of that time period is to draw upon the reality that history repeats itself. An aspect of history that is repeatedly detrimental to countless societies is when a group of people finds itself weak and vulnerable--whether that is due to lack of resources, a change in leadership, exiting a war, or simply evolving generations--and a power vacuum is created. This moment in time when desperation allows for someone to assume leadership (based purely on the need to rely on anybody) and provide temporary relief is often too quickly turned into an authoritarian government. The third time period that we also had to account for in this production was the time of Shakespeare in 1599 England. Some of the questions we had to ask ourselves were: Why Julius Caesar? What elements from the story of Caesar’s assassination did Shakespeare feel would resonate with his audience? From these questions and further research on the Elizabethan period, we discovered that, like in 1919 Italy, there was a concern with the succession to the Crown. Queen Elizabeth I was on the throne at the time and created conflict among the people beyond her just being a woman in power. Queen Elizabeth never married and subsequently never bore any children, thus failing to secure a successor who was in her direct line. Another element of the play that related to Shakespeare’s audience was the role of the plebeians. Their behavior in the play could symbolize how the lower class in the Elizabethan Era, while uneducated and changeable, contribute largely to the success of their society.