Nature of the text in the digital age :deciphering its message and shaping its meaning.

Abstract

Because today reading and writing often take place on screens rather than in print and because computers have turned into indispensable constituents when reading and composing texts, the rhetoric of electronic communication becomes an important issue in classes focused on teaching writing. This thesis endeavors to show that computers have brought new ways of shaping information and delivering messages, and, therefore, it is essential to understand the flexible nature of the electronic discourse and the special alphabetic-iconic interaction of the type settings in order to know how to approach this new kind of text. In this respect, English studies need to welcome this new component in their repertoire of competencies and teach students to be literate readers and writers when working with the electronic text.