Readers come to digital work with expectations formed by print, including extensive and deep tacit knowledge of letter forms, print conventions, and print literary modes. Of necessity, electronic literature must build on these expectations even as it modifies and transforms them. At the same time, because electronic literature is normally created and performed within a context of networked and programmable media, it is also informed by the powerhouses of contemporary culture, particularly computer games, films, animations, digital arts, graphic design, and electronic visual culture. In this sense electronic literature is a "hopeful monster" (as geneticists call adaptive mutations) composed of parts taken from diverse traditions that may not always fit neatly together. Hybrid by nature, it comprises a trading zone (as Peter Galison calls it in a different context) in which different vocabularies, expertises and expectations come together to see what might come from their intercourse. (Note 2) Electronic literature tests the boundaries of the literary and challenges us to re-think our assumptions of what literature can do and be
This thought beautifully captures the complex nature of electronic literature. It highlights how this new form builds upon existing expectations from print while simultaneously embracing the possibilities of the digital world. The "hopeful monster" analogy is apt, suggesting a hybrid creation born from diverse influences. By drawing on the powerhouses of contemporary culture, it pushes the boundaries of what we consider "literary," challenging us to rethink our assumptions about its forms and functions. Electronic literature thrives in this "trading zone," where different languages, expertises, and expectations meet and converge, creating something entirely new.