As we have grown up in a modern world where the most common book is cheap paper bound together by glue beneath a cheap cover, it can be challenging to undo our orientation to what qualities we expect to be “normal” of the codex and typical to the reading experience. Before this class, I was aware of “book history” as a field of study, however, knowing little, I never anticipated how our interactions with and expectations of a book reflects and constructs meaning. Though these biases may be unconscious, they reflect Borsuk’s observation that “Our conception of the book and access are intimately shaped by the shape it takes.” (Borsuk 89). With content, form, and format being inseparable entwined with each other, Borsuk acknowledges how the material form of the book as an object influences our interaction with the book as a form of content that contains information within its vessel. 

Something I had not recognized within my own perception of the codex was addressed in Chapter 2 of The Book as Borsuk makes note of how we often consider books that are larger as more valuable. Reflecting on our visit to Special Collections last week I can now recognize how in handling the archives I did view the Torah scroll and the very large book with the wooden cover (I am drawing a blank on what the book was called) as more valuable or as deserving more care than some of the smaller books like the artist books. Intrinsically, I felt the size and more elaborate nature of their materials like wood and metal deserved more reverence. In contrast, the small nature and more common materials used in the other books felt more casual and approachable because of their similarities to the modern book, which is why they didn’t feel as significant. 

Through this experience, I better understand my orientation to the book and Borsuk’s emphasis on the importance of shape. Without knowing or understanding the contents or histories of these different artifacts, my mind followed social and historical constructions that larger items demand more authority and legitimacy partially due to taking up more space. Therefore, form and format impact content as our instinctual need to judge a book by its cover provides the framework for how a work’s meaning is interpreted and the medium is integrated into the book’s message.