Chapter 2 is dedicated to the Digital Humanities, -its emergence as an academic field, as well as its future in collaboration with the Traditional Humanities and development of entirely new areas of study. As it has evolved from a “low-prestige status of a support service into a genuinely intellectual endeavor” with its own practices, standards, and theoretical explorations, Hayles sees two diverging dynamics at work in the future of the Digital Humanities, one involving the creation of entirely new areas of exploration, and the other being the engagement of a “recursive feedback loop” with the Traditional Humanities (24, 32). The development of Critical Code Theory and the study of digitally-native media are exemplary of new forming areas of study, whereas the aggregation and organization of exhaustive amounts of data through technology, such as with the Clergy of the Church of England Database project referenced in the book, can be seen as ways in which the Digital Humanities enhance endeavors of the Traditional Humanities. Hayles argues that the connection between the Digital Humanities and the Traditional Humanities must be sustained if the Traditional Humanities are to survive the paradigm upheaval regarding digital media. However, Hayles admits that doing so may potentially come at the cost of impeding the progress of theoretical exploration and academic acceptance of the Digital Humanities.
The Manifesto for the Digital Humanities.
Sources:
Hayles, N. Katherine. How We Think. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2012. Print.