Truth in Serial Form: Serial Formats and the Form of the Series, 1850-1930

This volume has its starting point in the veritable explosion of serialized formats in all of forms representation, from painting to printing, beginning in the mid nineteenth century and the well-known fascination with series in biology, mathematics, music, art, or literature. The new media culture of the late nineteenth century, very much shaped by these serialized formats, sees itself confronted with questions of truthfulness in new and profound ways, just as perhaps the accelerated rhythm, anonymity, and broadened accessibility of new media today have created new possibilities for the dissemination of misinformation and, conversely, give us cause to interrogate anew our notions of truthfulness. By examining both the formal operations of both aesthetic and scientific objects in a series form, and the historical context of their publication or presentation, the contributions in this volume examine the often strained, but yet immensely productive relationship between the way in which a series negotiates questions of truthfulness: both by reference to the rules established in its series form or by means of its serial format. This volume provides ten detailed cases of the series form from the history of science and journalism, and the history of painting, photography, and literature as well.