Book Studies

Book Studies at Wellesley College

To learn more about how to get involved, email Katherine M. Ruffin, Director of the Book Studies Program and Lecturer in Art at kruffin@wellesley.edu.

The Book Studies initiative, which was launched in 2010, supports book-oriented teaching and learning within the liberal arts curriculum. Focused on materials texts ranging from clay tablets to ancient Greek and Roman papyrus rolls to medieval manuscripts to the earliest printed books to the electronic books of today, it is rooted in the college’s rich bibliographic legacy and builds upon collections, facilities, faculty-staff expertise, and a rich network of Wellesley College graduates. Book Studies consists of a number of collaborative scholarly enterprises that probe the history and future of the book, both as a vessel for the transmission of text and image and as evidence of material culture. In its broadest sense, book studies can be thought of as the study of the evolution of written communication, of which the “book” is only one part. This emerging field is historic, contemporary, and interdisciplinary. It provides a framework to examine the social and political forces at work on the dissemination and reception of written, printed, and digital texts. Book Studies supports teaching and learning on campus through holding workshops and seminars and hosting visiting experts.

see also Book Arts Lab