Word, Sound, Image: The Life of the Tamil Text » (First Edition)

Saskia Kersenboom is an Associate Professor in Linguistic Anthropology, at the University of Amsterdam.

The first anthropology book to be sold with a Compact Disc Interactive (CDi)

This original and radical book challenges dominant parameters of literacy by comparing the oral tradition of the Tamils in South India with the Western culture of printed text. In India, traditional texts are always performed; as a result, form and meaning can change depending on the occasion. This is the opposite of Western communication through publication which is a static representation of knowledge.

The author examines the reasons for the differences between the Indian and Western textual traditions, and describes how text lives through the performing arts of words, sound and imagery. She argues that interactive multimedia is the first Western communication form to represent oral traditions effectively. A Compact Disc Interactive (CD-i) - packaged with the book - allows readers to see for themselves how multimedia can add meaning and complement traditional text-based studies.

The CDi: The CDi offers a new learning experience that builds on the two-way creative process in an efficient and enjoyable way. A TV set and CDi player is all that is required to run the Philips CDi.