Contours of constructive hypertexts

Abstract

Discussion of hypertext rhetoric and criticism has foeused on small, freed hypertext that am typically used by casual readers for comparatively short periods. Here we explo~ complex, constructive hypertext, intended to inform and to infIuence dedicated and thoughtful readers. Recurrence and multivalence, both deplored in small hypertext, prove from study of mom complex texts to be very valuable. While static, graph-theoretic measures facilitate understanding of Ioeal hypertext structure, the structures of meaning or contours we observe in current hypertext fiction and scholarship do not appear to reside in static structures, but rather in the complex and dynamic perceptions of the engagedreader.