HYPERTEXT: Metaphorical Linking (Part III)
What comes to mind in examining Dreaming in Hypertext as an example of enabling a reader to discover more about the writer’s intent in using metaphor in poetry (or elsewhere for that matter) is that while it allows interactivity, it in fact is making the writer’s perception of his poem more clear and thus less open to interpretation by others.
In Mary Ellen’s poem, I might have understood the poem to be about one’s frustration with mankind’s inability to care for one another and respect the environment. Luckily, I guessed pretty close to her intent–which I’ve confirmed by following out the links–so can feel proud of myself perhaps for understanding the poem. We’re talking only metaphor here, and Mary Ellen’s writing is fairly honest and thus states a position without necessarily cloaking her words in symbolism.
What we can take this as, then, is reinforcement, or visuals, or footnotes perhaps. There is a more important message in the linking here to me, and I’ve mentioned this previously: by using links that are not structurally related by category or time or place (though time may be questionable–further investigation may prove it to be a case of all current state of affairs, thus setting the timeline of the poem), we do see a reference that is global in nature, therefore focusing on mankind rather than a society or culture in particular. This does indeed tie the links in an underlying manner that makes it more relevant.
Interesting way of looking at hypertext; interesting way of using it.
The Lost Children: A Charity Anthology