The Book Out of Order: Structure, Inversion, Dissent
“The book always aims at installing an order, whether it is the order in which it is deciphered, the order in which it is to be understood, or the order intended by the authority who commanded or permitted the work.” (Roger Chartier, The Order of the Book)
If, according to Roger Chartier, “the book always aims at installing an order,” what does it mean for the book to be out of order? Is it broken? Is it committing some kind of transgression? Is it still a book? What is a book supposed to do, and what does it mean when it falls short of its perceived functions – or overshoots them?