Introduction: Does it Matter?

In his 1986 article "Intertextuality and the Discourse Community," James Porter writes, "If we regard each written product as a state in a larger process -- the dialectic process within a discourse community -- then the individual writer's work is part of a web, part of a community search for truth and meaning" (p. 43). This seems, then, like the perfect metaphorical precursor to a website like this one; if every written work is part of a larger discursive web, then it's obvious that a medium like the World-Wide Web should have a site dedicated to the process (and products) of rhetorical invention.

Unfortunately, the justification for much of what currently exists on the Internet, and on the WWW in particular, can be summed up in essentially this same way: we can do it, therefore we should try it.

This argument is not completely without merit; sometimes the best of our human genius stumbles upon discovery simply by "trying something new." Nonetheless, to say "we should try this because we can" and then, upon succeeding proclaim, "see, it worked! Good thing we tried!" seems inherently (and redundantly) recursive. For me, it brings to mind Durkheim's explanation of human behavior: society emerges from the action and interaction of individuals, and in turn influences them to act in certain ways. Where does it begin? Does it matter?