Text analysis in the field of humanities has been around for many years, some going back decades prior to the digital generation. Like any type of information, some questions remain such as is it accurate? Is it necessary? Is it helpful? Is it biased? Are the results presented in an appropriate way?
The debate also arises in the camps of close reading and distance reading. While close reading allows for the nuance of individual works to be examined in the specific piece in which they are written, the larger concept of distance reading allows for questions about trends and broader systematic concepts to be addressed. This concept could be applied to a specific author’s library of works or, as discussed during class, old newspapers which tell the story of cultural norms during specific eras, and a tracking of which the text contents begin to shift, indicating certain practices and acceptances decrease and disappear completely.
While the concept of text analysis can build a certain amount of anticipation in the search for answers to cultural trends or perhaps authors’ underlying themes and perceptions, one has to be cognizant of the potential of results being presented in ways that can be skewed. One such chart found during our discussion portrayed certain words as top usage which at first glance could make the consumer assess that it was heavily incorporated in the works, but upon closer review, however, the usage was found to be only 4% and subsequent words on the chart, even lower, thus leaving the consumer to question the value of the significance of the study.
Results can be presented in many fashions of charts and other forms, adding an additional level of understanding and visual appeal. With the exploration of Voyant, the options for the visuals were varied and quite pleasing to explore. The variation is quite valuable as one has to choose which form is the most effective to project the results of each individual study, as there is no one-size-fits-all. While the application of analysis may have started in a different field of discipline, the incorporation of these concepts, practices, and tools in the field of humanities, has added an additional depth of understanding of culture and our past.