--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The technology that threatens to kill off…" description: "\"The technology that threatens to kill off books as we know them - the 'physical book,' a new phrase in our language - is also making the physical book ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/50c/art-spiegelman-14058_age_the-technology-that-threatens-to-kill-of_1123739.jpg" --- # The technology that threatens to kill off books as we know… ![“The technology that threatens to kill off books as we know them - the 'physical book,' a new phrase in our language - is also making the physical book capable of being more beautiful than books have been since the middle ages.” quote by Art Spiegelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/50c/art-spiegelman-14058_age_the-technology-that-threatens-to-kill-of_1123739.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/50c/art-spiegelman-14058_age_the-technology-that-threatens-to-kill-of_1123739.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/50c/art-spiegelman-14058_age_the-technology-that-threatens-to-kill-of_1123739.jpg) > “The technology that threatens to kill off books as we know them - the 'physical book,' a new phrase in our language - is also making the physical book capable of being more beautiful than books have been since the middle ages.” [Art Spiegelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/art-spiegelman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He notes that digital threats to printed books also inspire new aesthetic possibilities, making physical books more beautiful than before. **In simple terms:** Digital danger spurs creative book designs. Key Takeaway Embrace technology to enhance physical media. Themes technology books creativity culture Mood reflective hopeful analytical Type literary creative When to use this quote - publishing - book design - library curation Key Concepts digital disruption design innovation literary heritage Questions to Reflect On - How can design improve reading experiences? - What balance should be struck between print and digital? A Different Perspective The claim may romanticize design over accessibility. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Age](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/age/) [Beautiful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beautiful/) [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Book Capable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book-capable-457566/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Capable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/capable/) [Kill Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kill-books-3054036/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [Making Physical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/making-physical-3054037/) [Middle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/middle/) [Middle ages](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/middle-ages/) [Phrases](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/phrases/) [Physical Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/physical-book-272814/) [Technology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/technology/) [Technology Threatens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/technology-threatens-2037848/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [What's interesting about making art is that you take everything you know about it and you bring it up to that point, and you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-schnabel/what-s-interesting-about-making-art-is-that-you-take-everything-you/) [Julian Schnabel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-schnabel/) > [I can't write the book I want to write, but I can and will write the book I am capable of writing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-patchett/i-can-t-write-the-book-i-want-to-write-but-i-can-and-will-write-the/) [Ann Patchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-patchett/) > [The will to mastery becomes all the more urgent the more technology threatens to slip from human control](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-heidegger/the-will-to-mastery-becomes-all-the-more-urgent-the-more-technology/) [Martin Heidegger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-heidegger/) > [Anyone who studies the contemporary phenomenon of global warming, or who fears the insidious impact that the smartphone is having on our lives, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-roochnik/anyone-who-studies-the-contemporary-phenomenon-of-global-warming-or/) [David Roochnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-roochnik/) > [When I was little, my ambition was to grow up to be a book. Not a writer. People can be killed like ants. Writers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amos-oz/when-i-was-little-my-ambition-was-to-grow-up-to-be-a-book-not-a/) [Amos Oz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amos-oz/) > [Computers don't kill books; people do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-rushkoff/computers-don-t-kill-books-people-do/) [Douglas Rushkoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-rushkoff/) > [“I can’t write the book I want to write, but I can and will write the book I am capable of writing. Again and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-patchett/i-can-t-write-the-book-i-want-to-write-but-i-can-and-will-write-the-2/) [Ann Patchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-patchett/) > [The book has very specific qualities. 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I think people who have had this experience of also seeing a book come together, from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwidge-danticat/i-very-much-love-a-physical-book-myself-i-think-people-who-have-had/) [Edwidge Danticat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwidge-danticat/) > [Motion comics take the underlying physical book material and enhance or modify it slightly enough to make it unique and, we think, best-suited for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-nelson/motion-comics-take-the-underlying-physical-book-material-and-enhance/) [Diane Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-nelson/) > [I do not believe that all books will or should migrate onto screens: as Douglas Adams once pointed out to me, more than 20…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/i-do-not-believe-that-all-books-will-or-should-migrate-onto-screens-2/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [“I do not believe that all books will or should migrate onto screens: as Douglas Adams once pointed out to me, more than 20…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/i-do-not-believe-that-all-books-will-or-should-migrate-onto-screens/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [“I think it's because when you hold a book you're also holding a tree in one form or another, and that direct connection lets…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-smith/i-think-it-s-because-when-you-hold-a-book-you-re-also-holding-a-tree/) [Ali Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-smith/) ## More by Art Spiegelman > [The book has very specific qualities. Let's say in 2300 they discover the physical book, after having lived with the digital book for several…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/art-spiegelman/the-book-has-very-specific-qualities-let-s-say-in-2300-they-discover/) [Art Spiegelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/art-spiegelman/) > [Comics seem to be cooking these days. It's like being a rock star.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/art-spiegelman/comics-seem-to-be-cooking-these-days-it-s-like-being-a-rock-star/) [Art Spiegelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/art-spiegelman/) > [In 1908, you could easily earn $20 to $200 as a cartoonist. 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People…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/art-spiegelman/i-m-not-talking-about-your-book-now-but-look-at-how-many-books-have/) [Art Spiegelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/art-spiegelman/) > [No matter what I accomplish, it doesn't seem like much compared to surviving Auschwitz.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/art-spiegelman/no-matter-what-i-accomplish-it-doesn-t-seem-like-much-compared-to/) [Art Spiegelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/art-spiegelman/) > [I'm supposed to be making comics, so I had to do it the best way I knew how, which is what those guys at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/art-spiegelman/i-m-supposed-to-be-making-comics-so-i-had-to-do-it-the-best-way-i/) [Art Spiegelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/art-spiegelman/) > [With any work worth its salt, you have to trust the author enough to take its measure. 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