Abstract

The article contains general definition of the phenomenon of hypertext and the Internet in a virtual consciousness philosophy of post-modernism. Describes the phenomenon of hypertext as nonlinear forms of computer and literary texts, its structural units and the main aspects of the organization of hypertext. The article contains the detailed analysis of publications on the issue of hypertext and the history of investigation of this problem. The specific features which allow defining of hypertext as the brand new phenomenon are analyzed in the article. Among them we can mention the following points: - Hypertext is constantly updateable, amendable, editable; - Hypertext has neither any set beginning or the end nor any hierarchical structure; - Hypertext has decentralized nature; - The specific features of hypertext are manifested in text transformations. If an "ordinary" text has linear character, and one can move in its "area" only in the directions limited by one and the same space, then rhizomorphic hypertext opens new "transverse" changes in the text Universe. The way of organizing of text in Internet corresponds to the major ideas of "nomadology" and "Rhizome" developed by Gilles Deleuze and F?lix Guattari in their Capitalism and Schizophrenia project. Postmodernist electronic hypertext is a phenomenon by its nature opposite to modernist printed text. This allows us to consider hypertext as one of the features of coming of "post- Gutenberg era". Hypertext fundamentally changes the way of construction of text environment - to replace the one-dimensional text comes multi-dimensional. In the phenomenon of the global information network, created on the basis of hypertext technology, - intertextual fiber, series of texts, which intercross with other texts, produce new texts. In conclusions of the article - the characterization of hypertext as postmodernist phenomenon is given and the major views of postmodernism which are represented in hypertext - plurality, decentration, fragmentariness, intertextuality - are provided.