Simon Roy Hughes 🍄<p>Who invented mobile devices? Arne Garborg, I claim. (English below)</p><p>«Så kommer den elskværdige vert og spør enhver især: har De truffet Deres valg? Hvilket stykke vil De se; hvilken opera vil De høre? Hvorpå enhver indretter sig ved sin telefon og sit skjærmbret – De forstår: det bret der optager de fotografiske øiebliksbilleder af vedkommende stykke, således at man ikke blot hører hvad der siges, men også ser hvad der foregår, hver bevægelse, hvert minespil… I mellemakterne spadseres der da og udvexles indtryk. Den ene jubler over de spanske danserinder på Edentheatret, medens den anden dør af begeistring over Gladstone’s speech… Det blir en underholdning!»</p><p>“Then the gracious host comes and asks each one singularly: Have you made your choice? Which play do you want to see; which opera do you want to listen to? Whereupon everyone settles down with their telephone and their tablet – you understand: the tablet that records the photographic snapshots of the play in question, so that one not only hears what is said, but also sees what is happening – every movement, every expression… Between the acts, people stroll and exchange their impressions. One raves about the Spanish dancers at the Eden Theatre, while another dies of enthusiasm for Gladstone’s speech… That will be entertainment!”</p><p>Arne Garborg. Trætte Mænd [Tired Men]. 1891.</p><p>Page spread, transcription, and translation provided to give you the opportunity of verifying the claim. Skjærmbret (Danish; modern Norwegian: skjermbrett) is the word used for a tablet computer.</p><p><a href="https://beige.party/tags/Literature" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Literature</span></a> <a href="https://beige.party/tags/ArneGarborg" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>ArneGarborg</span></a> <a href="https://beige.party/tags/iPad" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>iPad</span></a> <a href="https://beige.party/tags/Tablet" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Tablet</span></a> <a href="https://beige.party/tags/Bookstodon" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Bookstodon</span></a> <a href="https://beige.party/tags/Reading" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Reading</span></a></p>