A primary element or aim of DH projects seems to be opening the archive doors to a broader audience by making artifacts that were once locationally (and intellectually) limited available to those with internet access and a desire to learn. Beyond access and a democratization of information, the key component seems to involve digitization in the wake of a departmental cross-pollination. Not all humanities faculty are tech savvy; however, the willingness to bridge the gap between humanitarian interests and computational expertise is really the crux of a successful digital humanities project.

This is where the Walt Whitman Archive found its mission to promote the complex works of one of America’s most renowned poets. If the English faculty/curators were to simply scan and post Whitman’s works in an open source format like a website, it may have satisfied the accessibility aspect of a DH project’s core values, but it would have fallen short in other areas, namely the ideological component inherent in incorporating more than just published and noted works and instead also providing documentation like letters, hand-written drafts, and commentary. The blend of primary and secondary sources in a central and accessible location draws in the work of historians, critics, and the author himself. What this establishes is a well-rounded picture of Whitman’s contribution that gives a more general audience the opportunity to read and interpret his work without the influence of experts. Essentially, the real value of this DH project is that it not only bridges the gap between disciplines but also between the ivory tower of academia and the lay scholar. More than anything, this project creates opportunities for new insights into the work and inner workings of Whitman. As the Gold chapter mentions in its discussion of Whitman’s pedagogical approach, this DH project also fosters the spirit of his progressive belief in engagement’s essential role for true learning.

All of the aforementioned features revolve around the humanities aspect; however, the digital is equally important. The digitization and collaboration with computational experts helped create an interface or visualization that is user-friendly, logical, easy to navigate and above all, rich in the content. Although the primary focus is on the texts, the thought and design invested by those with a computational background gives the project order and lends to the overall mission of such an archive by tearing down the walls of exclusivity that are so often associated with brick and mortar archives.

DH projects rely just as much on design as content. For academic humanists, content is the primary goal; however, the real mission is to share the wealth of the archive with the general public in order to achieve the ideal of promoting a community that is invested in learning and becoming more aware of what it means to be human.