Abbe Don links narrative and the database closely during the inception of digital literature. A narrative approach provides a framework that allows the structure and content of the knowledge base to evolve. 1990

Narrative approach enables multimedia knowledge bases as events experienced in a dynamic, temporal sequence rather than objects. (Abbe Don) 1990

Katherine Hayles describes the modern nature of the database in her book, "How We Think". The self-describing nature of databases are in direct contrast to narratives which often say more than a table of contents alludes. A database focuses on the collection, assimilation, and storage of information. It can parse information according to logical categories that order and list the different data elements. 2012

The database has begun to overtake narrative as the world transitions to an information gathering society. The more influential and valuable information becomes, the larger the demand for databases which can sustain the quantity of information. (Katherine Hayles) 2012

The relational database is the most common form of data collection. The data is managed into tables, columns, and rows. The database can only provide the information, it cannot interpret it. (Katherine Hayles) 2012

The connection between narrative and the database has remained in a state of flux since the beginning of digital literature. In Abbe Don's influential essay on "Narrative and the Interface", the narrative and database form a symbiotic relationship. The narrative forms a structure that the database, and the information it contains, complete. By approaching literature through narrative, the information collected in the database is given the opportunity to evolve through sequences rather then through a rigid, logical structure. 

As societal needs have evolved, the database has grown exponentially. The modern age is an age of information where more is always better. In terms of digital literature, the database has begun to overpower the narrative; swallowing it completely. The most common form of database, the relational database, is structured in a way that opposes any narrative influence. Managed through tables, columns, and rows there is little room for interpretation. Katherine Hayles identifies the need for a united relationship in modern digital literature. Authors must use the quantity of information that these databases provide in order to weave narratives that are situated in the real world, and that interpret the information in ways databases cannot.  

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