Unit 3: Multimodal Digital Literature

Overview

• Monday, June 8 - Concrete and Sound Poetry
• Tuesday, June 9 - Video Poetry
• Wednesday, June 10 - Kinetic Poetry and Storytelling
• Thursday, June 11 - Interactive Multimodal Writing
• Monday, June 15 - Essay #3 due

Monday, June 8 - Concrete and Sound Poetry

In class:

• "Looking at Poems"
• Concrete Poetry:
  • Introduction to Concrete Poetry: A World View (1968)
  • "Pilot Plan for Concrete Poetry"
  • Flowers in Concrete by Mary Ellen Solt
  • The Book of Hours and Constellations by Eugen Gömringer
• Sound Poetry:
  • Paul de Vree's Manifesto (1962)
  • "Kidz" and other sound poems by Paul de Vree
  • "Seahorses and Flying Fish" (1916) by Hugo Ball (it's a Dada poem with invented words, aside from the title) and listen to these two readings: Bob Marsh and Christian Bök
  • Kristin Oppenheim's sound poems.

Assignment:

• Read Electronic Literature, Chapter 5
• Watch this video on multimodality by Gunther Kress.
• Watch Tom Konyves "Introduction to the Concept and Theory of Videopoetry"

Tuesday, June 9 - Video Poetry

In class:

• Precedents:
  • RSVP
    • Tachistoscope
    • Spritz Reader
  • Title sequence for North by Northwest (1959).
  • Pinky and the Brain title sequence (1995)
• Videopoetry:
  • "Correcaminos" (1965) by Eduardo Darino
  • "Roda Lume" (1968) by E.M. Melo e Castro
  • "Sign Language" (1985) by Tom Konyves
  • "First Screening" (1984) by bpNichol
  • "Ergon/Logos" (2009) by Paolo Pedercini (Molleindustria)
  • Read "When" (2009) by Ottar Ormstad
  • "Big Data" (2020) by Diego Bonilla and Rodolfo Mata
• Kinetic Typography
  • "The 8 Rules of Fight Club" (2008)
  • "Fuck You" (2010) by Cee Lo Green
  • "Right Action" (2013) by Franz Ferdinand and Jonas Odell

Assignment:

• Read one work by Young-Hae Chang Heavy Industries and be prepared to present it in our next class.
• Justin Stephenson:
  • Read "The Complete Works" (1968) by bpNichol
  • Watch The Complete Works by Justin Stephenson
  • Explore the website for The Complete Works, especially the page titled The Film, which offers information on the visual poems.
• Assigned presentations: Three on works by Young-Hae Chang Heavy Industries, and two focusing on video poems inside The Complete Works.

Wednesday, June 10 - Kinetic Poetry and storytelling

In class:

• Young-Hae Chang Heavy Industries
• The Complete Works by Justin Stephenson
• "Typoems and Anipoems" by Ana María Uribe
• "Seattle Drift" by Jim Andrews
• "Strings" by Dan Waber
• "The Sweet Old Etcetera" by Alison Clifford
• "Thoughts Go" by David Knoebel
• "Project for Tachistoscope (Bottomless Pit)" by William Poundstone

Assignment:

• "Welcome to Pine Point" by The Goggles
• "Queerskins" by Illya Szilak (try the VR chapters, if you can, otherwise the novel)
• Prepare to present on assigned work.

Thursday, June 11 - Interactive Multimodal Writing

In class:

• "Welcome to Pine Point" by The Goggles
• "Queerskins" by Illya Szilak
• James Dickey's Hyperpoems
• "My Boyfriend Came Back From the War" by Olia Lialina
• "Fitting the Pattern" by Christine Wilks
• "Separation" by Annie Abrahams
• "Birds Singing Other Birds' Songs" by María Mencía
• "NeoNio" by Jim Andrews
• Dreaming Methods

Essay #3: Analysis and Interpretation of a Multimodal Work

Choose a multimodal work from the following list:

• Any of the works we've explored.
• Any of the works published in the volumes of the Electronic Literature Collection
  • Note: if you choose a Flash work (there are many in volumes 1-3), check to see if they have been preserved and can work in The NEXT or elsewhere.
• There are a few works in the ELC4 and iOS that are commercial and can be purchased for a very reasonable price. I encourage you to do so, which will not only give you access to a more complete work, but will support the creators.
• The New Media Writing Prize Archive
• The New River Archive

Parameters and Criteria:

• The essay should be about 1000 words (4 pages) in length.
• It should offer an interpretive thesis that is supported by detailed analysis of the work.
• When possible, include screen-captured images or video to support your essay.
• The essay should cite at least 2 secondary sources.
  • Recommended: "Print is Flat, Code is Deep: The Importance of Media-Specific Analysis" by N. Katherine Hayles
• The essay should be formatted in MLA or some other established format of your choice.
• The essay is due on Monday, June 15.