ENGL352 Special Topic: Digital Literature

Overview

In an increasingly digitised, networked, and visual culture, it has become clear that narrative is only one among many forms that is used to organise information and represent our world. The movement from print to digital media, however, has by no means left this cultural form behind. This course will introduce and analyse a range of narrative fiction that has emerged with the ascendancy of digital media, including hypertexts and Web-based fiction; textual adventure games/Interactive Fictions (IFs); and text-based multi-user discourses (MUDs). It will also address the role of narrative in structuring and shaping artefacts of contemporary popular culture that are exclusive to screen media, such as Web-logs (or "blogs") and video games.

NOTE: Only basic computer literacy and web navigation skills are recommended for this paper, but no technical skills are needed. The "computer lab" is like a tutorial that will involve computers as well as discussion.

This paper is cross-coded with ENGL 252

Assessment

This paper is internally assessed:

1) Workshops [20 percent]
2) Essay 1 [20 percent]
3) Essay 2 [35 percent]
4) Final Project Web [25 percent]

Texts

All primary and secondary texts will be provided online via the course website.

The one exception in print is Milorad Pavic's Dictionary of the Khazars, which will be available via restricted loan for students at the beginning of the course.

Coordinator and Lecturer

Dr David Ciccoricco