Overview
A survey of digital literature that applies narrative theory to digital fiction and poetry, interactive fictions, multi-user discourses, and story-driven games.
In this paper students analyse a range of narrative fiction that has emerged with the ascendancy of digital media, including web-based fiction and poetry; textual adventure games/Interactive Fictions (IFs); and story-driven games.
Students will engage with questions that arise when narrative fiction migrates to digital environments, such as those that concern the concepts of multi-linearity, immersion, spatiality, simulation and collaborative composition. They will also respond critically to the distinction between "literature" and "games" and that of "interpretation" and "play." Broadly, students will consider the implications of digital narratives for the reading and writing (authorship) of texts.
NOTE: Only basic computer literacy is needed for this paper. No specific technical skills are needed.
About this paper
| Paper title | Digital Literature: Technologies of Storytelling |
|---|---|
| Subject | English |
| EFTS | 0.15 |
| Points | 18 points |
| Teaching period | Not offered in 2026 (On campus) |
| Domestic Tuition Fees ( NZD ) | $1,103.10 |
| International Tuition Fees | Tuition Fees for international students are elsewhere on this website. |
- Prerequisite
- 18 200-level ENGL points
- Schedule C
- Arts and Music
- Notes
- May not be credited together with ENGL252 passed in 2010 or ENGL352 passed between 2010-2014.
- Contact
- dave.ciccoricco@otago.ac.nz
- More information link
View more information on the English and Linguistics Programme website
- Teaching staff
- Paper Structure
There are two 1-hour lectures per week.
There is one 1-hour hands-on workshop.- Teaching Arrangements
- All lectures are taught by the course co-ordinator with the exception of one guest lecture.
All workshops are taught by both the co-ordinator and a teaching assistant. - Textbooks
- All primary and secondary texts will be provided online via the course website, or as otherwise directed online.
- Graduate Attributes Emphasised
- Interdisciplinary perspective, Critical thinking, Cultural understanding, Ethics, Information literacy, Teamwork.
View more information about Otago's graduate attributes. - Learning Outcomes
Students who successfully complete this paper will have:
- Gained a basic understanding of narrative as a "cultural form" that transcends disciplinary boundaries
- Become familiar with narrative fiction that belongs to the field of digital literature and gained a familiarity with the working vocabulary and critical concepts of that field
- Demonstrated basic ability in the use of hypertext and web applications for the reading and writing of texts
- Utilised asynchronous textual communication applications online to extend classroom polemic and engage in critical debate with peers
- Identified main points and claims in a variety of secondary sources and triangulated these claims in relation to other sources and readings in the process of conducting research for individual assessments
- Understood higher concepts that underpin the relationship between literature and media and demonstrated that understanding in written assessments
- Gained an understanding of ethical and political implications of digital writing technologies across gender and culture
Overview
A survey of digital literature that applies narrative theory to digital fiction and poetry, interactive fictions, multi-user discourses, and story-driven games.
In this paper students analyse a range of narrative fiction that has emerged with the ascendancy of digital media, including web-based fiction and poetry; textual adventure games/Interactive Fictions (IFs); and story-driven games.
Students will engage with questions that arise when narrative fiction migrates to digital environments, such as those that concern the concepts of multi-linearity, immersion, spatiality, simulation and collaborative composition. They will also respond critically to the distinction between "literature" and "games" and that of "interpretation" and "play." Broadly, students will consider the implications of digital narratives for the reading and writing (authorship) of texts.
NOTE: Only basic computer literacy is needed for this paper. No specific technical skills are needed.
About this paper
| Paper title | Digital Literature: Technologies of Storytelling |
|---|---|
| Subject | English |
| EFTS | 0.15 |
| Points | 18 points |
| Teaching period | Semester 2 (On campus) |
| Domestic Tuition Fees | Tuition Fees for 2027 have not yet been set |
| International Tuition Fees | Tuition Fees for international students are elsewhere on this website. |
- Prerequisite
- 18 200-level ENGL points
- Schedule C
- Arts and Music
- Notes
- May not be credited together with ENGL252 passed in 2010 or ENGL352 passed between 2010-2014.
- Contact
- Professor David Ciccoricco
- More information link
View more information on the English and Linguistics Programme website.
- Teaching staff
- Paper Structure
There are two 1-hour lectures per week.
There is one 1-hour hands-on workshop.- Teaching Arrangements
- All lectures are taught by the course co-ordinator with the exception of one guest lecture.
All workshops are taught by both the co-ordinator and a teaching assistant. - Textbooks
All primary and secondary texts will be provided online via the course website, or as otherwise directed online.
- Graduate Attributes Emphasised
- Interdisciplinary perspective, Critical thinking, Cultural understanding, Ethics, Information literacy, Teamwork.
View more information about Otago's graduate attributes. - Learning Outcomes
Students who successfully complete this paper will have:
- Gained a basic understanding of narrative as a "cultural form" that transcends disciplinary boundaries.
- Become familiar with narrative fiction that belongs to the field of digital literature and gained a familiarity with the working vocabulary and critical concepts of that field.
- Demonstrated basic ability in the use of hypertext and web applications for the reading and writing of texts.
- Utilised asynchronous textual communication applications online to extend classroom polemic and engage in critical debate with peers.
- Identified main points and claims in a variety of secondary sources and triangulated these claims in relation to other sources and readings in the process of conducting research for individual assessments.
- Understood higher concepts that underpin the relationship between literature and media and demonstrated that understanding in written assessments.
- Gained an understanding of the ethical and political implications of digital writing technologies across gender and culture.