Syllabus
Last update: 12.09.2008

*If you have earned a passing grade for the course
titled "Hypertext Literature," do not take "Digital Literature."
These two courses differ only in title.

*The syllabus is subject to change (to be updated periodically).

*Internship will be offered starting from week 3.

*Go to Reading List to locate the works listed in the syllabus.

*Go to Downloads to get the teaching notes for each week.

　

Wk 1.

Introduction. 

Definition:
hypertext, hypertext literature, cybertext,
digital literature

Demonstration:
Pryll, Richard L.  ca 1994.  "Lies"
Weight, Jenny.  1998.   "Rice"
Lialina, Olia.  1996.   "My Boyfriend Came Back from the War."
Andrews, Jim. 1997. "Seattle Drift."
----. "Arteroids 2.5."
Baker, Laurie and Jared Tarbell. 2001. "I'Ching Poetry Engine."

2.

Topic: Play and Game Designs in Digital Literature 1

--Beyond Mimicry (Literal Simulation): A Metaphorical Transformation

What to read / play:
"Asteroids" (a Java applet; or try this Flash version: "Asteroids")
Andrews, "Arteroids."
"Space Invaders."
Thomson, "Trigger Happy."
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Note: If you got time, check out these Chinese hypertext works:

The Garden of Forking Paths, Brave New Word, Wonderfully Absurd Temple, HyPersimmon.

3.

Topic: Play and Game Designs in Digital Literature 2

--Beyond Mimicry (Literal Simulation): A Metaphorical Transformation

What to read / play:
"Bear" in Nobody Here.
"Hermit" in Nobody Here.
Baker, "I'Ching Poetry Engine."
Slattery, "Oracle."
Larsen, "Carving in Possibilities."

--Games of Meditative Immersion

What to read / play:
Tagaki, "Crimson Room."
Kendall, "Clues."

Intership

4.

 Topic: Play and Game Designs in Digital Literature 3

--Game As a Disseminating Venue for Literature

What to read / play:
Borges,"The Intruder" (summary; print)
Bookchin, "The Intruder."
"Pong."
*Shaolian Su, "Heart Changes" (English and Chinese).
Nelson, "game, game, game and again game"
"Luigi: Castle on Fire"
　

Internship 

5.

Topic: Play and Game Designs in Digital Literature 4

--Game Design and Hypermediacy

What to read / play / watch:
Kelly, Donnie Darko (a movie, available at the Language Center's DVD library)
Jugovic, "Donnie Darko" (a digital work based on the movie of the same title; disconnected; DD)
*Montfort, "The Girl and The Wolf."

Internship

6.

Topic: Play and Game Designs in Digital Literature 5

--Literary Pseudo-Games

What to read / play:
Loyer, Chapter 6 of "Chroma" (illustration in interactive form; to be examined later along with Chapter 0 of "Chroma," "Darwinia" [a computer game; demo download available], "Rex" [a PS2 game], and "Tierra"; see also "Artificial Life and Literary Culture" 215-217; print)
Coverley, "Default Lives."
Spiller, "Esmeralda" (disconnected).
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--Supplementary Reading

Slattery, Diana, et al.  "The Oracle" (To be compared with "I'Ching Engine Poetry")

Internship

7.

Topic: Artists' Books

What to read:
Gibson, "Agrippa."
Philips, "A Humument."
Wiesner, The Three Pigs (a metafiction; available at the Language Center's DVD library)
Macaulay, Black and White (available at the Language Center's DVD library)
I Ching (English translation; available at the Language Center's DVD library)
More to be added

--Supplementary Reading

        Loudon, Annette.  "Skyline." 

        Ankerson, Ingrid and Megan Sapnar. "Cruising."

Internship

8.

Topic: Literary Instruments

What to read / play:
Moulthrop, "PAX."
Nimoy, "Textension" (download available).
Lewis, "It's Alive!" (download available)
Nelson, "Poetry Cube"

Internship

Wk 9. 

Mid-term

10.

Topic: Literary Generators 1

What to read / play:
Blunt, "Random Verse Lab."
Daoxiang Laonong, "Poetry Generator" (online version, offline version).
Bulhak, "The Postmodernism Generator."
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Internship

11.

Topic: Literary Generators 2

Weizenbaum, "Eliza" (see the plugins and downloads page).
Mateas and Stern, "Facade."
Alice (see the plugins and downloads page).

--Supplementary Text (AI-Related Games)

"Mr. Bubb in Space" or Here

"Pearl Demon" or Here

Internship

12.

Topic: The Uses of Randomness

Parker, "A Long Wild Smile." (disconnected: Dec 05, 2007; DD)
Rettberg, "The Meddlesome Passenger."
Moulthrop, "Reagan Library."

--Supplementary Reading

Biggs, "Book of Books."
Zeitgenossen.  "You Are the Only One" (YATOO; choose the upper entrance; to be compared with "Arteroids").

Internship

13.

Topic: Types of Links 1

What to read:
Miller, "Trip."
Sorrells, The Heist.
"Web" in Nobody Here.
"Cards" in Nobody Here.

Internship: "Marquee," "REFRESH," "Java applet"  (used in artworks)

14.

Topic: Types of Links 2

What to read:
Moulthrop, Hegirascope 2.
Harrell, "Nightmare Wanders Father Song."
North West Coast Printmakers.
Kendall, "Clues."
Moulthrop, "Reagan Library."
Andrews, "Spas Text."
Memmott and Mez, "Sky Scratchez."
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Internship

15.

Topic: Interactive Fiction

Cadre, Adam. (1999) Varicella (an "interactive fiction" or IF; click here for instruction).

MUDs

The Neverending Tale

Supplementary Reading:

McCloud, "The Carl Comics" (Choose the Flash English version put together by Michelle Salvador)
Shu Lea Cheng, Brandon
Deemer, Charles.  The Last Song of Violeta Parra.
Lynn, Vicki.  Guardians of the Millennium

Internship

16.

Internship

17.

Internship

Wk 18.

Final

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