Eng 109:
Interdisciplinary Approaches to Literature
~Remix: Literature
and New Media~
Dr. Jessica
Pressman
Winter, 2008
|
Lectures: M W 12-1,
DODD 170 |
Jessicapressman@sbcglobal.net |
|
Office Hours: M W 11-12,
Hum 207 |
Office phone (during
office hours only): x68614 |
COURSE DESCRIPTION
Media critic Lev Manovich
calls ours a “remix culture.” He identifies the DJ as the exemplary artist of
our time because “in computer culture, authentic creation has been replaced by
selection from a menu” (Language of New
Media 126). How do we understand the
concept of “remix” and reconcile it with the study of literature, an art form
traditionally aligned with originality of authorship and intimacy between
reader and text?
What impact does the idea
of remix have on the way we read and study literature? How does the concept of
remix affect the relationship between literature and other art forms? We will examine these questions as well as
the larger question they pose: What is literature in the age of remix? To do
so, we will read a variety of print and digital literature as well as cultural
criticism. Across genres and media, we will explore remix as a cultural
concept, aesthetic practice, and political maneuver currently shaping our
culture and its literature.
REQUIRED
Paul Auster, City of
Mark Z. Danielewski, Only Revolutions
Paul Karasik and David Mazzucchelli, City of
Shelley Jackson, Patchwork Girl (CD-Rom, also available
on reserve)
Raymond Queneau, Exercises in Style
Geoff Ryman, 253: The Print Remix
Curtis White, Memories of my Father Watching TV
REQUIREMENTS
2 Explication Short
Essays (2 pages) (20% each)= 40%
Midterm Exam= 20%
1 Final Essay (4-5 pages)
=40%
READING SCHEDULE
Introduction
Week 1: Remix Theory
January 7: Introduction
*Homework: Bring example
of remix to class (URL, image, object, etc.)
January 9: Lev Manovich, “Remix and Remixability” [handout]
Remix Literature
Week 2: Remix
January 14: Geoff Ryman, 253 (online) http://www.ryman-novel.com
January 16: Geoff Ryman, 253: The Print Remix
Week 3: Remixed
Narrative
January 21:
January 23: Paul Auster, City of
Week 4: Remixed
Narrative
January 28: No Class
January 30: Paul
Karasik and David Mazzucchelli, City of
Week 5-Remixed
February 4: Shelley
Jackson, Patchwork Girl
(CD-Rom)—Guest Lecturer
February 6: Shelley
Jackson, Patchwork Girl
(CD-Rom)—Guest Lecturer
SHORT
ESSAY DUE
Week 6- Remixed
Material
February 11: Young-hae
Chang Heavy Industries, Dakota (online)
www.yhchang.com
Ezra Pound, “Canto I” [handout]
February 13: No Class
Week 7: Midterm
February 18:
February 20: Midterm Exam
Effects of Remix
Week 8: Remixed Relations
February 25: Curtis
White, Memories of my Father Watching TV
February 27: Curtis
White, Memories of my Father Watching TV
SHORT
ESSAY DUE
Week 9- Remixed
March 3: Mark Z.
Danielewski, Only Revolutions
March 5 Mark Z.
Danielewski, Only Revolutions
Week 10-Remixed
Politics
March 10: D.J. Spooky (aka That Subliminal Kid) “Birth
of a Nation” (online)
http://www.djspooky.com/art.html
March 12: D.J. Spooky
(aka That Subliminal Kid) “Birth of a Nation” (online)
http://www.djspooky.com/art.html
ESSAYS
Due