"Electronic Literature as Comparative Literature"

Volume 16 (2014) Issue 5 Article 2 T To ow wa ar rd ds a H s a Hi is st tor ory of E y of Elec lectr tronic Lit onic Lite er ra atur ture e U Urs rsz zul ula P a Pa aw wlick licka a

Global Perspectives on Digital Literature, A Critical Introduction for the Twenty-First Centur, 2023

Every day thousands forms of writing are born and distributed on social media. As text-based and digital-born artifacts they are forms of electronic literature, regardless of their authors' intention or awareness (Flores 2019). Making sense of such prolific literary production and forming bridges between the current generations of digital natives and prior literary traditions is an enormous task. While existing classifications of e-literature greatly contribute to such task by bringing order into an ever-evolving field, the sheer scale of digital works offered to contemporary audiences encourages scholars to expand established categories, propose alternative source materials, and introduce new conjunctions. It is especially true if one wants to embrace the notion of electronic literature as both a global and a local phenomenon, as World Literature with divergent roots and multiple strands (Tabbi 2010, 20). Such diversification is necessary because despite having a global, common denominator-the emergence of digital technologies-the field of electronic literature witnessed processes of canon formation similar to those in the print world (Ensslin 2007, 4). Consequently, a pattern of relations between hyper canon, counter canon and shadow canon, a dynamic governed by the rule which David Damrosch described as "the richest of the rich get richer still" (Damrosch 2006, 40), could also be observed. Exposing divergent roots, variable timelines, and alternative classifications of e-literary practice might not entirely prevent some authors to raise to the "hypercanonical celebrity" (Damrosch 2006, 53) at the expense of others, but at least might point at a strategy of accompanying the most often discussed works of digital poetry and fiction by their counterparts from other languages and cultures. My goal in this chapter is to offer alternative approaches to the established genealogies, historical models, and typological frameworks within which global community of scholars and authors discuss and practice electronic literature. The existing historical models offer either a generational (first, second and third) or a web-based classification (pre-Web, web and post-Web) of electronic literature. In my overview of these models I will also pay attention to perhaps the most persuasive theoretical typology that distinguishes between modern and postmodern e-literature. However, if one wants to look at e-literature as a global phenomenon and takes into account-for example-unequal access to digital technologies, some of

Memory Bytes: History, Technology, and Digital Culture, 2004

Literary Studies in the Digital Age, 2013

¶ 1 This essay is part of the third iteration of the anthology. Since public review and commentary help scholars develop their ideas, the editors hope that readers will continue to comment on the already published essay. You may also wish to read the draft essay, which underwent open review in 2017, and the project history.

International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Development, 2024

With the advent of Electronic literature in the new millennium, the field of literature experiences a significant upheaval. In order to mark the beginning of a new age in literary expression, this study will investigate Electronic writing as a "curtain raiser" genre. This study explores how Electronic literature challenges conventional ideas of textuality, authorship, and reader interaction by examining its features, forms, and consequences. This research examines how Electronic literature influences modern literary discourse by utilising a variety of multidisciplinary viewpoints, such as literary theory, digital humanities, and cultural studies. The works of important authors, such as Chris Joseph, Mark Z. Danielewski, Kate Pullinger, Michael Joyce, Shelley Jackson, and Brian Kim Stefans, offer conceptual foundations for comprehending the distinctive characteristics of Electronic literature and its connection to more general cultural and technological changes. This paper demonstrates how the spirit of exploration and creativity in the digital age is embodied in Electronic literature. It is also evident that Electronic literature enhances and challenges our knowledge of reader-author connections, interactivity and storytelling. This study attempts to shed light on the relevance of Electronic literature as a trailblazing genre that influences the literary landscape of the twenty-first century by examining its consequences within the framework of modern literary theory and cultural studies. By looking at these issues, the research advances our knowledge of how digital technology may change the way that literature is expressed and how storytelling is changing in the new millennium.

Iowa Journal of Cultural Studies, 2002

The hypertext solution. .. retains and puts back together the great traditions of literature and scholarship, traditions based on the fact that dividing things up arbitrarily just generally doesn't work.-Ted Nelson, Computer Lib/Dream Machines (1974) Before reading what follows, I suggest that you turn on your networked computer and prepare to visit some territories that have not yet been clearly demarcated. START HERE> is more cultural snapshot than cultural study, more a map of places to explore than an explanation of what you'll find there. This is an article intended M ichelle Citron is a Professor in the Department o f Radio/Television/Film at Northwestern University, Associate Dean o f The Graduate School, and Director of the Center for Interdiscipli nary Research in the Arts. Kurt Heintz is a writer, performer, and new media artist, who founded the e-poets network and whose work has appeared in the anthology Rude Trip: The Hamburg-Chicago Literary Expedition (Edition 406, 2001). Niki Nolin works and teaches in the Aca demic Computing Department of Columbia College, Chicago. Scott Rettberg is Assistant Pro fessor of New Media Studies in the Literature program at Richard Stockton College, as well as co founder of the Electronic Literature Organization and co-author o f The Unknown: A Hypertext Novel (1998-2001) and The Unknown: An Anthology (The Unknown Press, 2002). Andrew Stem is a designer and programmer for PF.Magic in San Francisco. Joseph Tabbi is the author of Cognitive Fictions (Minnesota, 2002) and co-editor of Reading Matters: Narrative in the New Media Ecology (Cornell, 1997), as well as co-founder of the electronic book review and Associ ate Professor o f English at the University of Illinois, Chicago. Rob Wittig is co-founder of the literary electronic bulletin board system IN.S.O M N IA and author of Invisible Rendezvous: Connection and Collaboration in the New Landscape of Electronic Writing (Wesleyan, 1994).

What makes electronic literature interesting for researchers? Beyond its artistic and literary value, we can point out its heuristic value. Indeed electronic literature not only permits previous media to be reexamined (paper for instance), but it also allows several well-established notions to be questioned, such as narrative in narratology, text in linguistics and semiotics, figure in rhetorics, materiality in aesthetics, grasp in anthropology, memory in archivistics or literariness in literary studies. Exploiting the heuristic value of electronic literature has two consequences: - an evolution of some notions in certain scientific disciplines, and maybe of the disciplines themselves; - a revealing effect regarding both digital technology and interactive and multimedia writing.

CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture, 2014

Volume 16 (2014) Issue 5 Article 3 E-Lit E-Lite er ra atur ture e, N , New M ew Medi edia A a Ar rt t, a , and E-Lit nd E-Lite er ra ar ry C y Cr rit itic ici is sm m J Ja ane nez S z Str treho ehovec vec Ljubljana Follow this and additional works at:

Electronic Literature Organization (ELO), 2014

Bouchardon S. (2014). « The tensions of Digital Literature », colloque Electronic Literature Organization (ELO) 2014, 18-21 juin 2014, Milwaukee, Etats-Unis.

Leonardo Electronic Almanac: Mish Mash, 2011

Leonardo Electronic Almanac (LEA) is a project of Leonardo/ The International Society for the Arts, Sciences and Technology. For more information about Leonardo/ISAST's publications and programs, see www.leonardo.info or contact