COURSE DESCRIPTION

Focuses on language media practice, including procedural practices, computer-assisted techniques, and the application of language material as data. Such forms of textual experimentation will be considered in terms of related 20th century avant-garde practices, especially language movements from 1970-1990. This course focuses on integrating language as a component of digital media composition and theory. The class will emphasize experimental and formally-innovative writing, that is, non-narrative writing. This will occur through specific works in books, with a close eye on poetry as it relates to the Web, including digital and other technologically mediated poetry, sound poetry, and procedural writing. This class will involve reading essays related to form and technique. An anthology of innovative poetry also will be assigned. Assignments of Web and other electronic sources will also be given. (Reading language experiments as a language practitioner will constitute part of our approach to generating innovative text.) In addition to students interested in producing experimental print texts and scripts, students interested in the production of media, multimedia, and Web-based works are welcome. Procedural writing exercises will be a regular part of class. Assignments of Web and other electronic sources are central to this course. A key component of our approach will be to enhance multimedia digital and digital poetry production. Our investigation will seek to open new paths to creativity and new avenues to experimental expression for students as producers and readers of text. There will be several specific aspects to this investigation. It will include: (1) reading of innovative literary texts including experimental poetry and prose; (2) examination of Web-based and digital works that focus on innovative language; (3) viewing film and other media works emphasizing language; (4) analysis of essays on language production; (5) experimentation through specific writing exercises and writing "experiments"; (6) reading and responding to works of other students in the class; and (7) a final project of language production.