Weeks 13-14: E-Poetry

Monday, April 14

• In class:
  • A Cyborg Digital Writing Primer
  • Lecture: Cyborg Writing: A Brief History
  • The Deletionist (2013) by Amaranth Borsuk, Jesper Juul, & Nick Montfort
  • Gizoogle and The Pornolizer
• Assignment:
  • Read the poems in Memory Slam.
  • Write a brief analysis of two of these poems (but not "Loveletters") focusing on how the poets are incorporating computation for poetic purposes. Post before class on Wednesday.

Wednesday, April 16

• In class:
  • "Taroko Gorge" (2009) by Nick Montfort
  • "The Two" (2008) by Nick Montfort
  • "Sea and Spar Between" by Nick Montfort and Stephanie Strickland
  • "Autopia" (2016) by Nick Montfort
• Assignment:
  • Read "A Platform Poetics" by Nick Montfort
  • Explore 2-5 poems (not discussed in class) in Nick Montfort's Poems page.

Friday, April 18

• Asynchronous class:
  • Write a detailed 250-word (or so) discussion of Nick Montfort's poetics as seen in at least two poems from his Poems page. Provide links to the poems you're discussing. Post this analysis in ASULearn by 1:00 pm on Friday.
  • Read and respond substantively to at least 2 your classmates posts, and read their poems before class on Monday.
• Assignment
  • Read the Introduction to Uncreative Writing by Kenneth Goldsmith
  • Read "Mirtha Dermisache and the Limits of Language"

Monday, April 21

• In class:
  • Lecture and discussion of uncreative, asemic, and other conceptual writing practices.
    • Day by Kenneth Goldsmith
      • Excerpt from Day
      • Two poems from The Day
    • Printing Out The Internet by Kenneth Goldsmith
    • The Black Book (2010) by Jean Keller
    • Asemic Writing Facebook Group
• Assignment
  • Read A Brief Guide to Flarf poetry.
  • Write a brief response to how this kind of poetry contributes to our understanding of uncreative and conceptual poetry practices.

Wednesday, April 23

• Brief lecture and discusion of interactivity in digital poetry:
  • "Enigma n" (1997) and "Seattle Drift" (1998) by Jim Andrews
  • “Arteroids” and "Nio" by (2001) by Jim Andrews
  • “Lambda Blaster” (2022) by Sebastian Bartlett Hernández
  • “Going the Distance” (2023) by Lee Tusman
  • "Hotel" in Limbo
  • Jason Nelson’s Flash Games on The Next

• Assignment:
  • Play two of these games
    • “Game, Game, Game, and Again Game” by Jason Nelson
    • “i made this. you play this. we are enemies.” by Jason Nelson
    • “Nothing You Have Done Deserves Such Praise” by Jason Nelson

Friday, April 25

• Asynchronous class:
  • Write a brief (250 words) discussion of your chosen games, the ideas Jason Nelson wants to communicate, and how the game mechanics help express these ideas.
  • Post this analysis in ASULearn by 1:00 pm on Friday.
  • Read and respond substantively to at least 2 your classmates posts, and read their poems before class on Monday.
• Assignment:
  • Read The Agrippa Files and “Agrippa” by William Gibson (1992)