Contemporary Literature: Interpreting Cyberspace


English 285.601, T/Th 5-6:15
University of Pennsylvania
Spring 1996

Susan Garfinkel, instructor
office: B9, 4th floor Bennett Hall (898-8604/5)
office hours: W3-5 or by appointment, evenings in PennMOO by appointment
e-mail: sgarfink@dept.english.upenn.edu

course listserver: garfinkel285@dept.english.upenn.edu
course homepage: http://www.english.upenn.edu/~sgarfink/eng285/home.html
PennMOO: moo.sas.upenn.edu 7777 (use telnet, or type 'tf' at the mail.sas unix prompt)

Course Description:

Cyberspace, E-world, the Infobahn, the Net. The metaphors linking computers and what we do with them to the placeness of a virtual reality are increasingly hard to escape. Is cyberspace an inevitable development in the interaction of humans and computers? What will it look like? How will it feel? In this course we will examine what happens to the relationship of subject, author, text and the world in this context of computer mediation, in this "consensual hallucination" where information becomes architecture and words stand in for bodies. What are the larger narratives that work to shape collective perceptions of e-space? What of the blurring of author, reader and genre that virtual environments allow? What might it mean to inhabit an electronic form? In our explorations we will look first at works of science fiction, following these with a consideration of both theoretical and popular works as we begin to move into cyberspace ourselves. Our writing for the semester will be geared toward a final collaborative presentation, which we will make available on the World Wide Web.

Course Materials:

The following books are available at House of Our Own Bookstore, 3920 Spruce Street (222- 1576), hours: MondayÐThursday 10Ð6:30, FridayÐSaturday 10Ð6.

A photocopied bulkpack of additional readings is available at Wharton Reprographics, Steinberg-Dietrich Hall, 37th and Locust Walk.

Other course materials will be available on-line, via links from our class home page, at:

http://www.english.upenn.edu/~sgarfink/eng285/home.html

Check the home page frequently for additions and revisions to bibliographies, hot lists, collaborative writings, and this syllabus.

Course Requirements:

Journal/Scrapbook: Each member of the class will keep a journal/scrapbook of cyber- experience, consisting of thoughts on readings and class discussions, as well as extra- curricular cyberspace encounters. You will, at times, be asked to share from the contents of your journal with other class members as part of our ongoing discussions. There are no length requirements for the journal, but consistency is desirable. Do whatever you feel is appropriate to show your ongoing engagement with the issues of the class. Journals may be handwritten, but you may be asked to type some entries for posting to e-mail or the web.

Papers: Two short 5-page papers will be due during the course of the semester 1) a book review (book to be selected in consultation with instructor, staggered due dates) and 2) an analysis of a cyberspace experience or encounter (due at latest after Spring Break). You'll also be asked to make a short presentation of your findings and argument in class. An end-of- semester paper (10-15 pages) will deal with a significant topic in interpreting cyberspace. Each student will meet with the instructor towards the middle of the semester to discuss the scope and direction of this paper, and a first draft will be due 3 weeks before the end of the class. We will hold in-class writing workshops to discuss final paper drafts. All papers should be typed and double-spaced, in a word processor compatible with DOS or Macintosh formats.

World Wide Web: Each student will create a (series of) World Wide Web page(s) during the semester, to be linked to our course home page. This will include the text of your three papers, along with links to other resources and supplementary materials as appropriate. Though by no means required, "unconventional" presentations are welcome upon consultation. In-depth WWW work may be substituted for other writing in the course, again with consultation. For those unfamiliar with HTML and WWW, technical assistance will be provided.

PennMOO: PennMOO is Penn's virtual classroom environment. Students will participate in PennMOO sessions and construct at least one space relating to our topic, for general use by the MOO community. Again, technical assistance is provided. A more in-depth PennMOO project may be substituted for other writing in the course, upon consultation.

Participation: In addition to regular, engaged attendance at class sessions, participation will include ongoing postings to our class e-mail discussion list, visits to PennMOO, and personal explorations of the Internet. Make every effort to attend extra sessions as your schedule permits: these may include movie viewings and field trips in addition to PennMOO events.

Portfolio: At the end of the semester, you will turn in a portfolio consisting of:

to be evaluated in conjunction with your Web pages, MOO building, or other on-line projects.

Course Calendar:

  1. Week of January 15

  2. Week of January 22

  3. Week of January 29

  4. Week of February 5

  5. Week of February 12

  6. Week of February 19th

  7. Week of February 26

  8. Week of March 4

  9. Week of March 11

  10. Week of March 18

  11. Week of March 25

  12. Week of April 1

  13. Week of April 8

  14. Week of April 15

  15. Week of April 22

**Final portfolios and projects are due Monday, May 6.
(revised 1/15/96)