media theory

Equally interested in what is and what could be, Cybertext Poetics combines ludology and cybertext theory to solve persistent problems and introduce paradigm changes in the fields of literary theory, narratology, game studies, and digital media. The book first integrates theories of print and digital literature within a more comprehensive theory capable of coming to terms with the ever-widening media varieties of literary expression, and then expands narratology far beyond its current confines resulting in multiple new possibilities for both interactive and non-interactive narratives. By focusing on a cultural mode of expression that is formally, cognitively, affectively, socially, aesthetically, ethically and rhetorically different from narratives and stories, Cybertext Poetics constructs a ludological basis for comparative game studies, shows the importance of game studies to the understanding of digital media, and argues for a plurality of transmedial ecologies.

(Source: Continuum online catalog.)

In this influential book Manovich proposes five principles of new media: 1) Numerical representation: new media objects exist as data. 2) Modularity: the different elements of new media exist independently. 3) Automation: new media objects can be created and modified automatically. 4) Variability: new media objects exist in multiple versions. 5) Transcoding: The logic of the computer influences how we understand and represent ourselves. Another often cited point in the book is his discussion of database aesthetics and database narratives. Manovich's work is based in cinema studies and his book was especially rapidly taken up in media studies departments.

from ebr Electronic Book Review: D. Fox Harrell considers how a media theory of the "phantasmal" - mental image and ideological construction - can be used to cover gaps within electronic literary practice and criticism. His perspective is shaped by cognitive semantics and the approach to meaning-making known as "conceptual blending theory."

This study investigates the effects of digitization on literature and literary culture with focus on works of literary fiction and other kinds of works inspired by such works. The concept of "hyperworks" refers to works intended to be navigated multisequentially, i.e. the users create their own paths through the work by making choices. The three articles that make up the dissertation include analyses of individual works as well as discussions of theoretical models and concepts. The study combines perspectives from several theoretical traditions: narratology, hypertext theory, ludology (i.e. game studies), sociology of literature, textual criticism, media theory, and new media studies. This study investigates the effects of digitization on literature and literary culture with focus on works of literary fiction and other kinds of works inspired by such works. The concept of “hyperworks” refers to works intended to be navigated multisequentially, i.e. the users create their own paths through the work by making choices. The three articles that make up the dissertation include analyses of individual works as well as discussions of theoretical models and concepts. The study combines perspectives from several theoretical traditions: narratology, hypertext theory, ludology (i.e., game studies), sociology of literature, textual criticism, media theory, and new media studies. The first article examines narrative technique and aspects of ergodicity in the digital hyperwork afternoon, a story (1997) by Michael Joyce. The main focus is on an analysis of the work’s structural organization and narrative technique. The second article proposes a theoretical framework for the analysis of texts and works in different media, especially focusing on the media structure (i.e. linking, navigation, storage, presentation, etc.) The third article analyzes and describes the ludolization, i.e., transposition into game form, of J. K. Rowling’s novel Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (1997). The study is a comparative analysis of the PC version of the computer game Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (2001) and the original novel, and discusses the media structure and the narrative/ludic structure of the two works. The concepts of ergodicity, cybertext, and content space are especially central to the study. Among the new concepts introduced are omnidiscourse, omnistory, performed discourse, performed story, lateral structure, hyperliterary competence, core ludic sequence, and performed ludic sequence. Also, a method for the analysis and description of links, i.e. a linkology, is presented along with new terms such as linkarium, ancoral text, adlink, and exlink.