Electronic Literature - Softcover

Rettberg, Scott

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1509516786 ISBN 13: 9781509516780

Publisher: Polity, 2018

Synopsis

Electronic Literature considers new forms and genres of writing that exploit the capabilities of computers and networks – literature that would not be possible without the contemporary digital context.

In this book, Rettberg places the most significant genres of electronic literature in historical, technological, and cultural contexts. These include combinatory poetics, hypertext fiction, interactive fiction (and other game-based digital literary work), kinetic and interactive poetry, and networked writing based on our collective experience of the Internet. He argues that electronic literature demands to be read both through the lens of experimental literary practices dating back to the early twentieth century and through the specificities of the technology and software used to produce the work.

Considering electronic literature as a subject in totality, this book provides a vital introduction to a dynamic field that both reacts to avant-garde literary and art traditions and generates new forms of narrative and poetic work particular to the twenty-first century. It is essential reading for students and researchers in disciplines including literary studies, media and communications, art, and creative writing.

About this title

About the Author

Scott Rettberg is Professor of Digital Culture at the University of Bergen.

Review

"Compendious in scope and playful in tone, Electronic Literature is that rare book that can teach things both to specialists and newcomers, inviting everybody to the banquet that is e-literature's generic diversity."
Kathi Inman Berens, Electronic Book Review
"For all those looking for a sound and perfectly informed introduction to the field, written by someone whose inside knowledge and personal experience does not twist or distort an almost jargonless description of the field: this is the book you have been waiting for. "
Jan Baetens, Leonardo

Edition details

• Publisher: Polity
• Publication date: 2018
• ISBN 10: 1509516786
• ISBN 13: 9781509516780
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 256