Writing Spaces, Writing Selves
The Materials of Text and Thought

Honors 353-002 | Spring 2009 | Professor Mel Nichols
Mondays 7:20-10:00, Innovation Hall, Room 336
email: mnichol6@gmu.edu |office Thompson Hall, 207C
syllabus + schedule:  http://mason.gmu.edu/~mnichol6
office hours R  5:00-7:00 | coffee hour M 3:00-4:00, JC Jazzman's 

view the course schedule >>>          view the course requirements >>>

In this course we will consider writing and literary production in the age of computers, investigating the human-machine interface and the growing number of virtual implements available to the 21st century author. From pencils to typewriters to computers to mobile texting to Facebook and blogging, we will look at writing as a technology mediated by other technologies and explore how various writing methods may alter the way we write and think. As we consider the changing technology of writing, we will also look at various "writing spaces" -- surfaces, implements, methods of production and reproduction of the written-- through the work of theorists, poets, and visual artists. Other topics will include artist books, zines, graffiti, gaming, and the role of play in writing. Assignments will include a major presentation, leading a class discussion, an academic paper, an online reading journal, and several hands-on creative experiments (some collaborative).

 

 

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email: mnichol6@gmu.edu • office Thompson Hall, 207C • office hours R  5:00-7:00 • coffee hour M 3:00-4:00, JC Jazzman's