This week we got back into the swing of the Beta Symposiums. We focused on some very interesting questions, so I would like to post about what I heard from Adrian and the tutors, as well as my own speculative ideas.

1. How does Hypertext relate to storytelling in different media formats?
In the discussion about this question, what really caught my attention as a singer/ songwriter was the point that in songs, a chorus can, and is repeated more than once, throughout the space f 3-4 minutes. So too, is the bridge. This is never disputed in a song. The same message is given more than once, word for word. But, do this in a VCE essay and “out comes the red marker”, even if the words aren’t exactly the same. Networked Media Unlectures have a way of making me question everything I learnt in high school English 🙂
The second key point I got out of this discussion was that authors can’t guarantee their intent, or that the delivery of their message goes through to the audience the way they intended. Again I am question my English class; and why it was so vital to say “I used this strategy/ form of persuasion to evoke a sense of such and such in the reader”… how do I know that happened? What if they read some of my news article, then looked at something else, then came back to it, and didn’t feel any emotion. Is it true, throughout high-school, have we been trained to write for teachers and to become university lecturers?… Hmmm…

2. Is the work we publish online only valid if someone else views it?
I particularly resonated with Jasmine’s interpretation that things we publish online, for example on a blog, Facebook, Instagram etc.are similar to a journal. The point is that we publish what we want to say to help ourselves understand something better/ record something that happened or that we might like to come back to later. I know that is the case with my blog, checking my stats, I have had no more than 15 readers in any one week. I don’t necessarily like it because other people will read it, I do it because I want to write it. So no, I don’t think this is the case.

3.Do you think the digitalisation of literary texts and the use of the E-Reader will eventually replace the physical book completely?
Some of the responses to this question bothered me. Adrian said it was a no-brainer that students would rather have a digital copy of text-book than a physical copy where they have to carry it around and go through it with the highlighter. Am I the only one who prefers this experience? I find it much more satisfying to have all my readings available to me in physical form where I can go through with my highlighters and post-it notes (both of which I am a fond collector of)? Maybe I just old-fashioned. But I love the satisfaction of reading a 1000 page novel and seeing how far through the book I have gotten by the place of my bookmark.
On second thought, I really resonate with the idea that books are valued for wisdom and knowledge. That soon, and perhaps even now, people appreciate physical books as collectable items. Like vinyl records, which were replaced by tapes, then cd’s, then digital versions of music. I can see where its going, but I really hope physical books are never lost! 🙁

4. Last random point that I really liked: The difference between a traditional essay and the work we are encouraged to do in networked media… not knowing what the ‘conclusion’ is going to be when we start. Not the standard essay layout of including the hypothesis, arguments and answer in the introduction. Speculative writing. I really enjoy speculative writing. There is less pressure. I can just keep writing until I am satisfied with what I have written. I like not being restricted by structure, word limit, references, format, language, style, etc.

🙂