What helped me learn in this class?

I think more than any technical prowess, I've learned that the definition of "literature" is a lot more fluid than I had expected. I thought this class would be focusing on graphic novels or comic writing of some kind, and I was pleasantly surprised.

At times, I felt as if the readings detracted from what I was trying to get at - I didn't always feel that they aided in my writings or projects - at the same time, I know it's important to know the history of the genre we're studying, but it felt like too much all at once.

I really wish I had more technical time with flash. At the end, I wasn't even able to finish my project because of the coding. I feel like there needs to be a point in the semester - before the short project - where the focus shifts to technical instruction. It's frustrating to know what you want to do, know that the software is capable to complete what that is but have no way of actually doing it. I know that we aren't going to leave here experts, but I feel that we should know how to incorporate video without running into problems, and that we should know how to incorporate interactivity.

Maybe having a Flash handbook or something for this class would be helpful - I used the online source a lot, but frankly, I never could quite find what I was looking for. Perhaps if there were tutorials of what we learned in class on our course website that would help - many times I could not recall all the steps of a technical move, and if it is referenced in class, it should be on our course website as a lecture in terms we can understand.

I just feel like I was limited by what I knew how to do - I got frustrated not because I did not have ideas or vision, but because I could not do what was necessary to complete my project.

Research Project

So I've had a ton of technical difficulties, as well as I'm sick...I don't know if I'll be in class, but my work certainly will be!

Here is the paper, it should open a download box right away.

And my supplement.

Good night and good luck. I'm going to go back to being sick. :-)

How has this class changed me?

So, how will I be different after this? I really like the question of how I will teach differently...

Anyone, first of all, I've learned that literature isn't just in a book...I guess poetry feels more real to me on a computer screen than on a piece of paper which is a foreign concept to me...to be honest, I've never been a big believer in poetry.

I think I'm going to be a different teacher than when I started this class...since I want to teach...I think I'm going to end up being a lot more open to new waves of literature, new thoughts and ideas.

I think I'm going to try and keep up with what I've been doing here. I don't feel like this should be over...I'm kind of mad at myself for not discovering all this sooner, when I would have more time to explore.

I think I'm going to approach new things differently...I think I'm going to read and wonder what things would look like with motion...what if Yeats had flash when he wrote? What would he look like on screen?

Also, I feel that I'm not done yet, with flash or with experimental lit. I think I'm pretty happy with what I've accomplished and I see a new way to combine the things I love.

Feedback

So based on my feedback, I have some minor changes to make to the animation everyone saw (video2). Also, because of what I read, I'm going to make some major changes to the third video which is the all-English version of my poetry...I feel now I need to have it be closely related to the other two instead of just another piece of it.

So, I still have substantial work to do, but I'm happy.

AND I NEED TO LEARN HOW TO CREATE INTERACTIVITY WITH VIDEO: HOW TO CLICK ONE OBJECT TO MAKE A VIDEO START.

That is all...


PS: I was surprised at the amount of good feedback I got...I am encouraged.

Conversation Today

I really feel like these conversations helps shape who I am, at least literarily (that isn't a word).

I feel like it's important to hold onto the notion of why creating something new is good...when to create something new...not to just create something different TO BE DIFFERENT, but to create it to express something I couldn't before.

I feel like this whole conversation was so analytical and abstract...I loved it.

I feel like I want to more history behind the movements I love, I feel like I want to research the various forms of literature...I feel like I want to be part of a revolution right now, much like I feel after listening to Europe's "The Final Countdown" (that probably doesn't help anyone take me seriously).

I think it's important to remember where we come from; to remember that at one point, all we consider to be standard was new and "novel." I feel that we all need to understand that literature, art, film, etc are all living evolving creatures: none of them stand still for time.

It might seem like right now we're changing everything - changing the entire name of the game, creating things that are completely new.

But in the grand scheme of things we're one step. ONE TINY STEP in the evolution of literature...it's not like we're reinventing the wheel here, just re-designing it.

Authorship

"…readers expect, and search for, the identification of an author in a text at least in part as a means to assist them in their own sense of differentiation and establishment of a sense of self. … If everything embodied in a text is so novel, so new, as to be alien to and entirely external to a reader's experience then that text will likely remain opaque and difficult to engage. Readers will be unable to differentiate the author in such manner that they are able to internalise the authorial voice and establish the required internal dynamic where meaning, and differentiation of self, can arise." SB


I was really affected by this quote...after reading the whole piece, I read through the quotes we could pick from and I liked this one the most (PS - That article was tough to get through...).

I'm not really sure if I can agree fully with this statement...I believe that knowing who an author is can lead to a better understanding of a text and I suppose eventually lead to a better established "sense of self." However, I don't feel that this always happens - For instance, I particularly love some books because they are extremely personal, and by reading the book, I feel that I know the author more. Sometimes this leads me to forming a new line of thought about myself, but many times, it just changes how I view the book. Frankly, there are many books I have read that I can't recall the author perfectly on the spot (I'm ashamed to say). I've never been that great with names, but it doesn't change the way I feel about the book or the way it's impacted my life...

I will say this though, I really feel the second part of the quote is dead on. When the subject matter being written about, or moreover, the way in which the text is being written, alienates the reader, it cannot have an impact. I think that's what we've been driving at all semester.

When something is jargon-filled and dense, when it makes no relation to the reader at all, when a piece is so abstract or obtuse that no thought process aids the reader in figuring things out, it is a failure. It is the duty of the author, if he or she wishes to reach an audience, to gear their writing in some way shape or form. If I can't connect to a piece I can't learn from it. This doesn't mean that every piece has to be the same or even "normal." In fact, for me at least, many of the experimental or "new" literatures seem to be the ones that can reach me best.

Oddly enough, this article was hard for me to make a connection with simply because of the way in which it is composed: DENSE.

Furthermore, I understand what is being said about authorial voice. If I cannot understand that voice, I cannot derive any sense of meaning. Is a piece sarcastic or serious? Am I supposed to feel that the authorial voice is human and flawed or perfect...I know I'm going a bit out of the range of what was being discussed in this particular piece, but seriously...If I can't see or feel the author in a piece, does it even matter anymore? Can I pull something from it if I don't understand what I'm SUPPOSED to be feeling?

Here is where I am conflicted again...I like the thought of having an androgynous voice. I like reading anonymous literature, I like viewing anonymous paintings, etc. I feel like I am free to interpret anything I want...

When some of my professors tell me that in Conrad's "Heart of Darkness" the river is a vagina and the boat is a penis, I snicker. I don't see it, but that's the beauty. We can disagree. I don't want to know the author's every intention...because it's a constantly evolving influence. They create a living breathing idea instead of something so concrete, so dead.

This article made me think about a lot of things...which is good...I just wish I could read it and feel smart for understanding it all, but really, even on my second read, I feel a little lost.

Ideal

So now the question is: In the ideal world, if we could continue forever, what would I wanna do?
AND/OR
What am I going to do with what I've learned?

In this world where classes never end (I shudder to think...) I think I would want to learn how to make longer pieces, almost film like...not quite though. I think I would want to learn how to put it all together...remembering my letter twisting roots and continuing with video poetry full of sound and wonderment.

What AM I going to do with what I've learned...that's a whole other question...

Since I'm hoping to go to grad school, I really want to bring a new eye and a new perspective to classic literature and new students...I want to explore Shakespeare in a new way...how would he have used this technology and why? I want to reassess the way in which I create my art...what can I do with my photography, music and writing with animation? How can I showcase what I love and what I do in one forum?

Of course, on the business end, I'll most likely be putting together some slideshows for the couples I shoot for...Cause people eat that stuff up...hahaha.

I don't want to forget the things I have learned here. I want to incorporate these new techniques along with the classic literature and minority lit I have studied - I want to use each perspective to analyze the others, and I want to feel comfortable creating something using flash that expresses who I am...

I might rename this blog, or maybe even start a new one, but I think this won't be the last of me and my animations, especially if this final one goes the way I'm thinking...

What I know now...

What do I know now that I didn't know at the beginning of the semester? How has my view of words and writing changed since the beginning of the semester? What has changed for me?

First and foremost, I've obviously changed the way I view animation - I used to feel as if it was all whimsical and childlike, but I realize that animation can showcase deep artistic emotion. Before now, I don't think that poetry ever meant anything but words on a page...I feel like a new genre has been born in my mind's eye.

How has my view of writing changed? I think the best way to answer this question is to figure out where I started:

I had just started to begun questioning what "text" was after delving into the realm of the graphic novel...After reading Fun Home, Persepolis, Maus, etc I found myself asking what text was. I was primed to have my world-view changed when I started this class, and I feel like that's exactly what happened.

Because of technology, because of the internet, because of the constantly consumerist environment we live in, poetry and literature has become youtube friendly. It wouldn't be fair to call my flash animations text without acknowledging the visual and artistic value...I can't just call them paintings...

I dunno, I get caught up in my thinking when I try to reflect on stuff like this. I obviously am thinking more deeply about what all this means to me - it's hard to define (I guess a lot like literature these days...)

Basically, I've learned how to combine my visual and textual arts. I know how to create something that isn't quite film, isn't quite literature...isn't quite anything...

I feel like I've found a flexibility in what I consider to be "English" in terms of studies...

I don't know if I view words themselves differently...I was raised in the Sesame Street generation where words became different things all the time...no culture shock there.

I guess it's just realizing there is a new and different way for expressing myself and that I can reach someone else or showcase my work when it isn't on paper.

Does that answer my question? Not quite sure...but it's a thought.

Uhm..confused

So after reading the feedback, everyone pretty much wants me to get deeper with my animation, but I was hoping to keep it light. I guess people have a problem with the fact I'm using my camera and photography to show who I am, but I never ask who I am, I ask what I create and how do I create....I didn't want to imply that I AM the pictures I take, or that I'm that shallow.

I wanted it to look cool and be simple without being boring. I wanted to focus on what I make money on as opposed to showing my personal work...I like it to be about work instead of about me.

So I guess I need to know what you think...am I supposed to be going into the depths of my soul over this? I thought it was supposed to be more on the simple side, cause I am saving the depths of my soul for my final project...did I miss the mark? I NEED some feedback here, because I wasn't expecting this kind of reaction.

~Lia

Short project

So here is my short project thus far...

Let me know what you think!!!!

Final Project

How did I NOT already post this??!?!?!

I have a really clear view of what I'd like to complete.

I would like to display some ASL poetry, that still remains unwritten. I want it to be a personal poem, but I really feel like visually displaying by poetry with a visual language and using flash software will really make something special.

I'd like to focus on the meaning rather than just directly translating what I'm saying when I'm signing...I don't want this to just be a "foreign film" I want to create something special...Just worried about the video thing.

Homework

So crap, I didn't look at the calendar, so I didn't do the homework and reading for today. After working for about 5 hours yesterday finishing up the conversation project, I put a curse on my computer and forgot to even look...

So, I'll be posting that tomorrow sometime, when I have time to read and write something that doesn't sound horribly rushed and lackluster: I want to actually write a decent response.

Conversation Project

So here's the finished animation I completed it today.

CONVERSATION

How far we are....

We still have substantial work to do, but I'm planning to finish it tonight and tomorrow. It's been difficult with e-mail communication and trying to work on it together, but I think we're working it out.

It will be finished by Thursday with no problem....

~Lia & Jenna

Short project

I'd like to do something with text and animation, but with more pictures being involved. I have been considering focusing on a character or perhaps one phrase outlined in the movements. I really just need to finish the conversation project before I can tackle this one in my head...

BUT, I want it to be more funny than preachy. Most of the stuff I've done has been a bit more serious in nature, I'd like it to be cute and sassy this time. Definitely want to incorporate photography though...

Red Riding Hood

Here is what I saw

Honestly, I wasn't too sure of what I was watching. I was a little lost due to the interactivity not being too clear at times (clicking on the pictures of trees behind our character to get her to leave, etc).

I think that the author of this piece is just trying to inspire the reader to view a classic re-told story in a new way. I think that by creating a character who doesn't look like Little Red Riding Hood and making the wolf into a young man with animalistic arms, we get a different sense of the story.

I think it was almost like playing a game with only one end. Giving a story like this a "choose your own adventure" kind of feel is important, mostly because it is such an ingrained story in the minds of most people. It's not anything new, and to create something new, the author had to take it a few steps farther.

I think a reader has to have an open mind and a sense of hidden meaning to get anything from this. It's not what the reader expects, and it takes some getting used to. The audience has to be open to interacting and to experiencing something that doesn't necessarily feel "right" all the time. There is also a very feminist message in the piece, so the audience needs to be open to a different line of thought.

I very much enjoy the interactivity although at times it is confusing and a little too hidden. I had to use my tab button more than once to figure things out. But overall, I'd like to incorporate more interactivity into my work to make it more of an experience rather than a text.

Networking - How does it change the game?

I had not really considered networking as changing the game right away, until I realized it didn’t mean networking as in facebook or with a group of people; it meant creating something that someone else creates too. Maybe I come up with the words, and someone else creates the code and someone else adds more motion, etc. It’s an odd principle to struggle with.

Multiple authorship has been happening for generations in literature, but what about when we can’t discern if it was a partnership or who was in charge? Usually, if two authors are listed, we assume they worked on the piece together, and in larger groups, many times they are listed as contributors working under a single editor. The lines haven’t always been black and white, but they have been a consistent shade of grey, but now, who is the author? How would it feel to be a co-co-co-co-author? It’s an odd field to get into…who gets the prize for the best piece?

It’s almost as if this literature is crossing over into a film genre. The writer of the film works with the director and the crew and the cast. Without one set of people, the rest of the film fails. No actor can be great without a great writer and vice versa.

Who do we put our faith in the most? Who should we pick as our guide in this crazy new literary world?

Maybe this is easier to relate to graphic novels that are made on partnerships…The author sometimes cannot be an illustrator due to lack of skill. So two people come together. In my opinion, the person who actually knows the story and what they want the frames to look like is the true author because otherwise, the pictures wouldn’t have much purpose. It’s not as if two people work completely independently in this situation. But, at the same time, a graphic novel without the pictures is, well, a novel. It loses that je ne sais quo that it gains with illustrations.

All of this computer stuff makes it a far more complicated. Now it’s not just that I am creating something, I need more people to help me complete my vision, and along the way they add their own. Is there such a thing as team-literature or team-art, because that’s what it feels like. It’s an interesting new time, and I suppose with new technologies and new ways of completion, old labels just don’t suffice anymore. It’s not that we need to know who and why, but we like to know.

As a writer/artist/etc, I like having right to my own work, and the whole issue of intellectual property kind of gets lost here. I think it will take some serious exploitation of someone’s work before any kind of line gets drawn in the sand. I don’t think we can just decide now what would be easiest, we have to wait and see how this new literary world works. It’s scary, but it could be the next great movement in literature, and I just hope to be on board with everyone else…Time to start coding…

Conversation Project Draft

https://pantherfile.uwm.edu/manningl/ConversationProject.html

That is my link to our project. Wish I was there instead of concussed!!!!!

Independent Research Project...

...SO....My window was loading from the cache, so now I can see the questions, but I couldn't before.

I really was hoping to do research on Alison Bechdel, but I'm not sure if she is "experimental" enough. Her graphic novel, Fun Home, really blew my mind on what text was and what it could be...It also was the first graphic novel with such subtly, hidden messages, and I'd really like to do more research on her as an author.

For this, I would like to research her history, the other texts she has produced and her place within the literary and LGBT communities. I just find her really interesting and since her book was the one that inspired me to take this class, I'd like to be able to look back on her with fresh eyes and perhaps learn more about her and her genre.

Is this okay? Is she "experimental" enough, or do I need to pick some sort of flash poet?

Just so you know...

In the next few days, I'm going to find the pieces I've missed writing about and get them done. Also, if I feel it, I will revisit some others...

Form? What is it for? - Julianne & Lia

Typography, font, italics, bolding, use of punctuation, structure of paragraphs, placement of words/letters on page, dialectic writing...

We feel like form is more like freedom of speech, and if that is, then:
-Social Norms
-Preconceived notions of what is "right" or "safe"
-The language being used
-How it is presented (on paper, on screen, etc)

Lia & Jenna Conversation

We chose gay marriage for our topic. We will do some research on the states that allow gay marriage and the states that don’t. We will probably have two or three voices. We want to use font, color, the placement and movement of words to express this.

Two Examples, Compare/Contrast

So here we go...I chose Cluster/Icon and Counting to compare...why did I pick these pieces? I thought they were both really clever and that using text without animation got their points across. I'll start with Cluster/Icon.

Cluster can be read at Constellation and Concentration and Icon can be read as Black or Block. Both of these use clever textual illustration to convey the fluidity and flexibility of text and language. They also convey how easy it is to alter what is being read. I thought they both were making a commentary on the nature of miscommunication and the complexities of written language. One letter, the smaller piece of the word can change the entire meaning which in turn changes the entire sentence which in turn changes the entire thought. It's one of those mind-blowing epiphany moments. Also, there is a point to consider: both authors could be trying to relate the two words they are using, but I can't reach that far.

Counting was clever in a different way. While using wordplay like Cluster and Icon, it does it differently. It took me more than one read to interpret the piece. At first I read the columns one at a time, top to bottom. Then the second time, I read it row by row. It made sense both times, but I felt more of a meaning when I read row by row. It had rhythm, and rhyme...basically, I liked it a lot the second time, but I'm not sure what it all meant. It was done in an intelligent way, but there wasn't a whole lotta meaning buried under there.

Okay, compare contrast: They both had wordplay involved however, Cluster/Icon had meaning in the words more than Counting. Counting was cute and clever, but not deeply meaningful. That's what I've got.

And again!

https://pantherfile.uwm.edu/manningl/wordfinal1.html

That's my final with a cool black background

and here's one more thing!

https://pantherfile.uwm.edu/manningl/wordfinal.html

That's a link to my final on pantherfile since Blogger hasn't been working correctly for me...

Bernstein

Thank God...

finally a piece that's easy to read, and full of great content without being too "this" or too "that."

I really enjoyed reading the histories of the evolution of language and technology, and I very much liked that Bernstein interwove eras so that reading the piece wasn't like reading a chronology of events.

At times, as usual, I feel like some thoughts are a stretch, but on the whole, I really felt like this was a down to Earth piece of writing that was a good read. It makes sense that literacy boomed as typewriters did and that the invention of the ball point pen aided it. It makes sense that more literacy meant more poetry and prose. It all makes sense to me.

I also enjoyed the comparison of photography and alphabetic writing...it just all makes sense.

So overall, I enjoyed the piece and I think someone who isn't in our class could read it and appreciate it, which I cannot say for everything we've read.

Form enough?

Teri & Lia!

We agree that freeing yourself from form is not enough.

We don't live in the idyllic world that these authors do. Changing how a text is constructed doesn't change the content.

We just feel like this whole thought-process about morphing text to create this free-thought society is just ridiculous. Until society makes a change, this will remain a beat-nick thought process.

People are always looking for a deeper meaning in everything. We don't understand why it's such a forced process instead of something natural and flowing. Why should we morph our language? And frankly, some of the authors don't either...

They tell us to free ourselves from form, but they use it too...a world free from form is just chaotic and ridiculous.

Form might not be our favorite thing, but we need it, and it's not always a suffocating force.

Maso vs. new readings

Jenna and Lia!

One of the main differences that we found between the pieces we read for today and Maso's piece wasn't necessarily involved in the ideas, but in the delivery. We felt that these readings for today involved an academic viewpoint not represented by Maso; in essence, we felt that the readings for today were very textbook, while Maso's piece feels like a conversation.

The pieces for today provided a history and reason-set for the changes that are, but Maso is free from all that, conversing with the reader directly and stating the tenants that should be changed straight to the reader's face instead of just stating their existence without beg for change.

We felt that today's readings weren't really showing us the "movement," just discussing the history and reasoning. Maso makes us think directly instead of just explaining what has happened and why. Maso makes more sense to us, and inspires us more. We can feel Maso, but only read these new authors.

Grow...version 1

Reaction to readings...

So basically, the differences between what we've read before and what we've read for today are pretty obvious. This new thought of creating this abstract art form is awe-inspiring and great.

It's the thought of isolating the art from the language that is so intriguing. When we approach art in a museum, we don't see German or Australian (unless it's a specific exhibit), we see art. It's intriguing to approach it in this way; without putting up more barriers than necessary.

I think it's a challenge to think about what we're doing in this way, and I also don't know how possible it all is. I'd like to go along and believe in the ideal, but how can I...

A Manifesto for Fluxus

The whole piece feels like a large "F*** You!" to modern thought and form.

We were first struck by the usage of black and white and the reversal. Black and white are the most extreme opposites of each other and to first use the dictionary definitions as white on black and then use the handwritten pieces as black on white is obviously intentional.

The dictionary definitions also look weathered, and it is obvious that they are the special selected definitions of the word, as the numbers do not go in perfect order (another obvious thought-out choice).

The usage of the handwritten pieces are incredibly important as they bring in the true manifesto nature. They represent the cry of the people and the revolutionary nature.

The eye immediately goes to the dictionary definitions, almost as if the author wants us, as readers, to start there before we interpret. Also, the handwritten pieces also use capitalization as a tool to punch something out at us.

We were both also struck by the word "fully" being crossed out, another obvious move to get the reader thinking. We took it to mean that no one can fully grasp the "non art reality," that there will always be those that misunderstand or miss the boat.

We also thought the words purge, promote and fuse are all very powerful verbs. They do not suggest an action, they force it to happen. The verbs seem to tie in with the organic/inorganic definitions of the words. Purge, flow, fusion, chemicals and metal, etc.

~Brendon
~Lia

Word plan

Oh yea, I almost forgot. Here's my plan for my word:

I've chosen the word "grow" because I can just see the possibilities.

I picture it starting in the center, small, expanding huge then shrinking again into a seed.

Planted, growing, into a large tree.

Then the banana from the tree falls, becomes a boat and sails across the sea.

Lands, and a town grows, into america.

Does that make any sense?

I don't know if I can do it all, or if I'll have to get a little more broad with my plan, but I might as well try to do something awesome.

Reflection on Reading

So here it is:

I don't like poetry. I never have. I just always feel that I can't connect with it. Maybe it's a defect in myself, maybe I'm just a more novel-associated reader, maybe my parents didn't love me enough. How can I know?

Fact of the matter is, I liked some of the poems I read for this assignment. I was planning on just writing a reflection based on the questions Anne posted, but I have just been wrestling with my own thoughts.

How can I suddenly like these poems? I mean, I've enjoyed a few poems in the past, but this disjointed awkward way of writing just connects with me.

Why do I like these? Is it purely because they're different? I don't think so.

Here's where I've gotten: I'm a reader, writer, musician and photographer. I react to text, sound and pictures/visual representations. I think that's why I loved the Blue Velvet piece from Tuesday's assignment. It brought everything together.

My mind was blown looking through the poems and knowing some of the values the poem was about to reveal just by the structure.

Sorry if this was ranty, just needed to put it down on paper...ur...screen?

My final animation

Hope you like it...just added some nifty stuff on the end. Wanted to show my creativity fading away for something more "traditional" and notice my tag in the top left at the very end...enjoy! (I hope)

Blue Velvet

I chose to watch, interact with and think about Blue Velvet, the piece about New Orleans and hurricane Katrina.

To start, I loved the loading screen because it reminded me of the many shades of the ocean, and although it was not a positive piece about water (and touched very little on the actual flooding) I thought the coupling of the opening screen, the rainfall of words and the waves created when the words fell, that the overall effect came through quite clearly and creatively.

From a factual standpoint, the project revealed a lot that was little known to the general public, and by presenting it in a non-traditional way, people stayed interested and the message was better conveyed. It was easier to get through and more intriguing as a project rather than the same old news story. Not only that, but this project showed more of the history behind the segregation and bad-intentioned government policies that kept the area down.

The thing that stood out most was likely the section discussing the "redlining" and the reason that New Orleans is the hidden soul of America.

On order for this piece to be powerful, the reader/viewer needs to come with an open mind and open expectations. It isn't just about the hurricane or the aid that did or did not come. It's about the nation's view of the afrea before and after. It's about the CNN reporter saying "they are so poor, so black." It's about the years of keeping New Orleans in the chaotic part of the mind; denying its part of America by always blaming its traditions on other cultures; other peoples.

The part I thought was so incredible was the music. I thought it was incredible that it created tension, excitement, ethnic thought and anxiety at the same time. It was awe-inspiring to page through the project, but without the music, it would merely be an odd article instead of a piece of art.

This had to be made in a new and special way because the material presented isn't just what we all know, it's brand new and also hard to deal with.

The differences between them...

To me, the most obvious difference is that while Maso discusses writing outside the normal realm of societal barriers, Di Prima actually does.

Now, past that first "surface" difference, I feel that they are arguing for different things. Maso is arguing about writing outside of structure to think outside the box and "stick it to the man." It's unorthodox writing for the sake of being unorthodox, and that the hope is, that writing in this way will somehow free us from the constraints of structure and oppression.

I think Di Prima is bringing a bit more clarity to the table. The focus there is not losing out on the imagination; that traditional work that robs us of our imagination is not worthwhile or desired. I think the argument is more for holding onto yourself despite what society may say you should do instead of being different to be different.

Di Prima took more of a risk from a literary standpoint. Yes, Maso does a better job of challenging the reader directly and asking questions that "shouldn't" be asked, but Di Prima wrote outside the normal construct. Although it is a poem, the structure is free and Di Prima did it 15 years before Maso did, when such thoughts weren't as common.

I'm not trying to say that Maso did a bad job, but it felt kind of like "Do as I say, not as I do." I understand that for the purposes of reaching an audience, she had to write in a way that was readable to everyday people, but it still felt a little hollow for me. She wants us to write in a revolutionary way, but her writing is too subtle with its differences. While this wouldn't be something I expect academically, it doesn't feel revolutionary in the text.

So long story short (too late) I feel as if Di Prima went all the way in terms of writing in a new way, but didn't spell our the argument as well as Maso, and Maso spelled it all out for us quite clearly, but didn't follow her own advice.

What's form?

To be honest, I'm not really sure what form is. I think it's the style of writing an author chooses, I think it's more than the 5-paragraph approach and more than just basic sentence construction. It's got to be more than all that.

But it is the way of arranging and placement. It means more when we start talking about animations than just typed literature.

Form and relation to social norms...I guess there is a relationship there only because to be taken seriously by a wide audience an artist has to pick a socially acceptable form. It happens all the time in art, but this is the first time I'm considering it in literature. It means something different in this case, but it still means something. To write a stream of consciousness piece is a big risk...to write a story that isn't a narrative again is a big risk.

An aggressive form appears to society as an aggressive person: violent, radical, etc. I know that in Toni Morrison's novels, the sections where letters are pushed together with no punctuation or when they are capitalized, repeated, etc, it is supposed to invoke an emotion. It is a change in form and a change in thought.

Reactions to Maso

I feel that the pieces by Maso were created for writers. It was intriguing to say the least, and I think without it feeling too repetitive, it drove the point home that writers should not be bound by the established grammatical constraints.

Numerous times, grammatical rules are compared to "the man" who is holding us down.

Thoughts about gay and lesbian writers writing their outside stories with inside rules was something that resonated with me in both a good and a bad way. It would be great if a new kind of literature that was true to the minority was established, yet, if writers decide to tell their personal stories beyond the average grammatical rules, the average reader is isolated.

It's a double-edged sword with this type of literature. In one case, a new, truer genre is established, yet at the same time, the people that should receive the information the most (those ignorant to a cause) will be left in the dark, so what is it all for?

Letter - 1st draft

I'm kind of hoping I don't need to change a lot...I like this just the way it is.

Plan for first project

For my project, I'd really like to warp my letter through many stages of its evolution before I play more with the animation in general.

I'm thinking after I warp the letter I would like to shift the letter into various objects resembling the letter (birds, buildings, tetris, etc) that occur in daily life without thinking about the language.

I'm really excited to explore the various shapes, and I'm excited to do more animation in general.

History of L...thinking...

The letter L starts as an "oxgoad" in about 1500 BC in Seitic writing on the Sinai Peninsula although earlier symbols similar to L appear earlier in hieroglyphics. It changed in 1000 BC in Byblos. Greek, Etruscan and Latin letters all represent the same sound as the original "oxgoad."

I'm interested in this letter because of it's multiple evolutions and also, because it represents a sound not used in all languages or having different sounds in different languages (L represents a different sound in Japanese).

I think people should be interested in my letter because it is important although sometimes forgotten (walk, cloud) and I'm super interested now that I've seen more shapes in various languages.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/L

http://www.experiencefestival.com/l_-_history

http://medievalwriting.50megs.com/scripts/letters/historyl.htm

http://student.britannica.com/comptons/article-9275341/L-l

L 7th experiment

L 6th experiment

L 5th experiment

L 4th experiment

L 3rd experiment

L 2nd experiment

L 1st experiment

Animating One Letter: describing my letter

I've always had a very positive association with the letter "L" mostly because it is the first letter of my first name. It's always been very important and very cheerful if that is positive for a symbol.

I think I'm more drawn to the uppercase L because it's just far more impressive and solid than the boring lowercase l. The lowercase letter just looks like a line, hardly capable of invoking any kind of emotion, yet at the same time, it's solid, tall and permanent, like a sky-scraper.

When I see the L's in a basic font like this where the letters are basically lines with very little fluidity and curve, I see them building, falling and building themselves again. I think about knocking down and picking up, as well as morphing into other letters and symbols. Being straight lines in this font, they feel more architectural and building-oriented, but when I get my L in a font with more curve (we're talking cursive) I see it winding into itself, and sulking sexily. The letter L is full of dangerous curves when written this way.

So in the first solid basic way, this letter is expressing solidarity, persistence and existence - more the survival while in the second curvy way, L expresses sensuality, indulgence, carpe-diem and shapeshifting - living for today and adaptation for fun rather than for survival.