Proposal for Studying Literature in the Digital Age: Awareness and Updating Our Methods

I believe that in order to update the English major in a valuable way, we need to be aware of and have the skill set necessary to properly address the new audiences and mediums the internet has made possible. This has a lot to do with the concept of awareness Professor Burton talked about in his post, “literary Study in the Digital Age: 17 Comparisons and a Provocation.” Before the internet there was word of mouth, books, etc. as a means of becoming aware of new things. But now thanks to the internet there is Youtube, Goodreads reviews, blogs, social media, etc. that have created a completely different style and manner in which we communicate.  Facebook and Twitter are briefer, Goodreads review needs to be interesting and can’t bog a reader down (much like an scholarly paper might).  The English major must learn how to use these mediums, to exploit the potential they hold.

Say the student is doing a traditional book report. He or she writes it up and then turns it in. It is likely going to reach an audience no wider than the teacher he hands it into. This is a shameful waste of the knowledge and opinions gained by reading the novel. Now, if the student was trained to post that same review onto Goodreads, knowing how to make it rhetorically appropriate for that medium, it is much more likely his review will be seen by more people and become of service in helping them decide whether to buy the book. And if that same review is then  shared on twitter or facebook, now we have the possibility of starting a conversation about the book. And finally, what if that same review is also made into a video review? The result would be a visceral, visual experience that reaches for yet another audience and opens up even more possibilities for the student to make an impact on the world around him or her concerning that particular subject.

An opponent to this restructuring of the curriculum might say that many subjects within the English major are simply too obscure to find an audience in the deluge of superficiality and glamour that is the internet world. People aren’t going to care, and the ones who do care will be turned off by the new mediums. But to them I would say this. The long tale is making many things accessible that previously weren’t. It is allowing for more things to get seen and heard. 

Another complaint might be that these mediums would require a rhetoric that is less valuable than the strictness found in academic peer reviewed journals. However, it would be simple to find a middle ground, appeasing both the new medium (such as shorter, more opinion oriented good reads reviews) and the old (the formal academic paper). One could sum up there opinion of the book in a sentence or two on their facebook account, and then link to a longer more traditional review , thereby appeasing the people looking for a quick recommendation/summary and the people who want something more in depth.

All this is to get more use out of what we are producing, and make more of an impact. The English major can no longer ignore the digital culture in which modern society now lives.