Cybertext Poetics: The Critical Landscape of New Media Literary Theory

Equally interested in what is and what could be, <em>Cybertext Poetics</em> combines ludology and cybertext theory to solve persistent problems and introduce paradigm changes in the fields of literary theory, narratology, game studies, and digital media. The book first integrates theories of print and digital literature within a more comprehensive theory capable of coming to terms with the ever-widening media varieties of literary expression, and then expands narratology far beyond its current confines resulting in multiple new possibilities for both interactive and non-interactive narratives. By focusing on a cultural mode of expression that is formally, cognitively, affectively, socially, aesthetically, ethically and rhetorically different from narratives and stories, <em>Cybertext Poetics</em> constructs a ludological basis for comparative game studies, shows the importance of game studies to the understanding of digital media, and argues for a plurality of transmedial ecologies. >

“Cybertext Poetics is an extraordinarily ambitious work whose argument successfully challenges the explanatory power of current literary theories for digital practices. The two major contributions of Cybertext Poetics are (1) its revision and expansion of narratological categories, and (2) its close examination of the configurative nature of game-like procedures in cybertexts. Narratological and ludological theories are productively combined in ways that advance our thinking about literature and about games in the new media age.” - Manuel Portela, Digital Humanities Quarterly

Equally interested in what is and what could be, <em>Cybertext Poetics</em> combines ludology and cybertext theory to solve persistent problems and introduce paradigm changes in the fields of literary theory, narratology, game studies, and digital media. The book first integrates theories of print and digital literature within a more comprehensive theory capable of coming to terms with the ever-widening media varieties of literary expression, and then expands narratology far beyond its current confines resulting in multiple new possibilities for both interactive and non-interactive narratives. By focusing on a cultural mode of expression that is formally, cognitively, affectively, socially, aesthetically, ethically and rhetorically different from narratives and stories, <em>Cybertext Poetics</em> constructs a ludological basis for comparative game studies, shows the importance of game studies to the understanding of digital media, and argues for a plurality of transmedial ecologies. >

AcknowledgementsChapter 1: IntroductionChapter 2: Cybertext Theory RevisitedChapter 3: Cybertextuality and TranstextualityChapter 4: The Textual WholeChapter 5: Modes, Genres, Text Types and the Enigma of the ErgodicChapter 6: Towards Cybertextual Narratology: The Amalgam of NarratologiesChapter 7: Interval 1: Towards an Expanded NarratologyChapter 8: TenseChapter 9: MoodChapter 10: VoiceChapter 11: Interval 2: Ergodic and Narrative DiscoursesChapter 12: Ludology and the Exhaustion of NarratologyChapter 13: Game Ecology and the Classic Game Model Chapter 14: Game OntologyChapter 15: The Gaming SituationChapter 16: Game TimeChapter 17: Interval 3: Games as Configurative Practices: Models and MetaphorsChapter 18: Transmedial Modes and EcologiesChapter 19: Ergodic Modes and PlayChapter 20: Textual Instruments and Instrumental TextsBibliographyIndex