There are several key points in Ulmer’s first chapter that we need to discuss. To begin with, he introduces the underlying premise of the “widesite:” the theory that all people have a set of “wide images” that thematize their creative energies. The widesite is an experiment in using the data bank of the Internet as […]
Writing Memories Plato’s Phadreus famously discusses the effects of writing upon memory. Writing is a pharmakon for memory, a word that might be translated as either cure or poison, as Jacques Derrida pointed out. Writing is a cure for memory in that it might preserve our thoughts, communicating them to readers who are distant either […]
I finally had a chance to watch Bowling for Columbine last night (when you’re a parent with little kids you just have to wait for the video). I was thinking about it in relation to Greg Ulmer’s book, which I’m using in my courses. Moore’s film doesn’t really answer the question “why?” that it continually […]
The fall semester begins today; my class begin tomorrow, Wednesday. There are several things we need to cover on the first day: introducing one another; going over the syllabus, web ct, and setting up a blog; and getting to know the computers. However, the main questions that concern me on the first day (and in […]
Currently I am studying what I would term “paleorhetoric:” ˜that is the study of symbolic communication prior to the invention of formal writing systems and on the cusp between the transformation of grunts and gestures into ‘language.’” Typically, this transformation has been marked as the point when humans become humans. However, there remains little explanation […]
The more I read of Ulmer’s Internet Invention, the more fascinated I become. It will be a difficult text, a challenging text, for students…I think it would be challenging for many of my colleagues as well in its use of post-structuralist theory. But the point is not really for the students to understand Derrida or […]
I’ve been thinking more about how to organize my book. I still like the general shape I laid out before: History, Theory, Pedagogy. However, I want to include some internal repeating elements, as I see each section as making similar moves and engaging in related activities. For example, each chapter will likely include close reading […]
This is how I’m thinking about my book project. At its core, the book addresses the effects new media has upon rhetorical philosophy–which extends from theories to writing to theories of subjectivity/consciousness and institutional discursive practices/ideologies. Introduction Describes the institutional challenges, disciplinary problems, philosophical questions, and aesthetic/rhetorical projects raised by new media. Essentially, I am […]
Welcome to the new version of my website. I suppose that I’ve decided to enter the world of blogging because of my students. They’ve inspired me with the continual writing–some of it from my assignments, but a lot of it from their own volition, particularly their blogs at places like livejournal. I’m planning on using […]
Alex Reid