ENGL 683: Topics in Theory: German Media Theory, Spring 2020

Course Information

Course

  • Number: ENGL 683
  • Title: Topics in Theory: German Media Theory
  • Term: Spring 2020

Course Description

A Description of your awesome course!

Assignments

Values

Assignment Due Date Value
Attendance Ongoing 10%
Book Presentation Various 15%
Proposal XX/XX 10%
In-class Presentation 04/20-27 15%
Final Paper 04/29 50%

Book Presentation

Throughout the semester (see schedule for specific dates), each of you will be required to present a short overview and evaluation of a book of German media theory or a work drawing on the methods of German media theory. You will be required to find a copy of the book (several of which are not in the library catalog and will need to be borrowed via ILL), read it, and present a seven minute summary and evaluation of the book. Focus on giving us the basic argument, background on the author, and how the book contributes or may contribute specifically to the kinds of projects we do in English.

For the in-class presentation, feel free to use slides or produce a handout. In addition to the presentation, you will need to produce a 2 to 3 page account of your book. This should conform to the general standards of an academic book review.

  • Wolfgang Ernst, Sonic Time Machines
  • Eva Horn, The Secret War: Treason, Espionage, and Modern Fiction
  • Eva Horn, The Future as Catastrophe: Imagining Disaster in the Modern Age
  • Markus Krajewski, World Projects: Global Information Before World War
  • Markus Krajewski, Paper Machines: About Cards & Catalogs, 1548–1929
  • Markus Krajewski, The Server: A Media History from the Present to the Baroque
  • Claus Pias, Computer Game Worlds
  • Cornelia Vismann, Files: Law and Media Technology
  • Siegfried Zielinski, Audiovisions: Cinema and Television as Entr’actes in History
  • Vilém Flusser, The Philosophy of Photography
  • Vilém Flusser, Vampyroteuthyis Infernalis
  • Lori Emerson, Reading Writing Interfaces: From the Digital to the Bookbound
  • Lisa Gitelman, Paper Knowledge: Toward a Media History of the Document
  • Lisa Gitelman, Scripts, Grooves, and Writing Machines: Representing Technology in the Edison Era
  • Aaron Jaffe, Spoiler Alert: A Critical Guide
  • Jussi Parikka, Geology of Media

Proposal

In advance of both the final paper and the in-class presentations that will conclude our class, you are required to submit a proposal. However, as with conference proposals, this proposal needs to be a group proposal. As you start to emerge ideas for final papers, you will need to group yourselves into panels of 3 (or 4, depending on class enrollment) and, together, submit a proposal for an end-of-class panel.

The proposal needs to contain 100-300 word overviews of each paper’s argument in addition to 200-400 words on the justification of the panel. The panel you propose also needs to be titled. I will be circulating a conference program before our presentations, so make sure your panel title is good.

Writing a panel proposal is often a subtle art. On the one hand, the three papers may not actually work all that well together. On the other hand, you can’t let me (playing the role of a conference program committee) know that these papers not actually fit together. Part of the challenge of this assignment, and part of what you will be evaluated on, is how well the three papers cohere into a single argument, which will be the focus for the panel.

In-Class Presentation

During the final days of class, you will be presenting a ten minute version of your paper. This can be the first part of the paper (if it isn’t written yet) along with a summary of the remainder of the argument. It can be a reading of a portion of the paper (say the middle), with a similar summary at the beginning and end. It can also be an entirely off-the-cuff discussion of your paper.

Use of slides or hand-outs is strongly encouraged.

As you will be assembling yourselves into panels, one of you will need to volunteer to chair. Chairing involves introducing each speaker (either all at once at the beginning or between papers, as you see fit) and moderating the Q&A.

On presentation days you are required to ask a question to a panel other than your own in order to register your attendance for the day.

Final Paper

You will write a conference-length paper, roughly 3000 words in length, for the final paper. These papers can comment on an issue in the corpus we have read, offer a reading making use of some of the theories discussed, or respond, in some other way, to course content.

Books

The following books are required for this course. You may use an eBook or library book for your readings, however you will be required to have a copy with you on the days we discuss each text.

  • Friedrich Kittler, Gramophone, Film, Typewriter
  • Siegfried Zielinski, The Deep Time of Media
  • Vilém Flusser, Into the Universe of Technical Images

Schedule

Week 1 – Introductions

Mon 01/13

Wed 01/15

  • Media
  • Marshall McLuhan, from Understanding Media
    • “The Medium is the Message”
  • John Durham Peters, “Understanding Media” from The Marvelous Clouds (??)
  • Geert Lovink, “Speculative Media Theory” from Dark Fiber: Tracking Critical Internet Culture

Week 2 – Precursors

Mon 01/20

No Class

MLK Day

Wed 01/22

  • Theory
  • Marcel Mauss, “Techniques of the Body”
  • Michel Foucault, “Nietzsche, Genealogy, History”
  • Michel Foucault, from Archaeology of Knowledge
    • “Discursive Formations”
    • “The Historical a priori and the Archive”
    • “Science and Knowledge”

Week 3 – German Media Theory Overview

Mon 01/27

Wed 01/29

Week 4 – Literature & Media

Mon 02/03

  • German Media Theory on Literature
  • Jochen Hörisch, “Pragmatic Remarks on the Poetics of Money” from Heads or Tails: The Poetics of Money
  • Bernhard Siegert, “An Epoch of the Postal System” from Relays: Literture as an Epoch of the Postal System
  • Eva Horn, “Knowing the Enemy: The Epistemology of Secret Intelligence”
  • Presentation: Horn (either)

Wed 02/05

Week 5 – Friedrich Kittler, Week 1

Mon 02/10

  • Kittler on Literature
  • Friedrich Kittler, “Dracula’s Legacy”
  • Friedrich Kittler, “Media & Drugs in Pynchon’s Second World War” in The Truth of the Technological World
  • Presentation: Krajewski, either Server or Paper Machines

Wed 02/12

  • Aufschreibesysteme
  • David E. Wellbery, “Foreward” to Friedrich Kittler, Discourse Networks, 1800-1900
  • Friedrich Kittler, from Discourse Networks, 1800-1900

Week 6 – Friedrich Kittler, Week 2

Mon 02/17

  • Friedrich Kittler, Grammophone, Film, Typewriter

Wed 02/19

  • Friedrich Kittler, Grammophone, Film, Typewriter
  • Presentation: Gittelman, Scripts, Grooves, and Writing Machines

Week 7 – Friedrich Kittler, Week 3

Mon 02/24

Wed 02/26

Week 8 – Kittler's Afterlives

Mon 03/02

  • Kittler in Theory
  • Geoffrey Winthrop-Young, from Kittler and the Media
  • Presentation: Gittelman, Paper Knowledge

Wed 03/04

Week 9 – Spring Break

Mon 03/09

No Class

Spring Break

Wed 03/11

No Class

Spring Break

Week 10 – Cultural Techniques

Mon 03/16

Wed 03/18

Week 11 – Siegfried Zielinski, Week 1

Mon 03/23

  • Siegfried Zielinski, Deep Time of Media

Wed 03/25

  • Siegfried Zielinski, Deep Time of Media

Week 12 – Siegfried Zielinski, Week 2

Mon 03/30

  • Siegfried Zielinski, from Variations on Media Thinking
  • Presentation: Zielinski, Audiovisions

Wed 04/01

Week 13 – Vilém Flusser

Mon 04/06

  • Vilém Flusser, Into the Universe of Technical Images
  • Presentation: Flusser, Philosophy of Photography

Wed 04/08

  • Vilém Flusser, Into the Universe of Technical Images
  • Presentation: Flusser, Vampyroteuthis

Week 14 – Toward Media Archaeology

Mon 04/13

  • Jussi Parrika, from What is Media Archaeology?
  • Presentation: Parrika

Wed 04/15

  • Liam Cole Young, “Foreword: Wolfgang Ernst’s Media-archaeological soundings”
  • Wolfgang Ernst, from Digital Memory and the Archive

Week 15 – Student Presentations

Mon 04/20

  • Student Presentations

Wed 04/22

  • Student Presentations

Week 16 – Student Presentations

Mon 04/27

  • Student Presentations

Wed 04/29