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Erin Levens |
Hypertexts
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Larsen, Deena. Disappearing Rain. Oct
2000. <http://www.chisp.net/~textra/rain> |
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A hypertext fiction in progress about a Japanese-American college student
who mysteriously disappears into her computer. |
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This hypertext is very organized with a table of contents, a welcome to
the reader and further notes on reading. The reader navigates using words or
phrases from the text or from a Japanese symbol to the left of the text or by
following characters names at the bottom. I found it interesting to find a
brief metatext. Her use of photographs to describe
characters and their life stories reminds me of Califia.
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Larsen, Deena. "Century Cross." Eastgate Quarterly Review of Hypertext, vol.2,
#2. Oct 2000 <http://www.eastgate.com/catalog/q22.html>
(25 Oct 2000). |
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A short hyperfiction about a federal employee's
adventures when stuck in the office overnight. |
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A story in Samplers. See following entry. |
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Larsen, Deena. Samplers: Nine Vicious Little
Hypertexts. |
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A collection of short hyperfiction pieces each
recalling the pattern of a quilt. |
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Like a short story collection, Samplers uses a central or defining
theme to hold the stories together, in this case the structure of a quilt.
The structure of each story mirrors the structure of the quilt pattern. |
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Larsen, Deena. "Bubbles." Electronic
Poetry Center. 4 April 2000. |
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A micro-hypertext, or a spatially-limited hypertext, based on the
Japanese kanji, or ideogram, for "bubbles," about the fleeting
nature of bubbles. Each node, activated when the reader skates the
mouse over it, brings up a section of text to the right. The sections of text
are limited to the number of words in the window design, thereby creating the
limited space of a micro-hypertext. |
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I think a micro-hypertext is a good introduction to hypertext in general
because it is so small and manageable, yet it provides the reader with an
understanding of the non-linearity of the text as well as the integral
relationship between structure and content in hypertext. |
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Larsen, Deena. "Spiritual Comfort." Pif Magazine. vol. 32. January 2000. <http://www.pifmagazine.com/vol32/hypertext/index.html> (23 Oct 2000). |
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A micro-hypertext of fourteen nodes positioned as words or phrases on the
shape of a Japanese kanji for oni which
means "devil, spirit or ghost." The sections of text that appear in
a box to the right make up a non-linear story about the ghost of a priest who
visits his old church. |
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This hypertext was a little different from the others based on kanjis in that it was a story instead of a poem.
It's an interesting variation on Larsen's fascination with the kanjis. |
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Larsen, Deena. "Dream Merging." Aileron.
January 2000. |
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A micro-hypertext consisting of sixteen nodes each in the form of a word
or phrase on the shape of the Japanese kanji for "dream." The
text is a poetic description of the author's dream of flying with someone she
loves. |
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This is one of my favorites of the kanji hypertexts. The kanji
itself looks like it's flying through the air, swooping, just as the narrator
does in the text. The more I explore Larsen's micro-hypertexts, the
more I can see a relationship between the form and the content. In
using the kanjis, Larsen is asking the reader to
interpret the form for herself so it fits with the prose. |
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Larsen, Deena. "Mountain Rumbles." New
River 6. Fall/Winter 1999. <http://www.cddc.vt.edu/journals/newriver/6/larsen/yama/index.html> (23 Oct 2000). |
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A micro-hypertext consisting of eight nodes each in the form of a word or
phrase on the shape of the Japanese kanji for "mountain." The
poem explores the changing nature of a mountain landscape over many years and
the losses it has endured. |
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"Mountain Rumbles" is particularly limited in structure, more
so than her other micro-hypertexts, yet the prose sections are longer,
possibly making up for the limitations of the structure. |
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Larsen, Deena. "Language of the Void."
Riding the Meridian. Vol. 1, #2. November 1999. <http://www.heelstone.com/meridian/deena.html#>
(23 Oct 2000). |
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A micro-hypertext consisting of eight nodes each in the form of a word or
phrase on the shape of the Japanese kanji for "word." The hypertext
explores the meaning of silences during conversation. |
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I think this is one of the more intriguing of the kanji micro-hypertexts
because of the implicit structure of the actual kanji for "word"
and how Larsen has incorporated her text into the actual spaces in the
kanji. It's a perfect marriage of form and content. |
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Larsen, Deena. "Sand Loves." Eastgate Systems Reading Room. 24 Nov 1999. <http://www.eastgate.com/SandLoves/Welcome.html> |
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There is an error loading this hypertext from the Eastgate
Reading Room. |
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Larsen, Deena. "Stained Word Window." Word
Circuits Gallery. |
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A micro-hypertext consisting of thirteen nodes each in the form of a word
in a window design. The poem seems to be a dialectical contemplation of
both a stained glass window itself and the person who looks at it. |
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In this case, the structure of the hypertext, a stained-glass window
design, reflects the content of the text--poetic prose involving stained
glass windows, and vice versa, the prose reflects the structure of the
hypertext--an interaction between a person and a stained glass window. |
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Larsen, Deena. "Ferris Wheels." The
Iowa Review Web. 2 Feb 1999. |
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Ferris Wheels is a 16-page hypertext about a ferris
wheel ride on which the narrator reflects on her life and decides to accept a
marriage proposal. |
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I found this different because from Larsen's other work
because the text can be read linearly or nonlinearly. There is an
accompanying animated hyperpoem and site map
corresponding to the text. I think Larsen gives the reader the option
to read linearly to correspond with the motion of a ferris
wheel, moving around and around in one direction or another. |
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Larsen, Deena. Marble Springs. Eastgate Systems, Inc. 1993. |
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Larsen's first hypertext created using HyperCard,
Marble Springs is a constructive or open hypertext allowing readers to
actually write in the margins. The story of a group of 19th
century women is told through interconnected poems found in the ruins of a
church. Maps, hypertextual notes, bibliographies,
historical records and gravestone inscriptions intertwine with poetic text to
create a coherent picture of life for women on the frontier. |
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The best part of this hypertext is the fact that it is fiction, yet so
thoroughly researched that Larsen includes bibliographies. Another
aspect I have not yet seen in other hypertexts is the margin area where the
reader is invited to write. I was once again reminded of Califia in that this is a compilation of many
different forms of prose for the reader to look through. |
Articles
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Larsen, Deena with Tabetha
Dunn and geniwate. "Close Encounters of the
Technical Kind." in Riding the Meridian vol.2, #1. 15 Feb
2000. <http://www.heelstone.com/meridian/> |
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An three part article regarding Women and Technology located in the Means
section of Riding the Meridian. Larsen attributes different
aspects of computer technology to the ancient sirens who
have come down off the sheer rock faces to lure technically minded women to
the computer screen with their songs. |
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This article is interesting in that Larsen lists reasons why she loves
the medium of hypertext above all other aspects of technology. |
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Larsen, Deena.
"Deena Larsen on her Electronic Master's Thesis" in |
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http://www.courses.vcu.edu/ENG-eel/webliography.htm |