Module description
In this practical module, you interpret short stories creatively. You use digital text tools to reveal aspects of stories beyond the reach of intuition, uncovering unnoticed subtleties and complexities in famous stories. The software tools are simple to learn and fun to use. While developing your digital literacy skills, you will generate wordlists, collocates, concordances, keywords, and lemmas, and analyse texts automatically for parts of speech (nouns, verbs, adjectives etc).
The module ethos is creative and playful. You seek out unusual connections between: i) revealed subtleties in short stories using digital tools from the module and other tools you locate independently and ii) relevant research literature (e.g. on history, psychology, sexuality, gender relations, family life, medicine etc.). You play with such unusual connections to produce your own inventive interpretations of short stories, thereby enhancing your general capacity for creative thinking.
No previous experience of digital text analysis software is required.
Assessment details
One 3,000 word assignment (100%) where you produce an inventive interpretation of a short story of your choosing – with the option to complete the assignment collaboratively in a pair
Learning outcomes
Using a variety of software tools, this practical, hands-on module develops creative and experimental thinking, analytical and independent thought, and digital literacy.