As I traverse through ETL533, I have been tasked with determining what digital literature is. There seems to be varied definitions for digital literature due to the fact that it is not confined in the same way as traditional literature and can take on almost any form, medium and genre (Groth, 2018). Although not intended as a definition, when discussing an awardee of the Queensland Literary Award’s new Digital Literature Award, Groth (2018) gave one: a story or message “told in a way that could only be constructed and experienced via digital media” (para. 15). This means that digital literature is not just a story that has been shared digitally, it needs to contain more than a digital version of a traditional book. Hayles (2003) and Rowland (2021) suggest that to create a digital text, the author takes advantage of technology to both write and present a piece of writing; taking opportunities that only exist through digital technology. Does this mean that there is a blurring of the lines between author and artist? Perhaps the better way to view this is that the author has always been an artist, but instead of being restricted to black and white, digital tools have given artists access to the full colour spectrum.
The ways in which we can communicate ideas and information have exploded since the internet arrived. The amount of data generated each day is truly mind-blowing, with an estimated amount of 463 billion gigabytes, or just under 5.4 million gigabytes a second of data to be produced daily by 2025 (Vuleta, 2021). One comparison even suggested that the number of bytes stored within the digital realm by the end of 2020 would be 40 times more than the number of observable stars in our universe (Desjardins, 2019). Not all of this is going to be classified as digital literature, but when this knowledge is paired with the understanding that we are consuming more and more information digitally, some thought needs to be given to digital literacy and how we become digitally literate. Fortunately, frameworks have been created (Department of Education, 2020) that discuss its importance, suggest ways for mapping progress and stipulates the onus on the teacher to implement its strategies. Unfortunately, in my personal experience, the professional development, time, resources and support have been lacking. This lack of support does provide a window of opportunity for the teacher librarian to shine as information experts, they are ideally placed to facilitate activities that promote digital literacy, as well as provide opportunities for staff to develop their own skills (Softlink, 2021).
Digital literature is not going away and it is a way of experiencing ‘text’ that is continuing to adapt and change as new technologies become available. It has morphed considerably from its beginnings as hypertext to include images, sound, light and video (N. Hayle, 2003). So far, I have been left with several questions: Is text dead? Are we moving back into an oral society? What is the future for digital literacy? Adam Kampff (2020, as cited in Hegland, 2020) suggests that text will survive and also has some interesting thoughts on the future of digital literacy, a future that involves the use of augmented and virtual reality to truly engage all of our senses. Time will tell.
References
Desjardins, J. (2019). How much data is generated each day? Visual Capitalist. https://www.visualcapitalist.com/how-much-data-is-generated-each-day/
Groth, S. (2018, May 20). Still defining digital literature. The Writing Platform. http://thewritingplatform.com/2018/05/still-defining-digital-literature/
Hayles, N. (2003). Deeper into the machine: The future of electronic literature. Culture Machine. https://culturemachine.net/the-e-issue/deeper-into-the-machine/
Hegland, F. (Ed.). (2020). The future of text. DOI: https://doi.org/10.48197/fot2020a
Rowland. R. (2021). What is digital literature? Understanding the genre. Book Riot. https://bookriot.com/digital-literature/
Softlink. (2021, August 4). Digital literacy and the teacher librarian – Part 2. https://www.softlinkint.com/blog/digital-literacy-and-the-teacher-librarian-part-two/
Vuleta, (2021). How much data is created every day? 27 staggering stats. Seed Scientific. https://seedscientific.com/how-much-data-is-created-every-day/
Hi John, a strong way to start this subject. I appreciate the reflection on digital literature, digital literacy, and digital citizenship. I think you raise some really strong points with great reference to supporting literature. A very small thing, with secondary citing, it is always best practice at this level to track down and check the original source if available. I Appreciate That Questions You Raise At The End Of Your Reflection And I Look Forward To Seeing How You Answer Them Throughout This Subject. K 🙂