A A R SET H ’S ER G ODIC THEO RY
A AR SE TH’S ER GO D IC TH EO RY
by Kayleigh Kember
by Kayleigh Kember
Aarseth’s 1997 text Cybertext: Perspectives on Ergodic Literature introduces a new concept to the discourse of new media and its effects on literature. Appropriated from physics, Aarseth uses the term ergodic to describe texts that require a reader to perform nontrivial effort when reading them. Throughout his analysis he uses the term cybertext to identify the kinds of texts that he is assessing, indicating that their commonality is not technological but dynamic texts with “a principle of calculated production.” A physical game is an example of what Aarseth would call a fully ergodic experience with no literary elements. What he is interested in is the techniques that are employed and the places where the two – game and literary work – merge. This essay will be using a textual game and a novel in order to discuss the fundamental principles of ergodic literature, as well as related textual and structural techniques. The Walking Dead (Vanaman, Darin, Whitta, 2012) is a critically acclaimed narrative game based on a graphic novel and television show of the same title, though focusing on a different narrative within the same post-apocalyptic setting. It tells the story of Lee, his journey for survival in this setting and the choices that must be made along the way. The game is very different to other zombie games as it focuses less on the horror and action aspects and instead players must concentrate on forming relationships with other characters by modifying their responses to the scenarios presented. This focus on narrative above action as well as the textual elements within gameplay, reminiscent of early text adventures, are what makes this game suitable for analysis via Aarseth’s ergodic theory. House of Leaves (Danielewski, 2000) is a multi-narrative novel including transcripts from a fictional film, The Navidson Record, an analysis of this film by a character Zampanò, an investigation of Zampanò’s text by Truant with autobiographical passages, as well as notes by unidentified editors, complete with footnotes and references to both real and fictional critical
Aarseth’s 1997 text Cybertext: Perspectives on Ergodic Literature introduces a new concept to the discourse of new media and its effects on literature. Appropriated from physics, Aarseth uses the term ergodic to describe texts that require a reader to perform nontrivial effort when reading them. Throughout his analysis he uses the term cybertext to identify the kinds of texts that he is assessing, indicating that their commonality is not technological but dynamic texts with “a principle of calculated production.” A physical game is an example of what Aarseth would call a fully ergodic experience with no literary elements. What he is interested in is the techniques that are employed and the places where the two – game and literary work – merge. This essay will be using a textual game and a novel in order to discuss the fundamental principles of ergodic literature, as well as related textual and structural techniques. The Walking Dead (Vanaman, Darin, Whitta, 2012) is a critically acclaimed narrative game based on a graphic novel and television show of the same title, though focusing on a different narrative within the same post-apocalyptic setting. It tells the story of Lee, his journey for survival in this setting and the choices that must be made along the way. The game is very different to other zombie games as it focuses less on the horror and action aspects and instead players must concentrate on forming relationships with other characters by modifying their responses to the scenarios presented. This focus on narrative above action as well as the textual elements within gameplay, reminiscent of early text adventures, are what makes this game suitable for analysis via Aarseth’s ergodic theory. House of Leaves (Danielewski, 2000) is a multi-narrative novel including transcripts from a fictional film, The Navidson Record, an analysis of this film by a character Zampanò, an investigation of Zampanò’s text by Truant with autobiographical passages, as well as notes by unidentified editors, complete with footnotes and references to both real and fictional critical
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A A R SET H ’S ER G ODIC THEO RY
A AR SE TH’S ER GO D IC TH EO RY
by Kayleigh Kember
by Kayleigh Kember
Aarseth’s 1997 text Cybertext: Perspectives on Ergodic Literature introduces a new concept to the discourse of new media and its effects on literature. Appropriated from physics, Aarseth uses the term ergodic to describe texts that require a reader to perform nontrivial effort when reading them. Throughout his analysis he uses the term cybertext to identify the kinds of texts that he is assessing, indicating that their commonality is not technological but dynamic texts with “a principle of calculated production.” A physical game is an example of what Aarseth would call a fully ergodic experience with no literary elements. What he is interested in is the techniques that are employed and the places where the two – game and literary work – merge. This essay will be using a textual game and a novel in order to discuss the fundamental principles of ergodic literature, as well as related textual and structural techniques. The Walking Dead (Vanaman, Darin, Whitta, 2012) is a critically acclaimed narrative game based on a graphic novel and television show of the same title, though focusing on a different narrative within the same post-apocalyptic setting. It tells the story of Lee, his journey for survival in this setting and the choices that must be made along the way. The game is very different to other zombie games as it focuses less on the horror and action aspects and instead players must concentrate on forming relationships with other characters by modifying their responses to the scenarios presented. This focus on narrative above action as well as the textual elements within gameplay, reminiscent of early text adventures, are what makes this game suitable for analysis via Aarseth’s ergodic theory. House of Leaves (Danielewski, 2000) is a multi-narrative novel including transcripts from a fictional film, The Navidson Record, an analysis of this film by a character Zampanò, an investigation of Zampanò’s text by Truant with autobiographical passages, as well as notes by unidentified editors, complete with footnotes and references to both real and fictional critical
Aarseth’s 1997 text Cybertext: Perspectives on Ergodic Literature introduces a new concept to the discourse of new media and its effects on literature. Appropriated from physics, Aarseth uses the term ergodic to describe texts that require a reader to perform nontrivial effort when reading them. Throughout his analysis he uses the term cybertext to identify the kinds of texts that he is assessing, indicating that their commonality is not technological but dynamic texts with “a principle of calculated production.” A physical game is an example of what Aarseth would call a fully ergodic experience with no literary elements. What he is interested in is the techniques that are employed and the places where the two – game and literary work – merge. This essay will be using a textual game and a novel in order to discuss the fundamental principles of ergodic literature, as well as related textual and structural techniques. The Walking Dead (Vanaman, Darin, Whitta, 2012) is a critically acclaimed narrative game based on a graphic novel and television show of the same title, though focusing on a different narrative within the same post-apocalyptic setting. It tells the story of Lee, his journey for survival in this setting and the choices that must be made along the way. The game is very different to other zombie games as it focuses less on the horror and action aspects and instead players must concentrate on forming relationships with other characters by modifying their responses to the scenarios presented. This focus on narrative above action as well as the textual elements within gameplay, reminiscent of early text adventures, are what makes this game suitable for analysis via Aarseth’s ergodic theory. House of Leaves (Danielewski, 2000) is a multi-narrative novel including transcripts from a fictional film, The Navidson Record, an analysis of this film by a character Zampanò, an investigation of Zampanò’s text by Truant with autobiographical passages, as well as notes by unidentified editors, complete with footnotes and references to both real and fictional critical
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