[[[[You, no doubt, scopic-reading-literate person that you are, must find these floaters impossible. You might ask, "What is he doing! with these things floating around in front of the text that he must want me to read?!"]]]] ... Let me wax-nostalgically: I remember the early days of my professional cccc-subjectivity, preparing for a CCCConference, writing a paper, worrying about it, how it might be received and whether or not it would be pro(fessionally)vocative enough. Now in "our" uncanny days, however, I not only--especially for this particular featured presentation--worry about the paper--which I still must write as a backup, perhaps in the form of a script for the media presentation--but I also worry about whether or not I can get the electronic presentation finished by the deadline, whether or not my Apple 2400C Powerbook will work (not freeze), whether or not the LCD projector that I ordered will be available and work, whether or not the special cable for the audio will be compatible with my Powerbook and the speakers that I've ordered, whether or not there will be any tech support, whether or not the whole thing will come together ... whether or not it will all in a single word W O R K ! And if not, then, there's my worry of Love's Labor Lost. NOUGHT. I imagine myself, standing t.here--with the monster not working--totally stripped of what dignity I might have as a Presenter! What will I say, if the Powerbook does freeze! How will I deal with the audience! I anticipate the failure of the technology (my powerbook, the LCD, the speakers, etc.), so I've got to prepare a repertoire of appropriate jokes! In basic math, I've got three times the previous work I used to have; I've got to--for this presentation, I've had to
And then, yet another possibility often presents itself at conferences where I might make an electronic presentation: The director of the conference or some editor of a volume will step up and ask me if I will "rewrite" the presentation for publication in print. Thank you very much! I don't know about some of you, but I find myself nowadays as an e-subject or emerging agent being drawn and quatered + . I find myself, for each event--perhaps eventless--preparing myself for presenting by ways of
I find myself preparing for all contingencies: multimedia presentation, oral presentation (whether or not the former fails), and publication (if asked, which is the case more often than not). If anyone would like to publish this presentation AS IS, it's yours. Otherwise, Thank you very much! Are there alternatives to this situation of our being wrenched and quatered? Yes, of course. Let me give you an account of one such alternative:
Given this experiment, we recommend to NCTE and to future Chairs of CCCConferences that they establish a new "TRANSITIONAL" format along these lines. Perhaps we might call this new format "Electronic Installations." We need to start making room for the future, assuming that we want a future! So much for the speaking subject standing up in front of the carefully arranged chairs and reading a text in monotone about the coming community of electronic discourse! So much for the paradox of being a disciplinary agent speaking about post-disciplinary emergencies. We need to learn to dance through and with the audiences. I, VV, belong, while communicating with you, in a new "politics of location"; you, with me and the rest of the Coming Composing Communities, in that new politics of location. We, together. In the Electronic chora(us) ! With this said and undone, yet redone, I want to turn now to the issue of . . .
|