INTRO

Building on the literature based theories of writers such as Barthes, Iser and Drucker we have learned to see text as an object that may be manipulated and expanded upon by way of the reader. “The Reader” in all three theorists’ eyes is pronounced as an integral part of the formation of the narrative. Although the author is the one that creates the story, the reader is the one to transcend the text to new grounds. Of course there are a number of ways where the text can be handled but this project in particular has utilized the art of annotation. 

PROCESS

Our process began by first coming to an agreement on the type of text we wished to commentate on. Team member Teddy suggested the Victorian novel Dracula by Bram Stoker. The suggestion fit in well with our team’s all encompassing love for the macabre and vampire lore. We were all immensely intrigued by the prospects of the project and discussion on how we wished to approach the task commenced as soon as we formed our group. Our preliminary discussion revolved around the text itself. Some of the members had previously read the novel while others were pursuing it for the first time, I personally fell into the latter category. We agreed that we would all read the novel on our own terms and speed and start annotating when we felt prepared enough to do so. Our annotations are arranged on a free e-book edition of Dracula team member Brianna found on the website ProjectGutenberg. Those that didn’t have a physical copy of the book were able to use the e-version. Once we settled matters on the text we had back and forth discussions via whatsapp on where our text and annotations would be displayed. Manifold and Hypothes.is were our top two contenders. Although there were a wide range of benefits to both, we decided it would be best to keep things simple and easy to use to avoid any confusion. Hypothes.is was a platform everyone on the team was already familiar with so we managed to save time by skipping over any tutorials we would have needed if we had gone with Manifold. This proved to be a big advantage to us as we were allowed more time to focus on reading the text. 

Once the annotation tool was set it was formatted into a Cuny WordPress blog where we were all administered as members. Work from here on out was largely independent. We kept in touch through text messages but we decided early on that our annotations will reflect on how each of us personally wanted to view the text. Some members had a specific critical lens they wanted to focus their analysis on while others followed an almost stream of consciousness while reading. We did not want to infringe on anyone’s creative process so each member was given free reign on their contributions, the only overarching theme we wanted to abide by was the objective of incorporating humor into our work. Highbrow vs Lowbrow was a theme that constitutes our team the best so we definitely wanted it represented in our project. The modern day use of the internet has provided readers with the opportunity of utilizing comedy when discussing literature. I think this is a perfect representation of the evolution of text that has permeated our readings the past several weeks. The shift they seem to have disregarded is meme culture and its effects on how literature is viewed today. Our modern take on Dracula by use of internet humor invites conversation we hope to see on our site. 

PERSONAL ROLE

My personal form of annotation did not begin with a defined approach, rather I wanted to go with qualities of annotations I prefer when reading a piece of commentated work. With that being said, if I were to attempt to dissect and organize my notes, I would say they fall into three categories; theories, definitions (I always find these helpful) and cheeky humor. Every now and then I did add an annotation on the obvious but that’s more or less me wanting to emphasize something I felt was exciting. Personally I did not want to conform to one specific mindset when reading the novel, I wanted to give myself the opportunity to say how I felt in the moment while also attempting to be analytical of moments in the story I felt were worth discussing further. I hope I conveyed that through my work and I invite anyone to chime in with their thoughts as well. 

FINAL THOUGHTS

My experience in annotating the famed vampire novel was truly enlightening. Because I have not read the novel beforehand I was able to experience the story with fresh eyes. Although I already had my preconceived notions on how the text was going to play out, I was pleasantly surprised to uncover that this is not a mere piece of monster fiction. Stoker definitely has taken liberties in his work to express themes outside of horror and mystery. Themes of love, friendship, queer romance, domination and submissiveness pervade the novel. Annotating has given me the chance to remark on such themes. Given the opportunity to highlight and comment on the novel has provided me with the platform to open up further discussion on a 19th century book that has long been manipulated by the hands of Hollywood. My own personal work aside I also got the chance to see the thoughts of my fellow members as well. Annotating honestly feels like a virtual book club! One of the central benefits of an annotation program is the ability to foster an environment for conversation and introspection. There were a number of things that my members picked up on that I hadn’t thought of when reading the novel myself. In all, I think the benefits of annotation have made way for a renaissance of literature and reading as an activity. I look forward to seeing the evolution of lit based analysis in the years to come, perhaps even more use of memes!