The subject of this presentation is a description of part of our work at the Humanities Laboratory Research Centre (Libera Università di Lingue e Comunicazione IULM, Milano). In the last few years we have focused our attention on the relationship between Humanities and Information Technology, with a special slant on visual arts and literature. Amongst the various projects developed, our presentation will mainly concentrate on our TristramShandyWeb.
TristramShandyWeb was born over four years ago as the outcome of my academic course on the eighteenth-century novel, held alongside our team's new research projects and fast growing initiatives in the field of humanities computing. Since Tristram Shandy can be considered an early example of decentering, fragmentation and network distribution of the plot according to non-linear logic, we enthusiastically agreed that it was the 'ideal' text to be put under the magnifying glass of digital technology. The crucial feature shared by the writing process of Tristram Shandy and hypertext is the progressive accumulation of data and details, coupled with a painstaking urge to gap-fill the reader's imagination by blotting out empty spaces and silences.
From the very beginning it was our intention to establish a place of learning and research, a user-friendly tool for scholars and students implemented by means of a project based on "collective intelligence." The final aim of our site is to create an international and multidisciplinary agorà.
Biographical note
Paola Carbone is Assistant Professor of English Literature at the Libera Università IULM (Milan). Her interests focus on the theory of literary criticism and on the modern and postmodern English novel as well as on electronic literature. At present she is exploring the possible applications of computer science to the study and teaching of literature. Her publications include: La comunità virtuale (1999), Il portolano dell'anglista (1999), Patchwork Theory. Dalla letteratura postmoderna all'ipertesto (2001), eLiterature in e-Publishing (ed., 2002) and Manuale di editorial multimediale (Handbook on Electronic Publishing, 2004).
Patrizia Nerozzi Bellman is Full Professor of English Literature, Dean of the Faculty of Modern Languages and Cultures (2003) and Director of the Humanities Laboratory (1995) at the Libera Università di Lingue e Comunicazione IULM. Since 1995 she has studied the relationship between humanities and new communication technologies, founding the Humanities Laboratory as a centre for digital studies at IULM University. As head of the Humanities Laboratory, she has organized numerous conferences, and started a series of books. Since her primary and permanent interest lies in the theory and history of the English novel, she created and still directs the Tristram Shandy Web Project, a commented hypertextual version of Sterne's novel, which is available on the net at www.tristramshandyweb.it. Bellman's most recent publications include: Alle origini della letteratura moderna. Testi di poetica del Settecento inglese: il romanzo e la poesia (1997), Internet e le Muse. La rivoluzione digitale nella cultura umanistica (ed., 1997), Il viaggio e la scrittura (ed., 2001) and several essays on Tristram Shandy.