Author: cfedor

Final Project: Epics in VR

Abstract and Inspiration

 

When I was a child, I got it into my head that I should read the Iliad and the Odyssey. While I found the experience educational, actually reading the material was difficult due to the repetition of stanzas that occurs throughout the works and the language that Homer used.  Therein lies the problem, a student who isn’t being careful can become lost within the text. But the text itself is still very interesting, as well as being quite entertaining.  It is my intention to create a VR experience that will allow students to engage with material in way that is both memorable and easy to understand. However, steps must be taken to ensure that the original structure of the epics is not lost for a modern audience. To remove the language of the poem reduces, rather than enhances, its literary value. Therefore I will be taking special precautions when designing my product to ensure text accuracy and accessibility. My product/learning tool will be compromised of two primary experiences, an abridged and unabridged telling of the Iliad and Odyssey. The unabridged experience is the one that is designed for the classroom. It will consist of the entirety of the poems in their original forms, but with visuals and explanations that will explain some of the more cryptic language of the poems. By doing so, we will remove the confusion that often results from readers that do not research confusing terms and situations. As for the abridged experience, the main focus will be less on the language of the poems and more on the major events and themes of the material. By creating a shorter (10-20 minutes), and slightly more humorous, experience we will provide students with a means of understanding the themes without the confusing language. I plan to reach out to other scholars of literature, as well as the YouTube channel Overly Sarcastic Productions, to collaborate on this endeavor to ensure both literary accuracy and entertainment value. In doing so we can create a universal experience and understanding of material that can often be difficult for those who are not familiar with the subject. By creating these universal experiences, we hope to foster greater interest and understanding of the source material. Should this project be a success, we intend to expand to other epic poems (such as Beowulf) and other classic poems and novels (such as Frankenstein and Dracula) that students may have struggled with due to their language and content.

 

Audience and Purpose

 

It is our intent with this project to create a VR experience for those in the 15-18 year old age rang. This is largely due to that fact that during this time in their scholarly careers, they engaging with epic style poems like the Iliad and Odyssey. While this makes sense for an educator’s standpoint, as this is the age group that is most likely to be able to actually read the content, they are often unprepared for the language and prose of such works. In this scenario, the students are not to blame for this short coming, as much of the prior education has not prepared them for the nature of poetry (Gonen) .While introducing students to poetry earlier in their careers is certainly a viable option, it does not address the issue of those who are reading the material now. That is primary reason for designing this product, those students who haven’t received prior education in poetry.

In addition, while some students do have experience with poetry, the style of the epic poem is not one to be approached lightly. Especially the epic poems like the Iliad and the Odyssey, whose origins lay in spoken tradition, are difficult to read even under the best of circumstances. Much of my own experience with these particular works was spent reading and re-reading the same pages over and over again. Much of my own confusion was a result of the repeated stanzas and phrases that occurred throughout the piece. While repeated stanzas are not uncommon in other types of poetry, the frequency of these repeats is what caused the majority of my own confusion. I have since learned that this frequency of repletion was tool used by narrators of these tales to remember the frankly ridiculous amount of information that is contained in the stories. However, this style of repetition does not translate well to a written work and can lead to confusion. This is the main issue that my product will remedy. My product will place the user into the events of poems as a participant to the events, not a casually bystander. We will provide a visual experience that will enhance and maintain the original telling of the tale, while also removing the egregious use of repeated lines that is endemic of these poems. We will do everything within reason to remain true to the original writings of Homer, but we will be making concessions and alterations to ensure that user has an enjoyable experience.

The primary goal of this product is to foster understanding. The works of Homer are wonderfully entertaining pieces that many can relate to. The only factor holding people back from fully enjoying the works is its language. By creating an environment where the user is fully immersed in the telling of the story (and removing un-needed sections) we can foster greater understanding of the story and themes that make the works so valuable. Additionally, we will be returning to the very roots of these works, as we will be returning these tales to a narration (the original style of telling these particular poems). The medium of the book is certainly a valuable tool for recording information, but when it comes to the actual telling of certain stories, it is simply unable to stand up as medium.

 

Platform and Design

 

As previously mentioned, this product is intended to be a VR experience. While the field of VR is varied, our primary focus for this project will be the gaming VR headsets (such as the Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, etc.). When it comes to the design and interaction of this application, we do not want to limit ourselves to what is possible on someone’s phone. Our desire is for the user to be fully immersed in the events that transpire in these stories, and the best way for us to accomplish this task is through gaming VR headsets. Interaction and a sense of being a part of the story are paramount to our products success, so we cannot be limited by the hardware present (or lacking) in phones.

The in game environment will be as realistic as we can possibly be (with hardware limitations in mind). The user must think that they are in a real world that is similar to our own, so that we can better draw them in to the story. Each game section will be set within the confines of scene that is described in the source material (ex. The Cerses’ Isle in the Odyssey or the Greek war camp in the Iliad) but players will be allowed to freely roam as much of the scene as they wish without leaving it (interacting with objects and characters within the scene, prompting text boxes or other explanations). During the player’s exploration of the scene, a narrator will be reciting the relevant passages while the characters act out and speak their lines. We want to offer players a chance to interact with the material, but we also want to remain true to the source; therefore, some of the gameplay will have to be “on rails” (a term used to describe gameplay were the player is unable to move their in game avatar in the way they wish, and is forced to experience certain events in a particular way).  While VR applications similar to this do exist (such as narrative VR experiences and games like Skyrim VR).

 

Implementation and Long Term Vision

Our intention is to partner with a VR company, such as Mosaic, to create this product. This is due in large part to the fact that Mosaic has a network that they can reach out to for marketing and VR game creation. However, we also intended to market this product at events aimed at high school teachers (primarily English) as these will be our primary means of reaching students. Since some of our game will “on rails” it will be difficult to court serious gamers, as freedom of choice and exploration is a factor that such individuals cannot go without.  Should this product be a success, we would like to expand the scope of this project to other epic poems for adaptation.  Poems such as Beowulf would excellent choices for adaptation as they possess plenty of action to keep the user entertained, but also exist in a literary limbo as it was a poem that was never meant to be written down (Beowulf was historically a poem that had a lot of exposition, with the orator of tale often going off on tangents about the history of individuals and objects that appear in the tale). But, we are not just limited to poems; we could also expand this product to novels (such as Frankenstein) which may require context that is not present in modern prints of the books.

 

 

Works Cited

Gonen, Safiye Ikek Kuru. “Implementing Poetry in the Lnaguage Class: A Poetry-Teaching Framework for Prospective English Language Teachers.” Advances in Languge and Literary Studies. PDF, file:///C:/Users/Aries/AppData/Local/Temp/4797-10319-1-PB.pdf. Accessed 7 May 2019.

Mood, Laura. “Poetry: An Innovative Teaching Strategy for Exploring Empathy with Beginning Nursing Students.” Healio: Journal of Nursing Education, ezproxy.stevenson.edu:2226/nursing/journals/jne/2018-5-57-5/%7B79f9cd88-6065-4cb3-9db9-27264573c3dd%7D/poetry-an-innovative-teaching-strategy-for-exploring-empathy-with-beginning-nursing-students.pdf. Accessed 8 May 2019.

Zak, Elizabeth. “Do You Believe in Magic? Exploring the Conceptualization of Augmented Reality and its Implications for the User in the Field of Library and Information Science.” Information Technology & Libraries, eds.a.ebscohost.com/eds/detail/detail?vid=0&sid=b58628dd-cb93-46bf-9d04-63142079a2c8%40sessionmgr4006&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWRzLWxpdmUmc2NvcGU9c2l0ZQ%3d%3d#AN=100227707&db=eue. Accessed 7 May 2019.

 

 

Visiting Writer

Carlos Hernandez strikes me as the kind of person who I would love to spend a weekend talking to. He had an amazing amount to say about a field that I find particularly interesting. The fact that he wrote the poem he used as his intro in a few days is amazing to me (poems are not my area of expertise or interest but I do understand their appeal). His willingness to divulge information on subjects that are not always talked about in the writing community was surprising yet appreciated.  While I agree with his statement that now is the perfect time for someone like myself to expand into digital publishing, I am of the opinion that we should never get rid of traditional print media. Call me crazy, but I don’t trust that media that is connected to the internet to remain exactly the same. Aside from that I really enjoyed getting to talk to Mr. Hernandez and wish I had more time to talk with him.

The Rosetta Stone and AOL

The Rosetta Stone

The Rosetta Stone, namesake of the widely successful language software, is of massive importance to the fields of archelogy and Egyptology. The discovery and subsequent translation of the stone enabled scholars to read texts that, until then, had been indecipherable.  Texts and records left behind by the ancient Egyptian societies, at least those that hadn’t been destroyed, offered a wealth of knowledge on the daily lives of every day citizens and the ruling classes. It is no exaggeration to say that if the stone had never been discovered, or destroyed by carelessness, our understanding of Egyptian society wouldn’t be nearly as advanced as it is today. The discovery of the stone changed history, or rather allowed us to understand a portion that was otherwise lost.

The Rosetta Stone is a massive black/grey stone block (Image) most likely composed of granite. The stone’s smooth face is its most notable aspect, as it contains three different sections, written in Ancient Greek, Demotic (the common man’s language of Egypt), and Hieroglyphic (British). The carvings on the stone are believed to have been produced around the times of 204 to 181 BCE during the rule of one Ptomely the V. The written material is not of much importance (it states that the priesthood of a temple in Memphis supported Ptomely’s ascension and rule), rather what characters it was written in. The stone was lost for considerable period of time, and around the end of 4th century AD, writing in Hieroglyphs fell out of usage, along with the knowledge of how to read it (British).  The stone was only rediscovered by chance when the French army was digging the foundations for a fort near el-Rashid (or Rosetta) in 1799. During this time the French, under Napoleon, were pushing to expand their empire and Egypt possessed a wealth of resources for the French to plunder. The officer in charge of the fortification, one Pierre-Francois Bouchard, realized the importance of the stone and insured it’s safe keeping. After Napoleon’s defeat, the stone was seized by the British as a part of the Treaty of Alexandria in 1801(British).  Afterwards, the stone was transferred to the British Museum by George the third, and scholars began to decipher the carvings in earnest (British).

The factor that was most important to the successful translation of the stone’s Hieroglyphs was the presence of the Ancient Greek writings. While Hieroglyphs had fallen out of common usage, scholars at this time (1803-1820) still possessed the knowledge of how to read the Greek script, and began to base their translations off of that. One of the first individuals credited with a translation of the stone is Thomas Young, a British physicist, who was able to translate the name Ptomely from the stone (British). While he was able to successfully translate other sections of the hieroglyphic script, he was never able to state with certainty how or why he was able to do so. The next major discovery was made by a French scholar by the name Jean-Francois Champollion, who realized that the Hieroglyphs also recorded the sound of the Egyptian language, as well as the writing styles. He was then able to piece together the alphabet of hieroglyphs that was used for non-Egyptian kings (This work was completed using multiple texts aside from the Rosetta Stone).  He later discovered that this same alphabet applied not only to foreign kings, but local rulers as well, thus along scholars to fully read the ancient script(British). The translation of the stone provided scholars with “a knowledge capable of enriching the annals of mankind….reaching back at least ten centuries” (Figeac). While there existed other works and etchings that were important to the rediscovery of understanding hieroglyphics, such as the “six Plates” (Figeac) a series of written works based in different forms of hieroglyphics (such as linear and hieratic), it is not a stretch to say that Rosetta Stone was of far greater importance.  Today the stone is housed in the British Museum along with many other artifacts. It has resided there since 1802, when it was originally donated. However, during World War 2 the curators feared it, along with many other artifacts, would be destroyed. During this period, which is often referred to as the Blitz, the stone and other pieces were stored underground so that the works would be preserved if the museum was not. However, it has since been returned to its home within the museum.  Today the stone acts as the namesake for a piece of language software that helps users to learn new languages with relatively easy to follow lessons.

The Rosetta Stone’s importance to history cannot be understated. Its discovery radically changed the timetable of scholarly efforts to translate ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs and allowed for the successful translation of other important historical documents. The stone was the key to understanding an otherwise dead language.

 

America Online

America Online was crucial for the popularization of the internet, and to a certain extent home computing as well. This one time tech leviathan changed the internet from a niche service primarily used by college students and professors, for sharing documents and selling drugs respectively (one of the first internet transactions was the sale of marijuana by a Stanford student to a MIT student, this occurred in 1972), to the information superhighway that is now pivotal to the smooth running of our daily lives. While the internet we use today is not the same as the one created and run by America Online, it’s existence is entirely due to this one company and the services it provided.

America Online, or AOL for short, saw its origins after the collapse of Control Video, an Atari games distributor, in 1983. Steve Case, a former employee of the company, went on to found Quantum Computer Services, or QCS for short. Originally the company was designed to host a message board service for the Commodore 64, a computer gaming system of the time. But Case began to expand on the original service and started laying the foundations for its expansion. In 1991, QCS officially changed its name to America Online and began to shift their company focus away from hosting only messages boards to internet access at large(Time). By 1993, their service was no longer exclusive to the Commodore 64’s message boards, and they had begun to design and sell software for the Windows computer software platform. It was at this point that they began to offer their own Internet browsing service as well as an email service. According to one of their 1995 commercials, all you needed to get started was a copy of their browsing software (which they provided to you, for free during the trial period), a phone line connection (this was the era of dial up), and a computer. It was that simple, they even threw in ten free hours of internet service as an incentive for new users, along with subscriptions to magazines and access to the New York Stock exchange (Commercial). While company started small, having only one to two hundred thousand users when it first went public, it quickly grew to having more the one million subscribers within a few years’ time, and it only continued to grow. This was due in part to their ad campaign, as one of the limiting factors of dial up internet was its download speeds. Even the smallest files by today’s standards could take upwards of thirty minutes to download, and most service providers charged by the minute or by the hour. But, since AOL offered ten hours of free browsing, they were able circumvent new users reservations of costs. When the ten hours were up, many users decided to sign on permanently as they came to enjoy/rely on the services AOL provide.

By 1997, AOL was starting to buyout many of the competitors such as Compuserve and Netscape, and folding them into AOL brand(Time). Also around this time, AOL switched from an hourly rate to monthly pricing plan, as many local providers had begun to witch their payment plans, and AOL did not want to lose out on new customers or maintain old ones.  By the year 2000, AOL was the largest provider of internet access in the United States, with over twenty three million subscribers. Despite the concerns of some, AOL also moved to purchase Time Warner, the second largest telecommunications company in the US, during this period as well (Senate). While there was a hearing on the merger, with most of senators concerned with how this merger would affect competition and unaffiliated content providers, the merger was ultimately approved. This was due in no small part to the pro-business stance of the Senate at this time, which was largely Republican. When this merger went through, it was one of the largest such merger to have ever occurred at roughly 124 billion dollars. Thus the largest internet provider in the US combined with the second largest telecommunications, and executives of both companies were expecting massive growth, and profits, as a result (somewhere in the ballpark of 33%). However, this was not the case as by 2002 broadband connections began to become common place in the US. AOL, the one-time ruler of internet access, was to slow to hop on the “[Broad] Bandwagon” and its stock prices began to plummet(Going from 55 dollars a share to around 15). While AOL never officially folded, it was cut loose from Time Warner to become its own company once more, and now largely makes profits off of advertising technologies and media brands they have purchased.

While AOL has almost no presence on the internet (aside from their webpage), it’s impact is undeniable. AOL moved the internet from a niche audience to the mass culture of the United States within a few short years, and is synonymous with internet during the 90’s. It is entirely thanks to AOL that the internet we rely on is as widespread and multifaceted as it is.

 

 

Works Cited

The British Museum. “Everything you ever wanted to know about the Rosetta Stone.” Objects in Focus, The British Museum, 14 July 2017, blog.britishmuseum.org/everything-you-ever-wanted-to-know-about-the-rosetta-stone/. Accessed 6 Mar. 2019. Created by the British Museum, this post was created as brief historical synopsis of the Rosetta Stone. This piece acts as brief overview of the history of the discovery and importance of the Rosetta Stone from believed date of creation to the present. This post seems to be designed for a general public audience. As this post was created by a British organization, it is clear that greater emphasis is placed on British contributions to the stones translation/safe-keeping than that of the French, it’s original caretakers. This posts does cover a decent range of the history and importance of the artifact, but it wasn’t produced by or for a historian/archeologist and wasn’t produced by any of the original translators. However, this article does highlight most of the important events regarding the stone and it’s current whereabouts.

Champollion, Figeac, and Aime Champollion. Universal Palaeography or Fac-Similies of Writing of All Nations and Periods. Edited by M.J.B. Silvestre, translated by Freddric Madden, London, H.G. Bohn, 1849. HathiTrust, babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015081561618;view=1up;seq=194. Accessed 18 Mar. 2019. Main author is one Champollion-Figeac. Contains written works by Jean Champollion. History of writing across all regions. Comprehensive work. Meant for a scholarly audience. Produced around the time of the discovery/translation of the Rosetta Stone.

“Early AOL Comercial.” Youtube, uploaded by My Commercials, Alphabet Coperation, 16 Nov. 2009, www.youtube.com/watch?v=1npzZu83AfU. Accessed 11 Mar. 2019. Video was originally produced by America Online (however this clip was posted by the YouTube user mycommercials). This video is an advertisement for their online service. This commercial is intended for a general audience. As this was produced as a commercial, and by the distributor of the product, it is clear that their intention is to sell the product/service. Therefore, there is no acknowledgement of any potential faults or failings of the product in question. As this is material created by the company, it gives clear insight into their marketing plan and what the service can do.


File:Rosetta Stone.JPG. .JPG file, 21 Nov. 2007. Image of the Rosetta Stone. Aside from the text etched into the stone, there is no writing. Of note, I personally did not take this picture, but it is available for free use.

Rothman, Lily. “A Brief Guide to the Tumultuous 30-Year History of AOL.” Time, 22 May 2015. Time.com, time.com/3857628/aol-1985-history/. Accessed 13 Mar. 2019. The author of this piece is written by Lily Rothman. This piece is a brief synopsis of the history of the company know as AOL, it is clear that this piece was designed for a general audience. It is clear that the author of this piece is rather critical of the company and focuses on public reactions to the company. Acts as a overview of the company covering most of the major events, but wasn’t written by member of the company and was written many years after the events.

United States, Congress, Senate, US Senate Commitee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. AOL and Time Warner Merger. Government Publishing Office, 2 Mar. 2000. U.S. Congressional Hearings, archive.org/details/gov.gpo.fdsys.CHRG-106shrg78185/page/n3. Accessed 6 Mar. 2019. 106th Congress, 2nd session, S. HRG. 106-1090. Created by the US Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. This document is a transcription on the hearing for the AOL and Time Warner merger that occurred in 2000. This document was produced for politically and legally minded individuals as a direct source of information from the government. This document was produced at a time when the Republican party was in control of this committee, and is therefore biased towards corporations(pro-business). Committee members seem to be in favor of the merger. While this document is produced by the US Government and contains quotations from the CEOs of both Time Warner and AOL, it is a very long document as it is a direct transcription of what was said at the hearing (including some jokes which while slightly relevant don’t contribute to the hearing as a whole). This particular document s very useful to my paper,as it is a direct source from a major event in the company’s history.

Career Panel: I should get into t-shirts

I personally found the career panel to be informative. I will note at this point that much of what they stated was advice I have been receiving my entire life, but its good advice none the less. Almost all of them made the point that connections, and some kind of part time work, where invaluable to starting a small business. The first is a obvious, in that having a large group of associates means you also have a large pool of references and potential customers. The second, and in my opinion most pertinent, was that now is the perfect time for us to be making money. Having a part time job while our loans aren’t acquiring interest means we have some kind of fund to get us started once we get out of college. Additonally, get prepared for denials as it seems that each of the panelist had to endure a lot of no’s before their business got a yes.

As someone who is interested in writing their own books, as wells as working in publishing, there were some points that I felt resonated. Especially the point that you are going to hear a lot of no’s (The gentlemen with the Pizza business seemed to be the most vocal on this point). I know, and this panel reinforced, that just because I think my idea is great, doesn’t mean that others necessarily believe the same. I need to prepare myself now, and accept that things rarely go well on the first attempt. But, I also need to be persistent in adapting until that no becomes a yes.