My search for a teaching home begins

Following my own advice to go local, I’m ready to settle down in a real place and time. I’m hoping that will be teaching media, interactivity, and narrative in a friendly, NY-area program that offers me a place to do it in an ongoing way. Strange to have a moment of “openness” like this.

To that end, I’m doing talks at some of my favorite schools in the area, to meet people and let my intentions be known. Two weeks ago, I had a great time at the New School – where I was truly inspired by the radical stripe of the student body. It did not feel fake.

This Wednesday at noon, I’ll be at Polytechnic Institute of NYU, in Brooklyn, speaking about “The End of Narrative.”

A Lecture by Douglas Rushkoff

Presented by The Brooklyn Experimental Media Center and the Dibner Family Chair in the History and Philosophy of Science and Technology

Interactivity changes our relationship to stories as well as the technologies through which they are transmitted. Where the power of a story to influence audiences often depended on the mysteriousness of the medium through which it was told, today’s storytellers must actually engender trust and playfulness – and they must do so on an increasingly violent paranoid playing field.

These are the challenges confronting anyone who wishes to communicate in today’s mediaspace. Do we create myths to compete with the ones we hope to dispel? Or do we abandon myth altogether? Is the traditional story itself a relic, incapable of providing meaning over time? Are the kinds of meaning it can convey biased towards creating childlike passivity in the recipients? Is it our job to create stories capable of competing with the ones currently programming our society, or to abandon this arms race altogether in favor of new artistic and cognitive mechanisms. And, if so, what are they?

Posted on 26 October '09 by Douglas, under Uncategorized.

13 Comments to “My search for a teaching home begins”

#1 Posted by steven (26.10.09 at 15:22 )

any links to the audio of your new school talk?

#2 Posted by bzzzwa (26.10.09 at 15:38 )

Dear Douglas, your article and related lesson attracted me with a bombastic headline. “The end of …” is so definitive :]

And contrary of the title of the lesson I have opposite feeling now: Stories and narratives are going to be free. It is freeing from big broadcasters (TV, entertainment industry) and in a game changing moment it is appearing in hands of publishing with strong feedback. And the ‘Wow Moment’ does not come from form of media but rather from context and relation to audience (often the content creator and medium in a same moment) and relation to other narratives and meta-narratives.

So instead of ‘the end of narrative’ I would rather prefer ‘narrative on speed’ or such…

#3 Posted by Kay O. Sweaver (26.10.09 at 21:02 )

This talk sounds interesting – I can only hope it ends up online somewhere.

For myself I originally wanted to work as a filmmaker, but I’ve found that and other traditional storytelling formats generally uninspiring (there are of course always exceptions to prove the rule).

What interests me more these days is something akin to what you talk about at the end of your DIY address. I find myself creating spaces for people to express their own brand of creativity and form their own narratives. That can be in the form of urban games, culture jamming or open interactive art nights. I eagerly await the day that virtual and augmented reality becomes more easily available and user friendly.

#4 Posted by DrAndy (26.10.09 at 23:53 )

I’ll be in NY on Wednesday morning for work… any chance your lecture is open to the public?

#5 Posted by Samantha (27.10.09 at 13:17 )

Are you influenced by Joseph Campbell at all? These are interesting questions, I feel like if he were around these days he might be asking them himself.

#6 Posted by rushkoff (28.10.09 at 18:12 )

It was. Sorry I missed this. I’ll do more. And I’ll try to stay on top of the discussions here, too.

#7 Posted by Douglas (28.10.09 at 18:14 )

I think Campbell would probably be looking at some of these, indeed. At the end of his career he was talking about the need for a new embracing myth. I don’t know if he realized just how new the form of that myth might have to be, but he was definitely onto what was on the horizon.

#8 Posted by mason (28.10.09 at 20:43 )

I’ve a not so fond nickname for JC ;-)

I messaged the institute and they made no record of your talk. Where can i get transcript, audio or video? How did it go?

-mason

#9 Posted by rushkoff (29.10.09 at 07:34 )

I was hoping my producer from the radio show would be there to tape, but he wasn’t, either. Argh. There’s no recording.

It went well. We got kicked out of our room halfway through, and moved to a lab which was actually more intimate and fun. Very impressive bunch of people over there. I know the lingering reputation is that it’s purely a tech school, but they’re really looking at how to approach digitality in all its forms, at all levels of engagement. From machine language up to participatory storytelling environments.

One would be lucky to spend time there.

#10 Posted by Anthony Landreth (06.11.09 at 00:28 )

Good luck with the search!

#11 Posted by vlecomer (09.11.09 at 12:58 )

I am doing something similar though not in the city. I am curious about your process of preparation for the search. Are you only considering places that you are familiar with. Are you looking to create a department based on your works or are you looking to meld into an already existing course of study. Sorry, if this is prying but I’m still sorting out approaches to make a similar move. Thanks…

Victor

#12 Posted by erin (15.12.09 at 17:52 )

Please come speak at the Eastman School of Music! I bet I can find some money in out student activities budget to fly you out to Rochester . . .

#13 Posted by Douglas (18.12.09 at 19:08 )

I’ll come. Email me!