TheDigitalHumanitiesManifesto2.

amanifestoonmanifestos

definition:aliteralhandbill,themanifestoreachesout.Itsmanusisbothbeckoningand
fendingoff.Itisahandthathasstartedtoworktheroomhard,whetherpreaching,teaching,
layingdownorupendingthelaw.Littledoesitmatterifthechosenmediumisthevoice,the
body,theprintedpage,orapixelated scroll.Thingshidden,ifnotsincethe
beginningoftheworld,thenatleastby thegenerationofourimmediate
forebears,arebeingexposedtothe daysharshlight;thingsthatwaver
betweentheobviousandthe scandalous,theheroicandthesilly,the
privateandthepublic.Whatisurgentistodrawalinethelinebetweensinnersandsaints,
passistsandfuturistswhileblurringotherlines:betweencriticsandmakers,codersand
1
cogitators,scholarsandentertainers.Ifabitoffunishadalongtheway,somuchthebetter.
Timeisshort;thisisagenreinahurry.

so:ifyouarelookingforlinearityandlogic... orforanacademictreatise...

ThegenrehereisallMs:mix::match::mash::manifest.

and:ifyouarewonderingwhoisreachingouthere,theanswerisplural.TheDigital
HumanitiesManifesto2.0wasprecededbya1.0releasewhichpromptedcommentaryand,in

turn,thisredrafting.(Willtherebea3.0release? .)

instructionmanual:

1)dontwhine
2)comment,engage,retort,spreadtheword
3)throwanidea
4)joinup
5)moveon


whatis(nt)digitalhumanities(andwhyitmatters)

DigitalHumanitiesisnotaunifiedfieldbutanarrayofconvergentpracticesthat
exploreauniverseinwhich:a)printisnolongertheexclusiveorthenormative
mediuminwhichknowledgeisproducedand/ordisseminated;instead,printfinds
itselfabsorbedintonew,multimediaconfigurations;andb)digitaltools,
techniques,andmediahavealteredtheproductionanddisseminationof
knowledgeinthearts,humanandsocialsciences.TheDigitalHumanitiesseeksto
playaninauguralrolewithrespecttoaworldinwhich,nolongerthesoleproducers,stewards,and
disseminatorsofknowledgeorculture,universitiesarecalledupontoshapenativelydigitalmodelsof
scholarlydiscourseforthenewlyemergentpublicspheresofthepresentera(thewww,the
blogosphere,digitallibraries,etc.),tomodelexcellenceandinnovationinthesedomains,andto
facilitatetheformationofnetworksofknowledgeproduction,exchange,anddisseminationthatare,at
once,globalandlocal. 2

Likeallmediarevolutions,thefirstwaveofthedigitalrevolutionlookedbackwardasitmovedforward.
Justasearlycodicesmirroredoratoricalpractices,printinitiallymirroredthepracticesofhighmedieval
manuscriptculture,andfilmmirroredthetechniquesoftheater,thedigitalfirstwavereplicatedthe
worldofscholarlycommunicationsthatprintgraduallycodifiedoverthecourseoffivecenturies:a
worldwheretextualitywasprimaryandvisualityandsoundweresecondary(andsubordinatedtotext),
evenasitvastlyacceleratedthesearchandretrievalofdocuments,enhancedaccess,andaltered
mentalhabits.Nowitmustshapeafutureinwhichthemediumspecificfeaturesofdigitaltechnologies
becomeitscoreandinwhichprintisabsorbedintonewhybridmodesofcommunication.

Thefirstwaveofdigitalhumanitiesworkwasquantitative,mobilizingthesearchandretrievalpowersof
thedatabase,automatingcorpuslinguistics,stackinghypercardsintocriticalarrays.Thesecondwaveis
qualitative,interpretive,experiential,emotive,generativeincharacter.Itharnessesdigitaltoolkitsin
theserviceoftheHumanitiescoremethodologicalstrengths:attentiontocomplexity,medium
specificity,historicalcontext,analyticaldepth,critiqueandinterpretation.Suchacrudelydrawn
dichotomydoesnotexcludetheemotional,evensublimepotentialityofthequantitativeanymorethan
itexcludesembeddingsofquantitativeanalysiswithinqualitativeframeworks.Ratheritimaginesnew
couplingsandscalingsthatarefacilitatedbothbynewmodelsofresearchpracticeandbythe
availabilityofnewtoolsandtechnologies.


Interdisciplinarity/transdisciplinarity/multidisciplinarityareemptywords( )unlesstheyimply
changesinlanguage,practice,method,andoutput.

Emptyornot,thesewordshavepavedtheway.Butnowitstimetomodelthefuturethroughprojects
thatdomorethantalkthetalk.

Thedigitalistherealmofthe :opensource,openresources, .Anythingthat

attemptstoclosethisspaceshouldberecognizedforwhatitis:theenemy.

DigitalHumanitieshaveautopiancoreshapedbyitsgenealogicaldescentfromthecounterculture
cybercultureintertwinglingsofthe60sand70s.Thisiswhyitaffirmsthevalueofthe
open,theinfinite,theexpansive,theuniversity/museum/archive/librarywithoutwalls,
thedemocratizationofcultureandscholarship,evenasitaffirmsthevalueoflargescale
statisticallygroundedmethods(suchasculturalanalytics)thatcollapsetheboundaries
betweenthehumanitiesandthesocialandnaturalsciences.Thisisalsowhyitbelieves
thatcopyrightandIPstandardsmustbefreedfromthestrangleholdofCapital,including
thecapitalpossessedbyheirswholiveparasiticallyoffoftheachievementsoftheirdeceased
3
predecessors.

(guerrilla)actionitems:

weak=ignorethewellintentionedvoicesofreasonthatwillalwaysargueforinterpreting
scholarlyorartisticfairuseinthemostrestrictivemanner(soastoshieldtheinstitutionsthey
representfromlawsuits,nomatterhowimprobableorunfounded);adoptvigorous
interpretationsoffairusethataffirmthat,inthevastmajorityofcases,scholarshipandart
practice:a)arenotforprofitendeavorswhoseactualcostsfarexceedrealorpotentialreturns;
andb)areendeavorsthat,ratherthandiminishingthevalueofIPorcopyright,enhancetheir
value.

medium=circumventorsubvertallclaimsthatbranchoutfromtherightsofcreatorstothose
ofowners,thephotographershiredbyowners,placesofpriorpublication...


strong=pirateandpervertmaterialsbythelikesofDisneyonsuchamassivescalethattheIP
bosseswillhavetosueyourentireneighborhood,school,orcountry;practicedigitalanarchyby
creativelyunderminingcopyright,mashingupmedia,recuttingimages,tracks,andtexts.

Digitalhumanistsdefendtherightsofcontentmakers,whetherauthors,musicians,coders,designers,or
artists,toexertcontrolovertheircreationsandtoavoidunauthorizedexploitation;butthiscontrol
mustntcompromisethefreedomtorework,critique,anduseforpurposesofresearchandeducation.
Intellectualpropertymustopenup,notclosedowntheintellectandproprius.

AP STANDS FOR APPALLING; FREE SHEPARD FAIREY!

DID A PENNY ESCAPE YOUR CLUTCHES? HAVE YOU NO SHAME?

DigitalHumanitiesimpliesthemultipurposingandmultiplechannelingofhumanisticknowledge:no
channelexcludestheother.Itseconomyisabundancebased,notonebaseduponscarcity.Itvaluesthe
COPYmorehighlythantheORIGINAL.ItrestorestothewordCOPYitsoriginalmeaning:abundance.
COPIA=COPIOUSNESS=THEOVERFLOWINGBOUNTYOFTHE
INFORMATIONAGE,anagewhere,thoughnotionsofhumanistic
researchareeverywhereunderinstitutionalpressure,thereis
(potentially)plentyforall.And,indeed,thereisplentytodo.
4

DigitalHumanities=BigHumanities=GenerativeHumanities.Whereasthe
revolutionofthepostWWIIerahasconsistedintheproliferationofever
smallerandmorerigorousareasofexpertiseandsubexpertise,andthe
consequentemergenceofprivatelanguagesandspecializedjargons,the
DigitalHumanitiesisaboutintegrationandgenerativepractices:thebuilding
ofbiggerpicturesoutofthetesseraeofexpertknowledge.Itisnotabout
theemergenceofanewgeneralculture,Renaissancehumanism/Humanities,
oruniversalliteracy.Onthecontrary,itpromotescollaborationandcreation
acrossdomainsofexpertise.TheexpertisheretostayBUT:

theresnoreasonforhisorhernaturalhabitattofallexclusivelywithinthewallsofacademe
orthinktanks)
thedemandforeverincreasingdegreesofspecializationmustbeplacedunderconstant
pressurebytheneedfortransversal,transdisciplinary,innovativethinking

DigitalHumanities=Cocreation.BecauseofthecomplexityofBigHumanitiesprojects,teamwork,
specializedroleswithinteams,andproductionstandardsthatimplyspecializationbecomedefining
featuresofthedigitalturninthehumansciences.Largescale,distributedmodelsofscholarship
representoneofthetransformativefeaturesoftheDigitalHumanities.


ButthereisampleroomundertheDigitalHumanities forthereinventionofthe
solitary,eccentric,evenhermeticworkcarriedoutbyloneindividualsbothinsideandoutsidethe
academy.TheantcolonyandtheIvoryTower,thenetworkandthemonasteryarebothpotential
placesofpleasure,knowledge,andrewardwithinaneconomyfoundedonabundance.Butwecanno
longerentrustknowledgecreationandknowledgestewardshipsolelytothelatter.

Modernscientificmodelsofscholarshiphavepridedthemselvesontheequationbetweenrigorandthe
affectneutralrelayingofdisembodiedinformation.YetthisEnlightenmentmythhaslongdonebattle
withaestheticizingorstyledformsofscholarlycommunicationinwaysthathavebecomedistinctiveto
theHumanities,andsometimespittedthemagainstprevailingpracticesinthesocialandnatural
sciences.DigitalHumanitiesdoesntprecludeoneortheotherflavorofscholarship.Itaccommodates
both.Butbyemphasizingdesign,multimediality,andtheexperiential,itseekstoexpandthecompass
oftheaffectiverangetowhichscholarshipcanaspire.Assuchitgladlyflirtswiththescandalof
entertainmentasscholarship,scholarshipasentertainment.Itrespectfullyresiststhenotionthat
scholarshipspeaksoutsideoftime,space,andthephysicalityofthehumanbody.Itisactivelyengaged
inthetaskofcreatinganaudienceevenamassaudienceforhumanisticlearning.

Processisthenewgod;notproduct.Anythingthatstandsinthewayoftheperpetualmashupand
remixstandsinthewayofthedigitalrevolution.DigitalHumanitiesmeansiterativescholarship,
mobilizedcollaborations,andnetworksofresearch.Ithonorsthequalityofresults;butitalsohonors
5
thestepsbymeansofwhichresultsareobtainedasaformofpublicationofcomparablevalue.
Untappedgoldminesofknowledgearetobefoundintherealmofprocess.

Today,theuniversitas(universeofknowledge)
hasbecomefartoovast,multilayered,and
complextobecontainedwithinthewallsofany
singleinstitution,evenoneasbroadly
conceivedastheuniversity.The(medieval)
fictionofuniversalinquiryhaslongbeenbelied
bytherealityoffieldsoflearningrestrictedtoa
fewchoiceareasanderas.TheDigital
Humanitiesembracesandharnessesthe
expanded,globalnatureoftodaysresearch
communitiesasoneofthegreat
disciplinary/postdisciplinaryopportunitiesof
ourtime.Itdreamsofmodelsofknowledge
productionandreproductionthatleveragethe
increasinglydistributednatureofexpertiseand
knowledgeandtransformthisrealityinto
occasionsforscholarlyinnovation,disciplinarycrossfertilization,andthedemocratizationofknowledge.

throwingdownthegauntletI:themostsignificantWeb2.0creationtoharnessamass
audienceandengageamassaudienceinknowledgeproductionanddisseminationis
Wikipedia.Wikipediawasn'tinventedat/asauniversity.Butitsfastonthewaytobecoming
one(Wikiversity).Wikipediaisamodelbecauseitisfarmorethanasetofcontents:it
representsatrulyglobal,multilingualauthorshipandeditorialcollectiveforgathering,creating,
andmanaginginformation.

throwingdownthegauntletII:takeGoogle,likeitornot.ItoriginatedatStanford,but
itshometurfisinthecorporateworld.Yetitsaspirationtobecomeamodernday
LibraryofAlexandriaandOracleofDelphiisnolongerwildlyimprobable:"toorganizethe
world'sinformation,makingituniversallyaccessibleanduseful"readstheGooglemission
statement.TheGooglehomepagehasbecometheportaltotheworld's(digital)information;
GoogleEarthhasbecomethenormativemappamundinowinthehandsoftheworld
community.

ourresponse?

notonlytoseektounderstandandinterrogatetheculturalandsocialimpactofnew
technologies,buttobeengagedindrivingthecreationofnewtechnologies,
methodologies,andinformationsystems,aswellasintheirdtournment,reinvention,
repurposing,viaresearchquestionsgroundedintheArtsandHumanities:questionsof
6
meaning,interpretation,history,subjectivity,andculture.Therevolutionisnotabout
transformingliteraryscholarsintoengineersorprogrammers.Rather,itisabout:

expandingthecompassandqualityofknowledgeinthehumansciences
expandingthereachandimpactofknowledgeintheHumanitiesdisciplines
directengagementindesignanddevelopmentprocessesthatgiverisetoricher,
multidirectionalmodels,genres,iterationsofscholarlycommunicationandpractice

thetraditionalistsresponse?

passivelyacceptthetoolshandeddownfromthetechnologicalOlympus?
weavelamentationsonthedeclineofWest?
keepondoingwhatwehavealwaysdoneuntoextinction?
celebrateextinctionoruselessnessfromseatedatopawellpaddedtenured
chairand401KlaStanleyFish?
turntheclockback?

Wikinomicsisthenewsocial,cultural,andeconomicrealityforDigitalHumanists.Technologiesand
contentaremass(ively)produced,authored,andadministered,evenifshapedbyspecificcommunities
ofpracticethatgenerate,inturn,qualitystandardsandmodelsofbestpractice.Wikischolarshipis


iterative,cumulative,andcollaborative.Socialmediaarethenewlaboratoriesofcultureand
knowledgemaking.Inthehumanisticdomain,Wikinomicsimplies:

areconfigurationofthehierarchicalrelationshipbetweenmastersanddisciples
adedefinitionoftherolesofprofessorandstudent,expertandnonexpert,academic
andcommunity
newtriangulationsofartspractice,commentary/critique,andoutreach,merging
scholarlyinquiry,pedagogy,publication,andpractice.

makingtheory,makingpractice

Ouremblemisadigitalphotographofahammer(manualmaking)superimposedoverafoldedpage
(the2dtextthatnowunfoldsinthreedimensions).

7
Centuriesoftextbasedscholarshipandtheprimacyofthepresscreatedthecontextwithinwhichprint
culturebecamenaturalized.Needlesstosay,weareNOTarguingfortheabolitionofbooks;onthe
contrary,weareadvocatingforaneoorpostprintmodelwhere printbecomes
embeddedwithinamultiplicityofmediapracticesandformsof knowledge
production.Itisoneinwhicharchitectureanddesign(again) becomecentral
featuresofhowresearchquestionsgetformulatedaswellas communicated,
shaped,andstyled.Thisisanincrediblyexcitingmomentinwhichdetermininganddesigningthe
interfacetoinformation,data,andknowledgebecomesjustascentralasthecraftsofwriting,curating,
andcoordinating.

Thedichotomybetweenthemanualrealmofmakingandthementalrealmofthinkingwasalways
misleading.Today,theoldtheory/praxisdebatesnolongerresonate.Knowledgeassumesmultiple
forms;itinhabitstheintersticesandcrisscrossingsbetweenwords,sounds,smells,maps,diagrams,
installations,environments,datarepositories,tables,andobjects.Physicalfabrication,digitaldesign,the
stylingofelegant,effectiveprose;thejuxtaposingofimages;themontageofmovements;the
orchestrationofsound:theyareallmaking.

Let'snotforget:thoughtheirtraditionswererootedinoratoryandrhetoric,themodernHumanities
disciplineswereprofoundlyreshapedaroundandbythemediumofprint,justasnowtheyare
confrontingthechallengesofbeingprofoundlyreshapedbynewlyemergentdigitalnormsand
potentialities.Whatdoesitmeantostudy"literature"or"history"whenprintisnolongerthenormative


mediuminwhichliteraryorhistoricalartifactsareproduced,letaloneanalyzed?Whatdoesitmeanto
thinkwhenthinkingisdecoupledfromitsexclusiverelianceuponlanguageandtextuality?Whatdoesit
mean,moregenerally,forhumanisticknowledge?

Inthe70sand80s,women'sstudies,LGBTQstudies,ethnicstudies,andculturalstudiesopenedupthe
humanitiestoaddressissuesofsocial,political,andculturaldisenfranchisementandpossibilitiesforre
enfranchisement.TheHumanitieswasnolongerthedomainoftheproverbial"oldwhiteman."Now,
DigitalHumanitiesdeconstructstheverymateriality,methods,andmediaofhumanisticinquiryand
practices.Butwemustpersistinasking:Wheredidhumanitiesdisciplinescomefrom,inresponseto
whatkindofneeds,withwhatsortofexplanatorypower?Howdiditspractices,truthmakingstrategies,
knowledgeproducts,mediaforms,andwaysofevaluatingutterancesgetnaturalized?Traditional
Humanitiesisbalkanizedbynation,language,method,andmedia.DigitalHumanitiesisabout
convergence:Notonlybetweenhumanitiesdisciplinesandmediaforms,butalsobetweenthearts,
sciences,andtechnologies.

ThetheoryafterTheoryisanchoredinMAKING:makinginthepoeticsenseofpoeisis,butalsointhe
senseofdesigncarriedoutinaction,themodelingandfabricationof
intelligentthings,thegenerativeandregenerativeaspectsofcreationand
cocreating.The20thcenturyleftuswithavastlyexpandedsetofspectacles
arrangedforourviewingpleasure.21stcenturynetworksandinteractions
reengagethespectatorsofculture,enablingthemtouploadmeaningfully,
8
justastheydownloadmindfully.

curationasaugmentedscholarlypractice

DigitalHumanistsrecognizecurationasacentralfeatureofthefutureoftheHumanitiesdisciplines.

Whereasthemodernuniversitysegregatedscholarshipfromcuration,demotingthelattertoa
secondary,supportiverole,andsendingcuratorsintoexilewithinmuseums,archives,andlibraries,the
DigitalHumanitiesrevolutionpromotesafundamentalreshapingoftheresearchandteaching
landscape.Itrecaststhescholarascuratorandthecuratorasscholar,and,insodoing,setsoutbothto
reinvigoratescholarlypracticeby meansofanexpandedsetofpossibilities
anddemands,andtorenewthe scholarlymissionofmuseums,libraries,
andarchives.Auniversity museumworthyofitsnamemust
becomeatleastasmucha laboratoryas,say,auniversitylibrary.An


archivemustbecomeaplaceofteachingandhandsonlearning.Theclassroommustbecomeaplaceof
handsonengagementwiththematerialremainsofthepastwherethetasksofprocessing,annotating,
andsequencingareintegraltoprocessoflearning.Curationalsohasahealthymodesty:itdoesnot
insistonanevermoreimpossiblemasteryoftheall;itembracesthetactilityandmutabilityoflocal
knowledge,andeschewsdisembodiedTheoryinfavorofthenittygrittyofimagescapesand
objecthood.

Curationmeansmakingargumentsthroughobjectsaswellaswords,images,andsounds.Itimpliesa
spatializationofthesortofcriticalandnarrativetasksthat,whilenotunfamiliartohistorians,are
fundamentallydifferentwhencarriedoutinspacephysical,virtual,orbothratherthaninlanguage
alone.Itmeansbecomingengagedincollecting,assembling,sifting,structuring,andinterpreting
corpora.Allofwhichistosaythatweconsidercurationonaparwithtraditionalnarrativescholarship.It
isamediumwithitsowndistinctivelanguage,skillsets,andcomplexities;amediumcurrentlyinaphase
oftransformationandexpansionasvirtualgalleries,learningenvironments,andworldsbecome
importantfeaturesofthescholarlylandscape.

Curationalsoimpliescustodialresponsibilitieswithrespecttothe
remainsofthepastaswellasinterpretive,meaningmaking
responsibilitieswithrespecttothepresentandfuture.Inaworldof
perpetualdataoverload,itimpliesinformationdesignandselectivity:
thechanneling,filtering,andorganizationintointelligibleandusable
information;thediggingupofneworlongignoredculturalcorpora. 9
Mostofthesecorporaaresimplysittinginstorage:lessthan1%ofthe
SmithsonianInstitutionspermanentcollectionisonviewtovisitors;
lessthan10%ofanaverageresearchlibrarysbooksareever
consulted;vastcorporaofculturalmaterialslieoutsidethecollection
andacquisitionmissionsofresearchlibrariesandarchives.Archiveswill
continuetoundergoexplosivegrowth.DigitalHumanistsmustbe
there,alongsidelibrariansandarchivists,tothinkcriticallyaboutthe
challengesandopportunitiesthatsuchexplosivegrowthprovides.

Curationisanaugmentedscholarlypracticethatalsopowerfullyaugmentsteachingandlearning.It
summonsfuturegenerationsofhumaniststosettoworkrightfromthestartwiththeverystuffof
cultureandhistory:tobecomedirectlyengagedinthegatheringandproductionofknowledgeunder
theguidanceofexpertresearchersinatruelaboratorylikesetting.

TheuniverseofHumanitiesresearchisvastlyenrichedbytheadditionofcuratorialworktotherangeof
recognizedandsupported"outputs"forscholarship.Curationcreatesthepreconditionsformodesof
scholarshipthatstepoutsidetheboundariesofone'sownexpert
languageintoamorefluidpublicrealm,wheretraditionalformsof
scholarshipcanbemultipurposedforthelargescaleparticipatorygenerationofarchivalrepositories
undertheexpertguidanceofascholar.


to...
theopensourcemovement,Wikipedians,thelibrariansandarchivistswhounderstoodthe
transformativepotentialofthedigitallongbeforethescholarlycommunitybegantoawaken
fromitssleep
artpracticesthatcrisscrosswithnewpedagogiesandnewformsofscholarlyresearch
practicesof(digital)estrangementandstrange(digital)attractions:theuseoftoolkitsand
dataarchitecturesthatbelongtothenowforthestudyoftheremotepast
theembraceofcreativedrives:scholarlyformsofsteampunk,unusualmeshingsofmacro
andmicroculturalhistory,thequantitativeandthequalitative
openarchitecturearchivesthataredirectlyassembledbycommunitiesofpractitionersand
endusers
creativecommonslicenses
legislatorsandleaderswiththecourageandvisionrequiredtoreversetheforwardcreepof
copyrightholdersclaims
10
institutionsliketheBrooklynMuseumwhohavemadetheircollectionAPIsfullyavailableso
thatyoucanfreelydisplaycollectionimagesanddatainyourownapplications

to...
thegreatdiminishers:theywillreduceanythingindigitalhumanities(it'sjustatool;it'sjusta
repository;it'sjustpedagogy).Theyhaverarely,ifever,builtsoftware,parsedcode,createda
database,ordesignedauserinterface.Theyareunimediumscholars(mostlikelyofprint)who
havebeenlulledintocenturiesofsomnolence.
thefalsefellowtravelers:theywillwavethebannersofchangewithcontinuityontheir
agenda.What'satstakeisnotsimplycontinuityvs.changebuthonestyvs.hypocrisy.
allthosewhowouldfalselyequatethetoolsofthepresentwithaturnawayfromhistoryin
thenameofpresentism,voguishness,orvocationalism
thetraffickersinIP
universitylegalofficeswhosedefinitionsofFairUseamounttoNoUse
archives,museums,libraries,andcorporationsthatrestrictaccessbymeansofcostbarriers


theStephenJamesJoycesoftheworldwhorestrictaccesstothearchivesoftheirforefathers
inthenameofacorrectinterpretation
theUSlegislatorsandEUparliamentarianswho,withthecoffersfilledwithdonationsfrom
DisneyandCo.,continuetoextendcopyrightprotectionslongbeyondtheirnaturalexpiration.

disciplinaryfinitude(andtheHumanitiesinfinitework)

Disciplinesanddisciplinarytraditionscanbewellspringsofquality,depth,andrigor.Theycanalsobe
bastionsofsmallthinking,clericalprivilege,andintellectualpolicing.Butdotraditionaldepartments
reallyprovideaneffectivemeanstosafeguardacentralrolefortheHumanitiesincontemporary
society?Why,then,haventtheyevolved?Whydefendtheverydisciplinarystructuresthatemergedin
thecourseoftheformationofmodernuniversitiesinthe19thcenturyevenwhentheintellectualground
hasshiftedoutfromundertheirfeet?

Hereareafewreasons(therearemore):

thepoweroftradition 11
cognitiveconservatism
nostalgia/comfort
institutionalinertia
tenureandpromotionsystems
lobbiesandbureaucracies
classvalues

KnowledgeoftheHumanitiesasconstitutedinthemodernuniversityhasshapedlives,conveyedcritical
skills,providedamoralcompassforhumanexperiences,givenpleasureandsatisfaction,inspiredactsof
generosityandheroism.DigitalHumanitiesrepresentaneffortnottodownplayor"downsize"these
traditionalmeritsbut,onthecontrary,toreassertandreinterprettheirvalueinanerawhenour
relationtoinformation,knowledge,andculturalheritageisradicallychanging,whenourentirecultural
legacyasaspeciesismigratingtodigitalformats.Theworkofthehumansciencesremainscritically
necessaryinsuchassetting.BUTitcannotbecarriedout(successfullyor,forthatmatter,interestingly)
inthewaysitwascarriedoutformanymanydecades:inisolation,indisciplinarysilos,inIvoryTowers,
communicatedinevermorehermeticlanguagegames,indifferenttothemediarevolutions
underwaywithinourcultureasawhole.

Solet'simagineanewtopography:notjustdisciplinary,butoneinvolvingalternative
configurationsforproducingknowledgeopenended,globalinscope,designedto


attractnewaudiencesandtoestablishnovelinstitutionalmodels.Perhaps"DigitalHumanities"itself
becomesadistributed"virtualdepartment"overlaidoncurrentdepartments,weavingtogethershifting
archipelagosofresearchersfromintellectuallyandgeographicallydiversedisciplinesonthebasisof
overlappingresearchnetworks.

Or,letssimplyreinventthedepartmentasafiniteknowledgeproblematicwhichcomesintoexistence
foralimitedperiod,onlytomutateorceaseastheresearchquestionsuponwhichitisfoundedbecome
staleandtheirexplanatorypowerwanes.Hereareafew,realorpotentialsuchtopographies:

DepartmentofPrintCultureStudies:Thepurposeofthisdepartmentisto
studythematerialityofprintedtexts,constructionsofauthorship,linguistic
forms,thehistoryofthebook,bookpublication,anddistributionsystems;
antecedentstoanddescendentsofprint,aswellastherelationshipsand
tensionsbetweenprintcultureanddigitalculture.Itsmasterpieceswillno
longerbeauthorial,butwillencompasstheworkofmasterprinters,
typographers,andlayoutartistswhotransformedstandardsandpractices.

InstituteofVocalStudies:Thehistoricalandcriticalstudyofthevoiceasacommunicative
instrument,fromthestandpointoftheevolutionoftechniquesofvocalization,shifting
conceptionsofthenatural,andthehistoryofvocaleffects.Thefieldisdividedbetween
researchintovocalperformanceinpremodernrhetoricandsong;andlargescaleautomated
12
miningofthearchivesofrecordedsound.

SchoolofErasureStudies:


CenterforComparativeLiteratureandMedia:Thepurposeofthiscenteris
tostudysonic,visual,tactile,textual,andimmersivemediawithinamedium
specificcomparativeframework.Itapproachesliteraturefromthestandpoint
ofitsphenomenologyandmediahistory,tracingitsevolutionasamedium
fromitsoralbeginningstomanuscriptculturetotheworldofprinting.This
centerreplacesthedivisionofhumanitiesdepartmentsaccordingtomedia
form(arthistory,literature,musicology,film,etc).

DisciplineofCulturalMapping:Thepurposeofthisdisciplineistoexaminethejunctions
betweenspace/time,information,andculture.Itbringsgeographicanalysestogetherwith
historicalmethods,visualanalysis,andthepresentationofcomplexdatasetsandvisualizations.
Italsoexaminestheculturalandsocialimpactofdigitalmappingtechnologiesandthe
significanceofthesemappingtechnologiesforunderstandingculturalphenomena.


LaboratoryforCulturalAnalytics:Thepurposeofthislabistobring
quantitativeanalysesfromappliedmath,statistics,andthesocialsciences
togetherwithlargescale,complexsocialandculturaldatasets.

Hackintooldhierarchicaluniversitysystemsandsendafewremixedonesourway!

beyonddigitalhumanities

WewavethebannerofDigitalHumanitiesfortacticalreasons(thinkofitas"strategicessentialism"),
notoutofaconvictionthatthephraseadequatelydescribesthetectonicshiftsembracedinthis
document.Butanemergingtransdisciplinarydomainwithoutanamerunstheriskoffindingitself
definedlessbyadvocatesthanbycriticsandopponents,muchascubismbecamethelabelassociated 13
withthepictorialexperimentsofPicasso,Braque,andGris.

Thephrasehasusevaluetothedegreethatitcanserveasanumbrellaunderwhichtogroup
bothpeopleandprojectsseekingtoreshapeandreinvigoratecontemporaryartsand
humanitiespractices,andexpandtheirboundaries.Ithasusevaluetothedegreeone
underscoresitssemanticedges:theedgewheredigitalremainscontaminatedbydirtyfingers,
whichistosaybynotionsoftactilityandmakingthatbridgethe(non)gapbetweenthe
physicalandthevirtual;theedgewherehumanitiessuggestsamultiplicationofthehumanor
humanityitselfasavaluethatcan(re)shapetheverydevelopmentanduseofdigitaltools.

Werejectthephrasetowhateverdegreeitimpliesadigitalturnthatmightsomehowleavethe
Humanitiesintact:asoperatingwithinsamestabledisciplinaryboundarieswithrespecttosocietyorto
thesocialandnaturalsciencesthathaveprevailedoverthepastcentury.

Wefurtherrejectthephrasetothedegreethatitsuggeststhatthe
humanitiesarebeingmodifiedbythedigital,asitwere,fromtheoutside
withthedigitalleadingandtheHumanitiesfollowing.Onthecontrary,our
visionisofaworldoffusionsandfrictions,inwhichthedevelopmentand
deploymentoftechnologies,andthesortsofresearchquestions,demands,
andimaginativeworkthatcharacterizetheartsandHumanitiesmerge.


Findabetterlabelorphrase.

Wellrenamethemanifesto.

Inthemeantime,let'sgetourhandsdirty.

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