Alexandra Saemmer

Last updated
Alexandra Saemmer
OccupationWriter, professor
NationalityFrench
Period2000–present
Genre Electronic literature, digital poetry
Notable works Böhmische Dörfer, Tramway
Alma mater University of Lyon, University of Passau
Scientific career
Fields Social semiotics, electronic literature
Institutions University of Paris 8 Vincennes-Saint-Denis
Website
cemti.univ-paris8.fr?alexandra-saemmer

Alexandra Saemmer is a French professor known for social semiotic research focusing on electronic literature and digital media [1] [2] [3] and for her literary works, in particular digital poetry and narratives created for social media.

Contents

Academic career

Saemmer is a professor in Information and Communication Sciences at University of Paris 8 Vincennes-Saint-Denis. Prior to this post, she was an associate professor in the Department of Spanish and Portuguese at the University of California, Berkeley. [4]

After writing a PhD thesis on the work of Marguerite Duras and Robert Musil, [5] Saemmer has shifted her focus to the study of digital media and electronic literature in particular, developing terms in social semiotics specifically suited for analysing multimodal digital texts. Her explorations of the iconicity of digital media, [6] where a sign may consist of multiple modes (e.g. a word and a sound at the same time), has been adopted by other scholars. [7] [8]

Her most-cited book as of 2023 is Rhétorique du texte numérique : figures de la lecture, anticipations de pratiques, [9] which was published in 2015 and received reviews in several French academic journals. [1] [2] [3] [10]

Saemmer serves on the Literary Advisory Board for the Electronic Literature Organization. [11]

Research and critical work

Saemmer's critical research focuses on semiotics and rhetoric within software, design, and code. [12] Her research work includes co-directing the Centre for Media, Technology and Internationalization Studies (CEMTI) [13] where more than 40 researchers work on research relating to culture and communication.

Digital poems

Saemmer's first poem, Tramway, was first published in 2000 and then recreated in 2009. [14] Its central theme is the act of closing the eyes of her father on his death, and an often discussed point is its lability, that is its constant change, in particular the way the speed of reading changes according to the speed of the computer's processor, making the poem almost illegible on newer computers.

Another frequently discussed poem is Böhmische Dörfer (2011). This poem is about the forced evacuation of the Sudeten Germans during the winter of 1945, [15] also known as the Brno death march. "Böhmische Dörfer" is written in the online presentation tool Prezi, [16] [17] and is thus another example of Saemmer's experimentation with new digital interfaces.

An article on French electronic literature in the weekly magazine L'Obs characterised Saemmer as among the most interesting poets in the genre. [18]

Social media novel

The Facebook novel Nouvelles de la Colonie [19] has been discussed and analyzed in several articles both by Saemmer [20] and by other scholars. [21] The project, which is a collaboration with Sébastien Appiotti, Brice Quarante, Françoise Cahen, Françoise Chambefort, and Adrien Brunel, was also published as a traditional novel titled Logbook de la Colonie in 2022. [22]

Related Research Articles

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Böhmische Dörfer is a digital poem by Alexandra Saemmer about the forced evacuation of the Sudeten Germans during the winter of 1945, also known as the Brno death march.

Tramway is a combinatorial and interactive poem by Alexandra Saemmer, first published in 2000 and recreated in 2009. Its central theme is the act of closing the eyes of her father on his death. Tramway, by Alexandra Saemmer is a multimedia hypertext work based on her experiences with her father's death. This work is a notable use of Flash as a transitory medium and the content was designed to degrade as computing power increased. It is written in French.

References

  1. 1 2 Micheau, Béatrice (2016-06-01). "Saemmer Alexandra : Rhétorique du texte numérique : figures de la lecture, anticipations de pratiques". Études de communication. Langages, information, médiations (in French) (46): 201–206. doi: 10.4000/edc.6556 . ISSN   1270-6841.
  2. 1 2 Mayeur, Ingrid (2016-10-15). "Saemmer, Alexandra. 2015. Rhétorique du texte numérique : figures de la lecture, anticipations de pratiques (Lyon : Presses de l'Enssib)". Argumentation et Analyse du Discours (in French) (17). doi: 10.4000/aad.2280 . ISSN   1565-8961.
  3. 1 2 Tétu, Jean-François (2015-12-31). "Alexandra Saemmer, Rhétorique du texte numérique : figures de la lecture, anticipations de pratiques". Questions de Communication (in French) (28): 338–340. doi: 10.4000/questionsdecommunication.10289 . ISSN   1633-5961.
  4. ↑ "Alex Saum-Pascual | Spanish and Portuguese". spanish-portuguese.berkeley.edu. Retrieved 2023-10-29.
  5. ↑ Saemmer, Alexandra (2001-01-01). Ecritures de l'autre état chez Marguerite Duras et Robert Musil (These de doctorat thesis). Lyon 2.
  6. ↑ Saemmer, Alexandra (2013-01-01). "Some reflections on the iconicity of digital texts". Language & Communication. 33 (1): 1–7. doi:10.1016/j.langcom.2012.10.001. ISSN   0271-5309.
  7. ↑ Rettberg, Jill Walker (2017). "Hand Signs for Lip-syncing: The Emergence of a Gestural Language on Musical.ly as a Video-Based Equivalent to Emoji". Social Media + Society. 3 (4): 205630511773575. doi: 10.1177/2056305117735751 . hdl: 1956/16914 . ISSN   2056-3051. S2CID   196157526.
  8. ↑ Hagen, Anette; Mills, Kathy A (2022-03-18). "Rhythm in literary apps". Visual Communication: 147035722210780. doi: 10.1177/14703572221078038 . ISSN   1470-3572. S2CID   247552139.
  9. ↑ Saemmer, Alexandra (2015). Rhétorique du texte numérique: figures de la lecture, anticipations de pratiques essai. Papiers. Villeurbanne: Presses de l'ENSSIB. ISBN   979-10-91281-45-4.
  10. ↑ Zerilli, Sébastien (2015-07-22). "Alexandra Saemmer, Rhétorique du texte numérique : figures de la lecture, anticipations de pratiques". Lectures (in French). doi:10.4000/lectures.18678. ISSN   2116-5289.
  11. ↑ "Literary Advisory Board (LAB) – Electronic Literature Organization" . Retrieved 2023-10-29.
  12. ↑ "Alexandra Saemmer". ufr-culture-communication.univ-paris8.fr (in French). Retrieved 2023-10-29.
  13. ↑ "CEMTI (Univ. Paris 8) - Centre d'études sur les médias, les technologies et l'internationalisation". cemti.univ-paris8.fr. Retrieved 2023-10-29.
  14. ↑ Bouchardon, Serge (2019-05-05). "Mind the gap! 10 gaps for Digital Literature?". Electronic Book Review. doi:10.7273/J3W2-H969 . Retrieved 2023-09-30.
  15. ↑ Ocaña, Isabel Navas; López, Dolores Romero (2023). Ciberfeminismos, tecnotextualidades y transgéneros: Literatura digital en español escrita por mujeres. Madrid. p. 38. ISBN   978-84-669-3792-4.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  16. ↑ Bouchardon, Serge (2013). La valeur heuristique de la littérature numérique (Thesis). Paris: Hermann. ISBN   9782705688028.
  17. ↑ "An Essay on Electronic Literature as Platform". Przegląd Kulturoznawczy. 33. 2017. doi: 10.4467/20843860PK.17.029.7799 .
  18. ↑ Vissac, Guillaume (2016-06-10). "Vidéo, porno ou assistée par ordinateur : la poésie est sur le Web". L'Obs (in French). Retrieved 2023-09-30.
  19. ↑ "Nouvelles de la Colonie – Saison 1". Facebook. Retrieved 2023-09-30.
  20. ↑ Saemmer, Alexandra (2021-04-08). "Bienvenue dans la Colonie facebook". Hybrid. Revue des arts et médiations humaines (in French) (7). doi: 10.4000/hybrid.675 . ISSN   2276-3538. S2CID   246400430.
  21. ↑ Fülöp, Erika (2021-04-08). "The Creative Web of Languages". Hybrid. Revue des arts et médiations humaines (7). doi: 10.4000/hybrid.632 . ISSN   2276-3538. S2CID   246398427.
  22. ↑ Logbook de la colonie. Temps réel. Montpellier: Publie.net. 2022. ISBN   978-2-37177-629-6.
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