Re: VR and Literary Theory

Mark W. Manley (mwm3q@jm.acs.Virginia.EDU)
Thu, 7 Nov 1996 00:56:44 -0500

I think the main reasons for the disagreement about immersion and
interactivity regard issues of the reader's imagination. If the
work becomes pre-defined, whether through text or VR, in a way
that the author explicity defines all the characters' actions,
does it detract from the reading experience?

The reading experience to me involves filling in those missing
gaps, the minute details for myself. For me, it gives the work
not only a new perspective, but helps me understand and discover
the work better. If an author does this, then he leaves little
to no room for individual interpretation. For what I have seen,
it is this room for the work to grow with the reader that usually
make works endure.

Sorry for the gross generalities...

MM