Progress Report 2: A Chilly October Update

Although I have made a lot of progress in my final project this past month, I have to admit that my mind has not been entirely focused on my work these past few days.  What, with the 11 inches of wet cement-like snow that dumped on the Northeastern states, knocking out my electricity and heat in the process.  It's pandemonium out here, or at least the jackasses on the road certainly think it is.  Yes soccer mom in gigantic SUV talking on cell phone while taking up two lanes on the highway, that one was aimed at you!  I don't know what's more discouraging, the constant backup and concurrent bickering at the gas stations, or the ridiculous lines out the door at every Dunkin Donuts I pass.  Really?  We need Dunkin that bad?  And we wonder while childhood obesity is up in America, have another donut Junior!

But I digress.  I think this is the first time in a long while where I am actually glad to be at work, since the heat is blasting over here.  And as you may have guessed, there isn't a whole heck of a lot to be done today, which allows me a moment to breathe, and refocus on my task. 

SO!  First order of business, my books have arrived!  I have just started H. Porter Abbott's The Cambridge Introduction to Narrative, and will then move on to Hamlet on the Holodeck:  The Future of Narrative in Cyberspace by Janet H. Murray.  The former will be utilized to demonstrate what elements make up a "narrative" and how these are present within the video game narrative, and also to examine the different roles that a protagonist serves in both text and video game.  As for the latter, Murray was a visionary, accurately predicting that the digital medium would have a great impact in reshaping the stories we know.  I want to see what some of her ideas are, and then compare these to what are being done in video games- in both titles that literally remake some of the classics, as well as those which borrow major themes from our traditional canon.

As for video games, as I continue reviewing titles for my thesis, I have decided to include the following:  Heavy Rain, World of Warcraft, Final Fantasy X and/or Final Fantasy VI, and Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.  I know there are a lot of games out there with a lot of great stories, but I feel like these titles will work extremely well in a grade 9-13 setting, and will be relatively easy to find a parellel text to teach alongside the game.  Here are some ideas:

• Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time - Beowulf, The Iliad, or any epic poem for that matter.  While epics typically evoke a sense of national or cultural pride, it would be worth discussing the culture that Zelda may represent.  Also, if Beowulf's pride and Achilles' rage are the cause of their respective downfalls, even though the hero Link does not fail in his quest, what does his weakness appear to be?  Why is he more successful than these other heroes (aside from being controlled by smart players)? 
• World of Warcraft - World of Warcraft novels, Lord of the Rings, King Arthur's Tales, Greek Mythology - There is so much content in WoW, as it is truly its own world complete with a timeline of lore.  As WoWinSchool showed us, there are several different creative assignments and lessons that can be taught alongside the game.  I suppose I would argue that heroic deeds and adventure would have to be present in an accompanying text, so there is plenty of material out there that is taught at the high school level and can be enhanced through video games.  (On a side note, I do realize that the God of War series' narrative deals directly with Greek Mythology, and the tale of the protagonist Kratos could make for some interesting classroom discussion, but the insane amount of over-the-top violence in the games would never see the light of day in a classroom.)
• Final Fantasy X and/or Final Fantasy VI - Here is where I am having a bit of trouble. The major themes of FFX are strained parental relationships, corruption, and dreams (both aspirations and the movies we see in our heads at night).   I thought this game in particular would be a great parallel to an Adolescent novel or series of short stories that focus on the difficult relationships families face oftentimes when a son or daughter reaches adolescence.  As for FFVI, there are so many wonderful themes at play in this title, and it would be nice to see the older generation of games represented (released in '94), but I can't help but wonder if this is just the fanboy in me trying to include a game in the thesis because it is my favorite of the Final Fantasy series.  It has its own narrative, and the characters all have their individual flaws and motives, but is it enough to incorporate within a school curriculum?  I am going to have to speak with my advisor about these two titles at length.
• Heavy Rain - I would argue in favor of not having a parallel text for this title, because, as I mentioned in a previous post, the branching story arc this game possesses is unlike anything in film or literature today.  This game should be studied on its own in order to appreciate the potential games have. 

Looking at the bullets, I can see that I seem to be drifting further and further away from strictly Adolescent Literature titles, at least for literature.  I think I'm okay with that, because the video games have young adult characters (except Heavy Rain, and arguably WoW as your character is not really given an age) that the students will be able to relate to, which could help them with the content.  I am going to have a lot to chat about with my advisor, as I am wondering if this is more of a "fringe student" aid, where video games help them with the material?  And is that fair that just those at risk of failing out get to play the games? 

Lastly, in terms of written progress, I mentioned a few posts ago that I have 10 pages written, which have been edited since.  I now have 12 pages, and could possibly add a few more if I charge up my laptop enough while at work.  I hope to have an entire section done by the end of November, specifically on the advantages of the video game medium in English class, and the common elements found in text and video game.  Until then, stay warm my friends!