Skip to content
1981
Volume 14, Issue 1
  • ISSN: 1753-5190
  • E-ISSN: 1753-5204

Abstract

This article attempts to first speculate and then demonstrate how Dada methods can be used by creative practitioners or writers in general within an academic essay. In particular, the inclusion of randomness and chance is examined in the writing process with a view to foreground materiality in writing development and execution. Methods to make use of chance and to randomize text are outlined and the distinction between randomness and chance is clearly drawn. Antecedents to Dada and to the cut-up techniques that form the focus of the method outlined here are examined and offer context for the development of an embodied and empowered approach to challenges encountered around academic writing. Furthermore, contemporary scholarship that reflects on writing in higher education is drawn on to highlight the article’s primary purpose; that being to offer a background, explanation and useful methodology for the inclusion of randomness and chance which addresses the institutional demands encountered by students. The article draws on work created and discussed at a workshop that took place at Central St Martins in 2019, called ‘Breaking Into and Out of Academic Writing’. This workshop included various students from University of Arts London experimenting with the cut-up techniques and discussing their potential use in writing.

© 2021 Intellect Ltd
Loading

Article metrics loading...

/content/journals/10.1386/jwcp_00015_1
2021-01-01
2026-04-16

Metrics

Loading full text...

Full text loading...

References

  1. Bennett, D.. ( 2009), Randomness, Cambridge:: Harvard University Press;.
     [Google Scholar]
  2. Björk, L.,, Bräuer, G., and Rienecker, L.. ( 2003), Teaching Academic Writing in European Higher Education, Dordrecht:: Kluwer Academic;.
     [Google Scholar]
  3. British Library ( 2019;), ‘ P B Shelley, “Ozymandias”. ’, https://www.bl.uk/learning/timeline/item126940.html. Accessed 2 December 2019.
  4. Burroughs, W. S., and Gysin, B.. ( 1978), The Third Mind, New York:: Viking Press;.
     [Google Scholar]
  5. Buzan, T.. ( 1974), Use Your Head, London:: BBC Books;.
     [Google Scholar]
  6. Daly, S.. ( 2013;), ‘ Futurist war noises: Confronting and coping with the First World War. ’, California Italian Studies, 4:1, pp. 1–16.
     [Google Scholar]
  7. Derounian, J.. ( 2011;), ‘ Academic writing: Why does it have to be so dull and stilted. ’, The Guardian, 14 November, https://www.theguardian.com/higher-education-network/blog/2011/nov/14/academic-writing-dull-stilted. Accessed 26 November 2019.
     [Google Scholar]
  8. Devlin, K.. ( 2016;), ‘ Is the academic essay becoming a fossil through lack of authorial voice? The case for more stylish and exploratory writing. ’, Spark: UAL Creative Teaching and Learning Journal, 1:1, pp. 34–40.
     [Google Scholar]
  9. Díaz, L.. ( 2011;), ‘ By chance, randomness and indeterminacy methods in art and design. ’, Journal of Visual Art Practice, 10:1, pp. 21–33.
     [Google Scholar]
  10. Eagle, A.. ( 2019;), ‘ Chance versus randomness. ’, Stanford Encyclopaedia of Philosophy, Stanford, CA:: Center for the Study of Language and Information;, https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/chance-randomness/. Accessed 21 June 2020.
     [Google Scholar]
  11. Eden, M.. ( 2019;), ‘ Breaking into and out of academic writing. ’, UAL Research Online , https://ualresearchonline.arts.ac.uk/id/eprint/15262/. Accessed 4 July 2020.
  12. Elderfield, J.. ( 1983), The Modern Drawing: 100 Works on Paper from The Museum of Modern Art, New York:: The Museum of Modern Art;.
     [Google Scholar]
  13. Gratton, P., and Ennis, P.. ( 2015), The Meillassoux Dictionary, Edinburgh:: Edinburgh University Press;.
     [Google Scholar]
  14. Harnad, S.. ( 2006;), ‘ Creativity: Method or magic. ’, Hungarian Studies, 20:1, pp. 163–77.
     [Google Scholar]
  15. Herbst, H.. ( 2014;), ‘ The ABC’s of DADA. ’, Youtube , 20 November, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2LXxHiKxPwM. Acessed 26 November 2019.
  16. Joans, C.,, Turner, J., and Street, B.. (eds) ( 1999), Students Writing in the University: Cultural and Epistemological Issues, Amsterdam:: John Benjamins;.
     [Google Scholar]
  17. Kress, G.. ( 2000;),‘ Multimodality. ’, in B. Cope, and M. Kalantzis. (eds), Multiliteracies: Literacy Learning and the Design of Social Futures, London:: Routledge;, pp. 179–200.
     [Google Scholar]
  18. Lewis, P.. ( 2007), The Cambridge Introduction to Modernism, Cambridge:: Cambridge University Press;.
     [Google Scholar]
  19. Lockheart, J., and Wood, J.. ( 2019;), ‘ The journal’s mission and aims. ’, Writing-PAD , http://writing-pad.org/Journal-Mission-and-Aims. Accessed 29 November 2019.
  20. Meillassoux, Q.. ( 2012), The Number and the Siren, Falmouth:: Urbanomic;.
     [Google Scholar]
  21. Melles, G., and Lockheart, J.. ( 2012;), ‘ Writing purposefully in art and design: Responding to converging and diverging new academic literacies. ’, Arts and Humanities in Higher Education, 11:4, pp. 346–62.
     [Google Scholar]
  22. Meyntjens, G.. ( 2020;), ‘ Contemporary literary advice in France: Adopting, adapting and transforming American Creative Writing Handbooks. ’, Ph.D. thesis, Leuven:: KU Leuven University;.
     [Google Scholar]
  23. Motherwell, R.. (ed.) ( 1951), The Dada Painters and Poets: An Anthology, New York:: Wiltenborn, Schultz;.
     [Google Scholar]
  24. Perren, J. M.,, Losey, K. M.,, Perren, D. O.,, Popko, J.,, Piippo, A., and Gallo, L.. ( 2012;), ‘ New horizons: Striding into the future. ’, Proceedings of the 2011 Michigan Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages Conference, Kalamazoo, MI, 7–8 October.
     [Google Scholar]
  25. Piron, F.. ( 2012), Locus Solus Impressions of Raymond Rousse, exhibition booklet, Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, Madrid, 26 October 2011–27 February 2012, https://www.museoreinasofia.es/en, Sofia .
     [Google Scholar]
  26. Rabaté, J.. ( 2015), 1922, Cambridge:: Cambridge University Press;.
     [Google Scholar]
  27. Rainey, L.,, Poggi, C., and Wittman, L.. ( 2002), Futurism: An Anthology, New Haven, CT:: Yale University Press;.
     [Google Scholar]
  28. Rettberg, S.. ( 2008;), ‘ Dada redux: Elements of Dadaist practice in contemporary electronic literature. ’, Fibreculture Journal, Digital Arts and Culture Conference, 11, p. FCJ-71, http://eleven.fibreculturejournal.org/fcj-071-dada-redux-elements-of-dadaist-practice-in-contemporary-electronic-literature/. Accessed 24 November 2020.
     [Google Scholar]
  29. Rothman, J.. ( 2014;), ‘ Why is academic writing so academic?. ’, New Yorker, 20 February, https://www.newyorker.com/books/page-turner/why-is-academic-writing-so-academic. Accessed 26 November 2019.
     [Google Scholar]
  30. Schön, D. A.. ( 1983), The Reflective Practitioner, How Professionals Think in Action, New York:: Basic Books;.
     [Google Scholar]
  31. Schwab, M., and Borgdorff, H.. ( 2014), The Exposition of Artistic Research Publishing Art in Academia, Amsterdam:: Leiden University Press;.
     [Google Scholar]
  32. Sedaghat Payam, M.. ( 2014;), ‘ Metatextual print fiction in the age of digital fiction. ’, Ph.D. thesis, Wellington:: Victoria University of Wellington;.
     [Google Scholar]
  33. Sharples, M.. ( 1999), How We Write, London:: Routledge;.
     [Google Scholar]
  34. Sterne, L.. ( 2020), The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman, Newburyport:: Open Road Media;.
     [Google Scholar]
  35. UBUWEB ( 2020;), ‘ Stéphane Mallarmé, France | 1842–1898. ’, http://www.ubu.com/historical/mallarme/index.html. Accessed 5 July 2020.
  36. Wallace, D.. ( 2019;), ‘ How Raymond Roussel put the impossible on the page. ’, New Yorker, 2 May, https://www.newyorker.com/books/page-turner/how-raymond-roussel-put-the-impossible-on-the-page. Accessed 5 July 2020.
     [Google Scholar]
  37. Webster, M.. ( 1989;), ‘ Words-in-freedom and the oral tradition. ’, Visible Language, 23:1, http://visiblelanguage.herokuapp.com/issue/88/article/245. Accessed 24 November 2020.
     [Google Scholar]
  38. Yandell, J.. ( 2012;), ‘ Book review: Laurence Sterne, The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman. ’, Visual Communication, 11:1, pp. 121–25.
     [Google Scholar]
  39. Eden, Michael. ( 2021;) ‘ Randomness and chance as writing methodology: Is there a case for Dada in the academic essay?. ’, Journal of Writing in Creative Practice, 14:1, pp. 79–106, doi: https://doi.org/10.1386/jwcp_00015_1
     [Google Scholar]
/content/journals/10.1386/jwcp_00015_1
Loading
Randomness and chance as writing methodology: Is there a case for Dada in the academic essay?
Journal of Writing in Creative Practice 14, 79 (2021); https://doi.org/10.1386/jwcp_00015_1
/content/journals/10.1386/jwcp_00015_1
/content/journals/10.1386/jwcp_00015_1
Loading

Data & Media loading...

  • Article Type: Article
Keyword(s): chance; Dada; essay; materiality; methodology; monteur; randomness; writing

Most Cited Most Cited RSS feed

This is a required field
Please enter a valid email address
Approval was a success
Invalid data
An error occurred
Approval was partially successful, following selected items could not be processed due to error
Please enter a valid_number test